Every so often when we have an outage OR I apply a CU or Service Pack I will shutdown sql server and file copy master and model to another folder...

I would say it depends. If you have a very lightly used system I/O wise with not much updates then you are probably OK to have mdf/ldf and TEMPDB...

Seems like SQL Server in the cloud will really take off in 2016. I know we are going to begin our usage of it.. good, bad or indifferent.

2016...

What Ed Wagner stated.

Some other minor details

Make sure you know which node SQL Server and MSDTC is running on... then apply the SP or CU on the inactive node, restart...

I would also suggest heavy testing. The new cardinality estimator could pose big problems as stated earlier. Make sure you either rebuild indexes after you migrate the databases...

You know.. I thought about that.... I did restart my PC and Activity monitor, for both instances now works... very bizzare.

It is a security patch for SQL Server 2008 from a few years ago. Just go ahead and apply SP4 as that patch is included in SP4.

Check out this...

I agree.. Congrats to KC.... long time coming.... and they were so bad for so long too.

Up next... off season and what trades will be made... Looks like...

WHen you say it runs a long time how long? If it runs all night long and you are asleep does it really matter how long it runs? ...

You can backup your larger databases to multiple files. That WILL speed up the backup. I have used that in the past.

Wow, no database backups just a VM Snapshot? Whoever authorized that is living on the edge. I hope that the VM snapshot has been tested. We have...

Sorry... I have no idea. The security team bought it and implemented it... months later they came to me about having it manage the service accounts for SQL Server.

They are suggesting VM Clustering for SQL2014 Ent. Edition AND Always On.... 😀

Yes, CyberArc Password Vault will do that. We use it here.

What was the resolution?