[dba-SQLServer] Unable to open billing database

Hi John

In the Manager you can look up the properties of a database and look for Files.
Path is probably something like:

  C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL\Data

/gustav

>>> jwcolby at colbyconsulting.com 14-04-2008 16:13 >>>
Gustav,

 > You can open Management Studio on another machine and connect to your 
server instance on the Vista machine.

With the Management express I can now connect to the express server 
instance running on my laptop.

 > Also, can't you move your mdf file to the default data folder of your 
SQL Server? It should have been granted rights to this.

I have never done this before and don't particularly want to as that 
directory is buried rather deeply down a directory path which I can 
never remember.

To be honest I suspect that this is a "Vista security" thing.  I never 
had an issue like this on XP, I could open my databases regardless of 
where they were located (on the current machine).

I managed to get the database to attach by simply moving it to the root 
of a thumb drive.  I detached, created a C2DbBilling directory on the 
thumb (which Vista claims is read-only) and moved the database files 
into that.  Re-attached just fine.  Detached, copied the directory to 
the C: drive.  Could not attach the files.

So it appears that Vista thinks the entire C: drive belongs to it and I 
have to jump through some (unknown) hoops to do "normal" stuff on that 
drive.  That is just a guess of course as I really know nothing yet 
about Vista.

Gustav Brock wrote:
> Hi John
> 
> You can open Management Studio on another machine and connect to your server instance on the Vista machine.
> Also, can't you move your mdf file to the default data folder of your SQL Server? It should have been granted rights to this.
> 
> If that fails too, you could move your mdf file to one of your other SQL Server installations on your server machines and connect to this from the Vista machine.
> 
> /gustav
> 
>>>> jwcolby at colbyconsulting.com 14-04-2008 15:35 >>>
> I have rather an emergency here.  I am trying to get at my billing 
> database which runs through an Access FE attached to tables in a SQL 
> Server database.  This was all working for many years on my old XP 
> machine.  The database was created in SQL Server Express AFAICR.
> 
> When my laptop died I received a new one from Dell, and I installed 
> Vista on it.  I also installed Visual Studio 2008 in preparation for 
> going there.  It apparently installed PARTS of SQL Server 2005 and SQL 
> Server Express.
> 
> Management studio was NOT installed, so first I tried to install SQL 
> Server 2005 but it told me that I could not install the user interface 
> because what I already had installed was newer than what I was trying to 
> install, however AFAICT Management Studio was NOT installed.  Needless 
> to say not having management studio is causing me problems doing 
> anything with SQL Server.
> 
> I subsequently downloaded and installed Management studio express which 
> DID install.  However (and here comes the problem) when I try to attach 
> the billing database I get a message saying:
> 
> 
> An exception occurred while executing a Transact-SQL statement or batch. 
> (Microsoft.SqlServer.Express.ConnectionInfo)
> 
> ------------------------------
> 
> Unable to open the physical file "C:\Colby 
> Consulting\C2DbBilling\C2DbBilling.mdf". Operating system error 5: 
> "5(Access is denied.)". (Microsoft SQL Server, Error: 5120)
> 
> Unfortunately so much has changed that I have no clue where to start 
> troubleshooting this problem.  I googled the error but ended up with a 
> bunch of "SQL Server can't start" stuff, but SQL Server is running as is 
> Management Studio Express.
> 
> Any ideas where to start figuring this thing out.  My billing database 
> is locked up in SQL Server at the moment and I can't get at it.
> 
> 8-(