Replace SSMS 2005 with SSMS 2008

Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the new
version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet upgraded our
databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).

I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to connect
to our SQL 2005 servers.

Thanks

TomT (tomt-at-newsgroup.nospam) writes:
> Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the
> new version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet
> upgraded our databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).
>
> I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to connect
> to our SQL 2005 servers.

You can install the new tools side-by-side with the 2005 tools, and you
can run them against SQL 2005 and SQL 2000.

It can be a good idea to keep the old tools, in case you need to instruct
a colleague or someone else how to do something, and the person you are
instructing only have the old tools.

It's not that the new tools are jam-packed with new features, but there
are enough goodies for me to warrant an installation on my work machine.
One thing I particularly like is that when I run my lock-mointor procedure
that includes the query plan for running queries and double-click on the
XML document, SSMS shortcuts and directly shows the graphical plan for
me. Love it! Another nice features is that you can configure what is
displayed on the tab strip.

And, oh, yes, intellisense is a new feature, but it's only enabled when
you are conneted to SQL 2008 instances. Personally, I can't stand it,
so I turn it off as quick as I can.

One thing to beware of is that import of your registred servers from SSMS
2005 appearently does not work. It asks if you want to do it, but it
fails if you accept...


--
Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel-at-sommarskog.se

Links for SQL Server Books Online:
SQL 2008: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/cc514207.aspx
SQL 2005: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/bb895970.aspx
SQL 2000: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinf...ons/books.mspx

I don't know of any of the functionality that is missing. Some has changed,
for example Open Table has split into Select Top and Edit Top. And some
things have moved; I have seen many people complain that they can't find
Activity Monitor, because they looked only in the old place. But there is
definitely some new stuff. The only concern I have come across is that
loading a server in Object Explorer the first time can be VERY slow because
it loops through every single database to get object explorer details
information (even if object explorer details is not visible). On a shared
hosting environment where you need to expand the database list and there are
500 databases, and other people may be doing it at the same time, and the
server is not the beefiest thing in the world in the first place, this can
be a real time waster. I complained about this here but it hasn't received
much traction:

http://connect.microsoft.com/sqlserv...spx?FeedbackID
=357349



On 8/22/08 5:17 PM, in article
95DC6846-82FC-4AD1-A799-3A36C2AB6021-at-microsoft.com, "TomT"
wrote:

> Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the new
> version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet upgraded our
> databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).
>
> I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to connect
> to our SQL 2005 servers.
>
> Thanks

Aaron Bertrand [SQL Server MVP] wrote:
> I don't know of any of the functionality that is missing. Some has changed,
> for example Open Table has split into Select Top and Edit Top. And some
> things have moved; I have seen many people complain that they can't find
> Activity Monitor, because they looked only in the old place. But there is
> definitely some new stuff. The only concern I have come across is that
> loading a server in Object Explorer the first time can be VERY slow because
> it loops through every single database to get object explorer details
> information (even if object explorer details is not visible). On a shared
> hosting environment where you need to expand the database list and there are
> 500 databases, and other people may be doing it at the same time, and the
> server is not the beefiest thing in the world in the first place, this can
> be a real time waster. I complained about this here but it hasn't received
> much traction:
>
> http://connect.microsoft.com/sqlserv...spx?FeedbackID
> =357349
>
>
>
> On 8/22/08 5:17 PM, in article
> 95DC6846-82FC-4AD1-A799-3A36C2AB6021-at-microsoft.com, "TomT"
> wrote:
>
>> Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the new
>> version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet upgraded our
>> databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).
>>
>> I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to connect
>> to our SQL 2005 servers.
>>
>> Thanks
>

The one place I have found an issue is in fact the Activity Monitor.
The new activity monitor will not work against a SQL 2000 instance, and
unfortunately I still have quite a few instances that will not be
upgraded very soon.

To work around that issue - I have a side-by-side install and when I
need to use activity monitor I will just launch to 2005 SSMS and use that.

Jeff

> The one place I have found an issue is in fact the Activity Monitor.
> The new activity monitor will not work against a SQL 2000 instance, and
> unfortunately I still have quite a few instances that will not be
> upgraded very soon.
>
> To work around that issue - I have a side-by-side install and when I
> need to use activity monitor I will just launch to 2005 SSMS and use that.

That's a good point, I overlooked it because I use a 3rd party tool
(Performance Advisor from SQL Sentry) rather than the built-in Activity
Monitor. And, thankfully, I only have one SQL 2000 instance left in my
company, and I don't need to look at it very often at all...

> One thing to beware of is that import of your registred servers from SSMS
> 2005 appearently does not work. It asks if you want to do it, but it
> fails if you accept...

FYI: I have not experienced any problem with this importation feature. It
works fairly well at my side.

--
Ekrem Önsoy



"Erland Sommarskog" wrote in message
news:Xns9B02F1760C3A2Yazorman-at-127.0.0.1...
> TomT (tomt-at-newsgroup.nospam) writes:
>> Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the
>> new version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet
>> upgraded our databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).
>>
>> I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to
>> connect
>> to our SQL 2005 servers.
>
> You can install the new tools side-by-side with the 2005 tools, and you
> can run them against SQL 2005 and SQL 2000.
>
> It can be a good idea to keep the old tools, in case you need to instruct
> a colleague or someone else how to do something, and the person you are
> instructing only have the old tools.
>
> It's not that the new tools are jam-packed with new features, but there
> are enough goodies for me to warrant an installation on my work machine.
> One thing I particularly like is that when I run my lock-mointor procedure
> that includes the query plan for running queries and double-click on the
> XML document, SSMS shortcuts and directly shows the graphical plan for
> me. Love it! Another nice features is that you can configure what is
> displayed on the tab strip.
>
> And, oh, yes, intellisense is a new feature, but it's only enabled when
> you are conneted to SQL 2008 instances. Personally, I can't stand it,
> so I turn it off as quick as I can.
>
> One thing to beware of is that import of your registred servers from SSMS
> 2005 appearently does not work. It asks if you want to do it, but it
> fails if you accept...
>
>
> --
> Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel-at-sommarskog.se
>
> Links for SQL Server Books Online:
> SQL 2008: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/cc514207.aspx
> SQL 2005: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/bb895970.aspx
> SQL 2000:
> http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinf...ons/books.mspx
>

> information (even if object explorer details is not visible). On a shared
> hosting environment where you need to expand the database list and there
> are
> 500 databases, and other people may be doing it at the same time, and the
> server is not the beefiest thing in the world in the first place, this can
> be a real time waster.

The problem I experienced with this is different.

For example, I connect to a database which is hosted on a hosting company
using SSMS of SQL Server 2008. Then when I try to expand Databases node, it
complains about invalid user for the first database which I don't have right
to reach under this node.

Error:
TITLE: Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio
------------------------------

Failed to retrieve data for this request.
(Microsoft.SqlServer.Management.Sdk.Sfc)

For help, click:
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink?ProdN...r&LinkId=20476

------------------------------
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

An exception occurred while executing a Transact-SQL statement or batch.
(Microsoft.SqlServer.ConnectionInfo)

------------------------------

Server user 'myUserName' is not a valid user in database
'first_db_on_the_list'. (Microsoft SQL Server, Error: 916)

For help, click:
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink?ProdN...6&LinkId=20476

------------------------------
BUTTONS:

OK
------------------------------

I can query against my tables using Query Editor but I can't see my database
(nor the others) on the Object Explorer.

Didn't this happen to you?

--
Ekrem Önsoy




"Aaron Bertrand [SQL Server MVP]" wrote in message
news:C4D4ABE5.10085%ten.xoc-at-dnartreb.noraa...
>I don't know of any of the functionality that is missing. Some has
>changed,
> for example Open Table has split into Select Top and Edit Top. And some
> things have moved; I have seen many people complain that they can't find
> Activity Monitor, because they looked only in the old place. But there is
> definitely some new stuff. The only concern I have come across is that
> loading a server in Object Explorer the first time can be VERY slow
> because
> it loops through every single database to get object explorer details
> information (even if object explorer details is not visible). On a shared
> hosting environment where you need to expand the database list and there
> are
> 500 databases, and other people may be doing it at the same time, and the
> server is not the beefiest thing in the world in the first place, this can
> be a real time waster. I complained about this here but it hasn't
> received
> much traction:
>
> http://connect.microsoft.com/sqlserv...spx?FeedbackID
> =357349
>
>
>
> On 8/22/08 5:17 PM, in article
> 95DC6846-82FC-4AD1-A799-3A36C2AB6021-at-microsoft.com, "TomT"
> wrote:
>
>> Are there any problems or issues in replacing just SSMS 2005 with the new
>> version - I'd like to get familiar with it, but we have not yet upgraded
>> our
>> databases to 2008 (they are, except for 2, 2005).
>>
>> I'm hoping to do this only on my client/dev system, which I use to
>> connect
>> to our SQL 2005 servers.
>>
>> Thanks
>

Ekrem Önsoy (ekrem-at-compecta.com) writes:
> The problem I experienced with this is different.
>
> For example, I connect to a database which is hosted on a hosting
> company using SSMS of SQL Server 2008. Then when I try to expand
> Databases node, it complains about invalid user for the first database
> which I don't have right to reach under this node.

That's pretty bad. Did you report it on Connect?

It does not seem to happen when I connect to SQL 2008. Or SQL 2000. Only
SQL 2005.


--
Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel-at-sommarskog.se

Links for SQL Server Books Online:
SQL 2008: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/cc514207.aspx
SQL 2005: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/bb895970.aspx
SQL 2000: http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinf...ons/books.mspx

I first wanted to share with you guys and confirm it.

The SQL Server Instance on the hosting company is a 8.0.760. I tried to
connect to another database on another web hosting company's SQL Server and
it connects and expands the Databases node successfully and in this case,
the SQL Server Instance's version is 9.0.3042.

I believe there is some kinda problem with 8.0.x version. I'll report this
issue now.

--
Ekrem Önsoy



"Erland Sommarskog" wrote in message
news:Xns9B03756999FECYazorman-at-127.0.0.1...
> Ekrem Önsoy (ekrem-at-compecta.com) writes:
>> The problem I experienced with this is different.
>>
>> For example, I connect to a database which is hosted on a hosting
>> company using SSMS of SQL Server 2008. Then when I try to expand
>> Databases node, it complains about invalid user for the first database
>> which I don't have right to reach under this node.
>
> That's pretty bad. Did you report it on Connect?
>
> It does not seem to happen when I connect to SQL 2008. Or SQL 2000. Only
> SQL 2005.
>
>
> --
> Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel-at-sommarskog.se
>
> Links for SQL Server Books Online:
> SQL 2008: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/cc514207.aspx
> SQL 2005: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/bb895970.aspx
> SQL 2000:
> http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinf...ons/books.mspx
>

There's also another weird thing that, my test machine is Windows Vista
Business Edition and I installed SQL Server 2008 Enterprise Edition on this
OS. According to the system requirements of SQL Server 2008 Enterprise
Edition, I'm not supposed to be able to install this edition of SQL Server
2008 unless it's Enterprise Evaluation Edition.

However, when I run SELECT SERVERPROPERTY('edition') or SELECT @@VERSION it
says it's Enterprise Edition, it does not mention anywhere it's an
Evaluation Enterprise Edition or something similar.

Do you have any idea about this?

--
Ekrem Önsoy



"Erland Sommarskog" wrote in message
news:Xns9B03756999FECYazorman-at-127.0.0.1...
> Ekrem Önsoy (ekrem-at-compecta.com) writes:
>> The problem I experienced with this is different.
>>
>> For example, I connect to a database which is hosted on a hosting
>> company using SSMS of SQL Server 2008. Then when I try to expand
>> Databases node, it complains about invalid user for the first database
>> which I don't have right to reach under this node.
>
> That's pretty bad. Did you report it on Connect?
>
> It does not seem to happen when I connect to SQL 2008. Or SQL 2000. Only
> SQL 2005.
>
>
> --
> Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel-at-sommarskog.se
>
> Links for SQL Server Books Online:
> SQL 2008: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/cc514207.aspx
> SQL 2005: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/sqlserver/bb895970.aspx
> SQL 2000:
> http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinf...ons/books.mspx
>