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Lost SA Password - Need to create new Login with access

  • April 26, 2017 at 1:47 pm

    #324895

    I have a SQL Server 2014 install that has been in place for awhile.  The only login is the SA account and no one knows the password.  I don't want to reset it if I can help it.  I have tried this, which is an article from Aaron Bertrand.  When I use PsExec to launch SSMS as the System account I can connect but I get an error that tells me I don't have permission when I try to add a SQL login.

    I also tried this.  This involves stopping the instance, starting in single user mode and adding a login using SQLCMD.  Once I did that and restarted the instance, my login that I added using SQLCMD wasn't actually there so I still had no access.  Any other ideas?

  • April 26, 2017 at 2:45 pm

    #1940105

    Step 1 may not work if NT AUTHORITY\SYSTEM isn't a sysadmin. Whoever runs PsExec needs to be an Administrator on that server and has to run PsExec as Administrator.
    For step 2 - same things as above except for the system account. Are you a member of the local admins on that server? Did you start the command prompt using Run As Administrator? And do the Run As even if you are in the local admins group. Right click the command prompt, select run as Administrator then start sql server in single user mode from that command window and start sqlcmd from the same window. 

    Sue

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