At the start of the year, I wrote about the SQL Server upgrade advisor. I was setting up my home test environment recently and this prompted me to write a couple of posts on SQL Server installation and cover some of the nice features which I believe are quite important.

As you begin the SQL Server 2012 installation, SQL Server goes through a series of checks to ensure that environment configurations that could result in a failed installation are identified in advance and the user is given a chance to rectify them. In this set of checks, I noticed that the media also checks for long path names to the files:

What this check does is to simply check if all files on the installer can be accessed by a path that is less than or equal to the 256-character normal limit on path names. Most product installers do not perform this check and the installation ultimately fails when one has an unusually long file path (such that the number of characters is greater than 256 characters).

In my humble opinion, this is a great example of a check that all product installers must adopt to avoid installation failures for a reason as simple as a long path.

Until we meet next time,

Be courteous. Drive responsibly.