SQL Server

Troubleshooting Upgrading to SQL Server 2014

by Alexander Chigrik

Troubleshooting Upgrading to SQL Server 2014

Should you have problems with upgrading to SQL Server 2014, review this troubleshooting
checklist to find potential solutions.

1. Check the hardware requirements.

To upgrade to SQL Server 2014, you should have the following hardware:
– Intel or compatible platform with processor speed:
1.0 GHz minimum for a 32-bit x86 implementation and a 1.4 GHz minimum for a 64-bit x64
2.0 GHz or faster recommended
– Memory (RAM): 512 Mb minimum for SQL Server 2014 Express Edition,
1 GB minimum for other SQL Server 2014 Editions,
4 GB or more recommended.
– Hard disk space: a minimum of 6 GB of available hard-disk space.
– Display at least 800×600 pixel resolutions.
– A Microsoft mouse or compatible pointing device.

2. Check the operating system requirements.

To upgrade to SQL Server 2014, you must have one of the following operating systems:

– Windows 7 editions.
– Windows 8 editions.
– Windows 8.1 editions.
– Windows 10 editions.
– Windows Server 2008 SP2 editions.
– Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1 editions.
– Windows Server 2012 editions.
– Windows Server 2012 R2 editions.

3. Check the software requirements.

SQL Server 2014 requires Internet Explorer 7 or later version, Windows PowerShell 2.0
and .NET Framework 4.0.

4. Ensure that you have administrative rights on the computer.

SQL Server needs these permissions to create registry entries, create services and so on.

5. Close all extraneous programs running.

Because extraneous programs use some system resources, it is a good idea to close all
extraneous programs before install SQL Server 2014. Be sure that there are no any
programs on the taskbar except as the Setup application.

6. Enable Windows Authentication for SQL Server Agent.

You should enable Windows Authentication for SQL Server Agent before upgrading to
SQL Server 2014.

7. Ensure that the SQL Server Agent service account is a member of the
SQL Server sysadmin group.

8. Ensure that the Windows Installer service is running.

The upgrade to SQL Server 2014 will be blocked if the Windows Installer service is
not running.

9. You cannot access the data in FileTable after you upgrade from SQL Server 2012
service pack 1 to SQL Server 2014.

In this case, the Filetable data is inaccessible through the clustered share, and the
cluster resource share does not work. This bug was first fixed in Cumulative Update
package 2 for SQL Server 2014. You can download the Cumulative Update package 2 for
SQL Server 2014 at here:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2967546

10. Incorrect Domain-Based Attributes (DBAs) reference of business rules after you
upgrade SQL Server 2008 R2 Master Data Services (MDS) to SQL Server 2014 MDS.

In this case, the business rules that make references to DBAs are modified during
the upgrade process, and the DBAs reference is removed. This bug was first fixed
in Cumulative Update package 3 for SQL Server 2014. You can download the Cumulative
Update package 3 for SQL Server 2014 at here:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2984923

11. The error 505 occurs and the Log Reader Agent fails when you upgrade from
SQL Server 2008 to SQL Server 2014.

This is the error message text: “Cannot insert the value NULL into column
‘‘, table ‘

‘; column does not allow nulls. UPDATE fails.”
To avoid this error, you should disable the Log Reader Agent before upgrade, and then
re-enable the Log Reader Agent.

12. You cannot remove the secondary filegroup after you upgrade the database
to SQL Server 2014.

In this case, the error message shows that the secondary filegroup cannot be removed
because it is not empty. This bug was first fixed in Cumulative Update package 4 for
SQL Server 2014. You can download the Cumulative Update package 4 for SQL Server 2014
at here:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2999197

13. The error occurs when you upgrade a SQL Server 2012 service pack 2 instance
with MDS to SQL Server 2014.

This is the error message text: “The upgrade from the version of the Database is not
supported or the SQL scripts for the upgrade are missing”. This bug was first fixed in
Cumulative Update package 5 for SQL Server 2014. You can download the Cumulative Update
package 5 for SQL Server 2014 at here:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3011055

14. SQL Server in-place upgrade fails if the JOBS folder has been deleted from
its default directory.

During the upgrade, the upgrade process tries to set the required permissions on the
JOBS folder. However, if the folder is gone, the permissions cannot be applied, and
the upgrade fails. This bug was first fixed in Cumulative Update package 8 for
SQL Server 2014. You can download the Cumulative Update package 8 for SQL Server 2014
at here:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/3067836