I installed SQL Server 2008 SP1 recently to bring my server up to build 10.0.2531 and after 30 minutes I was in business. I tested out SSMS and Reporting Services and all looked well. However, I did get an error due to a third party product that I had installed a while back, so I used this as an excuse to try out the “new” uninstall feature of SP1.
Well, it worked… kind of. I went to the Control Panel making sure to select the “Show Updates” checkbox, selected Service Pack 1 for SQL Server 2008 and clicked “Remove”. Soon after, I was prompted for the “Microsoft SQL Server Client Tools” disk but since I had installed SQL Server directly from a self-extracting download I figured I should ignore this by clicking “Cancel”. There really wasn’t any other option since I have never seen such a disk. Then I was prompted for the “Microsoft SQL Server 2008 BI Development Studio” disk – same situation, same answer.
After about 20 minutes activity, the uninstall did complete but I did get an error on completion. I reviewed the summary log as suggested in Program FilesMicrosoft SQL Server100Setup BootstrapLog which let me know that “The patch installer has failed to update the shared features. To determine the reason for failure, review the log files. Requested action: RemovePatch”.
Upon review of the Windows Application Log I identified the error “Service Pack 1 for SQL Server Tools and Workstation Components 2008 (KB968369)’ could not be removed. Error code 1603”. There was another 1603 error for the BIDS SP1 removal. I presume this was because I did not have the disks for those components and they were therefore not reverted from SP1. Another message in the error log referred to “Try the installation again using a valid copy of the installation package ‘sql_tools.msi’. “ Same for ‘sql_bids.msi’.
I checked the BIDS components under Visual Studio 2008 for SSAS, SSIS and SSRS and they were indeed still at build 10.0.2531. However, checking SSMS showed that the Database Engine was back at build 10.0.1600, as required. Great. Now I have a mixed-build installation.
Even though I had installed my original SQL Server 2008 from a self-extracting install file, which extracts to a temporary folder, I did want to complete my uninstall successfully. One method would be to run the original RTM self-extracting install file, then when the Welcome Window is displayed, copy the temporary folder contents to a permanent one, then cancel out. (the temporary folder name is randomly generated, an example is C:a374f4c02095dcd8ad14bc23 and disappears after the install finishes or is cancelled).
Then I could browse to the permanent folder during the uninstall of SP1. However, I happened to have a complementary SQL Server 2008 product disk from the recent SQL PASS Conference and that had the files needed. I reran the “Remove” of SP1 from the Control Panel with the disk in place and the uninstall completed successfully. Just to verify, I checked Visual Studio and the BIDS components were now back at build 10.0.1600, as required.
So while I am happy that Microsoft has provided this new uninstall feature for SP1 (as it should), it is not a trivial procedure and I would recommend the usual server backups before attempting any upgrade or downgrade. They don’t make it easy for us, do they?
Rather than get frustrated just think of it as job security. Nobody but an experienced DBA is going to work this out, so just be thankful it’s you. And if you are between jobs right now, this is just the thing you should be practicing and documenting. You’d be amazed what comes up in interviews.
Cheers
Brian
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