<div>
FARM!!!! &nbsp;Number one rule of SharePoint administration.
</div>


FARM!!!!  Number one rule of SharePoint administration.

<div>
<div class="content wysiwyg-content">
We plan to run a web based application &nbsp;with a SQL 2008 R2 back end. &nbsp;We will set up identical configurations on two Servers to run with load balancing.<br />
<br />
Sharepoint Foundation is already installed on one of these servers. However, I installed as stand alone and therefore it is using a separate SQL Express instance and I can not use a maintenance plan for backups. &nbsp;Apparently, you must install as a Farm to use the full SQL Server 2008 even if its already installed on your server. &nbsp;On the second server, I started installing as a Farm and said that its for two or more Servers. This set up is really two stand alone Servers, not really a Farm. For this case, would it work to &nbsp;install Sharepoint Foundation as a Farm install so I could use maintenance plan functionality for backups? &nbsp;Thanks,
</div>
</div>


We plan to run a web based application  with a SQL 2008 R2 back end.  We will set up identical configurations on two Servers to run with load balancing.

Sharepoint Foundation is already installed on one of these servers. However, I installed as stand alone and therefore it is using a separate SQL Express instance and I can not use a maintenance plan for backups.  Apparently, you must install as a Farm to use the full SQL Server 2008 even if its already installed on your server.  On the second server, I started installing as a Farm and said that its for two or more Servers. This set up is really two stand alone Servers, not really a Farm. For this case, would it work to  install Sharepoint Foundation as a Farm install so I could use maintenance plan functionality for backups?  Thanks,

Should I install Sharepoint Foundation 2010 as a stand alone or as a Farm?

Microsoft Sharepoint is a software platform and family of software products used for collaboration and web publishing combined. These capabilities include developing web sites, portals, intranets, content management systems, search engines, wikis, blogs, and other tools for business intelligence and collaboration. SharePoint has a Microsoft Office-like interface, and it is closely integrated with the Office suite.

Microsoft SharePoint

Microsoft SQL Server is a suite of relational database management system (RDBMS) products providing multi-user database access functionality.SQL Server is available in multiple versions, typically identified by release year, and versions are subdivided into editions to distinguish between product functionality. Component services include integration (SSIS), reporting (SSRS), analysis (SSAS), data quality, master data, T-SQL and performance tuning.

Microsoft SQL Server

The term "Backup" means the methods and processes involved to copy computer data (system data as well as application data) to media other than the ones where the data originally live (disk, tape, optical, cloud). "Restore" in turn means the methods and processes involved in data recovery, i. e., bringing back copied computer data to their original location. Backup/Restore primarily serves as a means of protection against data loss, be it due to disaster, corruption or sabotage. It can also be used for recovering data from an earlier point in time and even for cloning machines or applications. There is a wide variety of backup/restore software available, from expensive commercial products to free or open source tools.