Forum FAQ: Could SQL Server 2008 Express edition and SQL Server 2008 R2 Express edition be installed side by side with SQL Server 2005 Express?

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Question

 

Could SQL Server 2008 Express edition and SQL Server 2008 R2 Express edition be installed side by side with SQL Server 2005 Express?

Answer

 

Yes, but we need pay attention to the following points for installing SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server 2008 R2 Express side by side with SQL Server 2005 Express:

 

1. If there is no SQL Server 2005 Express Management Tools installed on the computer, then the three editions of SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server 2008 R2 Express(SQL Server Express, SQL Server Express with Tools and SQL Server Express with Advanced Services) could be full installed side by side with SQL Server 2005 Express.

2. If the SQL Server 2005 Express Management Tools or the alone SQL Server Management Studio Express are installed, then the Management Tools of SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server 2008 R2 could not be installed since the tools are installed into a shared directory, we will get the following error message:

 

Rule "SQL Server 2005 Express tools failed".

The SQL Server 2005 Express Tools are installed. To continue, remove the SQL Server 2005 Express Tools.

 

To solve this issue, we need to uninstall Management Tools of SQL Server 2005 Express from Add/Remove programs.

 

Installing SQL Server 2008 Express and SQL Server 2008 R2 Express is same with the other editions, please refer the below links:

How to: Install SQL Server 2008 R2 (Setup)

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143219.aspx

How to: Install SQL Server 2008(Setup)

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms143219(SQL.100).aspx 

Installing SQL Server 2008 Express Guidance

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/dd981045(SQL.100).aspx  

  

Applies to

 

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express

Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Express with Tools

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express with Tools

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Express with Advanced Service

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Management Studio Express

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express with Tools

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Express with Advanced Service

Microsoft SQL Server 2008 R2 Management Studio Express