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Install SQL Server 2016 on Windows Server 2016 Server Core

  • October 21, 2016
  • 5 min read
Cloud and Virtualization Architect. Florent is specializing in public, hybrid, and private cloud technologies. He is a Microsoft MVP in Cloud and Datacenter Management and an MCSE in Private Cloud.
Cloud and Virtualization Architect. Florent is specializing in public, hybrid, and private cloud technologies. He is a Microsoft MVP in Cloud and Datacenter Management and an MCSE in Private Cloud.

MS SQL Server logo

Because I have a small server at home, I try to win a maximum of space, for the storage and for the memory, by installing VM in Server Core. To note, it is very good for security/patches management.

It’s why, after installing my Hyper-V host and my first domain controller, on Windows Server 2016, I tried to install the SQL on a Server Core.

To start, I installed the VM and I added a second volume to store databases, logs and TempDb.

Use the Get-Disk command to see your second disks with his number, that will help you to format the volume:

Get-Disk command

To format and mount the volume, used the following command:

PowerShell command

PowerShell command

I can now see my volume SQL_Data :

PowerShell command

We can start the installation for SQL Server, in command line. You need to adapt this command with your values. To note that I’ll use this SQL for my System Center environment, it’s why, by installing my products in English, I used the SQL_Latin1_General_CP1_CI_AS collation:

PowerShell command

I noted that the reporting services can’t be installed on a Server Core. The installation was faster than in GUI  🙂

SQL Server 2016 setup

From my laptop, I opened the ERRORLOG file on the SQL Server, to see the port used by SQL Server, to open it in the firewall :

ERRORLOG file on the SQL Server

For me, I opened the port, with a GPO and I’ve done a gpupdate /force. I tested the connection from my laptop, where I installed SQL Server Management Studio :

SQL Server

SQL Server Management Studio

Enjoy  🙂

Found Florent’s article helpful? Looking for a reliable, high-performance, and cost-effective shared storage solution for your production cluster?
Dmytro Malynka
Dmytro Malynka StarWind Virtual SAN Product Manager
We’ve got you covered! StarWind Virtual SAN (VSAN) is specifically designed to provide highly-available shared storage for Hyper-V, vSphere, and KVM clusters. With StarWind VSAN, simplicity is key: utilize the local disks of your hypervisor hosts and create shared HA storage for your VMs. Interested in learning more? Book a short StarWind VSAN demo now and see it in action!