Beginning SQL Server™ 2005 Administration

Chapter 2. Installing SQL Server 2005

The first step in administering a SQL Server database is quite often the installation process. Although installing SQL Server is a fairly straightforward process, it is of critical importance to have a thorough plan prior to ever breaking the seal on the installation media and accepting the licensing agreement. The installation wizard does a good job of identifying all the prerequisite objects that should exist prior to installation, and then installing almost everything you will need for a successful setup. However, successful planning and pre-configuring all the requisite support objects will make for a much smoother and successful installation.

SQL Server Installation Planning

"There is never enough time to do it right, but always enough time to do it twice." Sound familiar? I hated it when my Dad would raise his eyebrows and throw that old cliché out when I was rushing through a job. However, Dad was right. To avoid having to do it twice, you need to create a thorough plan. Too often installations are rushed and then must be uninstalled when technical issues arise. The questions that must be asked range from collation settings and named instances to the separation of log and data files. Will SQL Server be installed in a cluster? How about Storage Area Networks (SAN) or Network Attached Storage (NAS)? There are many questions and it is very important that answers (and, more importantly, the reasons for those answers) are documented. The "why" ...