change sa password

  • What is the best way to change the sa password if you inherited a system and no one knows the old password.

  • If you have admin rights on the BOX, then you could try register with "Windows Authentication" and change the password in EM. Or you can change the password in QA using "Windows Authentication" with sp_password. You don't have to know old password if you have admin rights on the BOX.

    Above two methods work IF erlier adminnistrator did not remove BUILTIN\Administrators group from SQL Server.

    .

  • sp_password null, <new>, sa by any administrator

    Steve Jones

    sjones@sqlservercentral.com

    http://www.sqlservercentral.com/columnists/sjones

    The Best of SQL Server Central.com 2002 - http://www.sqlservercentral.com/bestof/

    http://www.dkranch.net

  • Thank you guys I will try both.

  • I have recently had to perform the same task & as a word of wisdom ( or rather bad experience ) bewaware of any server side & client DSN/ODBC drivers that might be using 'sa', or any embedded/hard coded application connection strings, link servers, Ms-Access apps using link tables, external apps requiring 'sa' access etc etc.....

    In an inherited system, it's only when you change something this important that you really find out what people have been upto before !!!!

    I hope it all goes well for you.

    Best of luck.

    j

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