Solved: Cannot Launch SQL Server Management Suite

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Bryce Bassett🇺🇸

Cannot Launch SQL Server Management Suite

On Saturday I installed SQL Server 2017 Developer Edition, and SQL Server Management Studio 18.0 to be able to interact with it. I successfully restored a database .bak I had been sent, and was examining various tables without problems. I even wrote some routines in VBA to connect to the SQL Server and pull information from the desired table into a userform dropdown. Everything was working fine.

However, today SMSS will not launch. It doesn't give me any error message. Just a splash screen for a fraction of a second, then an error sound, then it goes away. I've tried a bunch of solutions i found online including restarting my computer, trying to run SSMS under Safe Mode, repairing SMSS, installing Visual Studio 2015 isolated shell, etc. etc. Nothing seems to be working. I haven't reinstalled the entire SQL Server package because that takes hours. Would like to avoid that if possible.

Thought I had this all set up, so I'm very frustrated. Can anybody help??

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Ryan Chong🇸🇬

try check if the SSMS service is running?
also try to check if you got enough permission to run the service?
is there anything recorded in Event Viewer? found any clues there?

Bryce Bassett🇺🇸

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Thanks, Ryan. I checked my Services. Some related to SQL were stopped so I started all of them but this does not make a difference.

I checked the event viewer and it has logged hundreds of attempts to log into the server and they all return a "could not find a login matching the name provided." The log contains hundreds of attempts to connect made throughout the night while I was sleeping, each with the same result.

There are a few other SQL event messages, but the one above seems to be the issue. Do you agree? I have googled this error message and the responses are quite technical. Can you explain to me in step-by-step terms how to correct this error?

Bryce Bassett🇺🇸

ASKER

Another clue is that the VBA routine I wrote to read from this SQL database still functions correctly. In the connection string I pass the administrator login name and password. But for some reason SSMS is not giving me direct access to the database.

    databaselocation = "BRYCEHP\MSSQLSERVERVS"

    ' Create the connection string.
    sConnString = "Provider=SQLOLEDB;Data Source=" & databaselocation & ";" & _
                  "Initial Catalog=TAR;" & _
                  "User ID=sa;Password=SQLAdmin;"
    
    ' Create the Connection and Recordset objects.
    Set conn = New ADODB.Connection
    Set rs = New ADODB.Recordset
    
    ' Open the connection and execute.
    conn.Open sConnString
    
    SQLQuery = "SELECT * FROM " & tablename & ";"
    Set rs = conn.Execute(SQLQuery)

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Ryan Chong🇸🇬

so is that SSMS and your VBA codes both using same credentials, which is sa ?

I have googled this error message and the responses are quite technical. Can you explain to me in step-by-step terms how to correct this error?

can you provide the links?

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Bryce Bassett🇺🇸

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Ryan Chong🇸🇬

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Bryce Bassett🇺🇸

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Thanks!

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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.