SQL Server 2012: Installing on a Virtual Machine
Now that SQL Server 2012 RTM is out, I have an update to my blog post SQL Server 2012 (“Denali”): Installing on a Virtual Machine, which was for CTP3. Here is the version for the RTM:
The steps below are what I took to create a virtual machine to install all the products needed to create an environment where I can play with everything. This environment included: Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise x64 (setup as a domain controller), SQL Server 2012 Enterprise x64 RTM, SharePoint 2010, PerformancePoint, Power View, PowerPivot, SSAS (Multidimensional Mode and Tabular Mode), SSIS, SSRS (Native Mode and SharePoint Mode), DQS, MDM, Report Builder, Excel 2010, SSDT, SSDT Power Tools, SQL Server sample databases, and SQL Server Performance Dashboard Reports:
- The first thing I did was follow Jonathan Kehayias’s post Building a Completely Free Playground for SQL Server – (1 of 3) – Downloading the Software and Setting up a Windows Server 2008R2 VM Template to create a template, or base, VM using Windows Server 2008 R2 Enterprise, 64-bit (you must use 64-bit for SharePoint 2010). Use VirtualBox for your VM, since Microsoft Virtual PC does not support 64-bit. Make sure to change the computer name to something other than the default, since the default name is usually hard to remember
- Next I cloned the template VM from step 1 to create another VM and will make this a domain controller. Then I followed the post Step By Step Guide for Windows Server 2008 Domain Controller and DNS Server Setup (or check out this video) to set up the VM as a domain controller, which is required by SharePoint 2010 for these reasons:
- A PowerPivot installation integrated with SharePoint requires the SSAS PowerPivot service account to be a domain user that can manage the installation through Central Administration
- I have always found that it is significantly easier to setup all of the BI services if there is a separate domain account for each core group of services. This makes it easy to manage the accounts and ensure that the services remain isolated from each other
- Follow the steps in SQL Server 2012 (RC0) Business Intelligence Configuration. A couple notes: When installing SharePoint (step #3), on the SharePoint install first choose the “Install software prerequisites”. When he mentions to do “PSConfig.exe -cmd upgrade -inplace b2b -force -cmd applicationcontent -install -cmd installfeatures” in step #3, instead wait to do this after installing PowerPivot (step #5)
- After the SharePoint install, this error appeared when running the Sharepoint 2010 Central Administration: “This computer does not have the correct version of the Analysis Services OLE DB provider. To support connections to PowerPivot data from this computer, download and install the SQL Server 2012 version of the provider: http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=29065 (Microsoft® Analysis Services OLE DB Provider for Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012)”. When I installed this provider the error went away
- Then go to Install Reporting Services SharePoint Mode as a Single Server Farm and start with “Install and Start the Reporting Services SharePoint Service” and complete that section and the following sections. For details on how to create a report see Create SSRS Report with SharePoint 2010 Integrated Mode (this will create a SSRS report document library and install Report Builder 3.0)
- I then used my Office 2010 64-bit image to install Excel 2010 and Office Shared Features (it installs the 32-bit version by default, so you must go to the x64 directory and run setup.exe from there)
- Then I followed the post PowerPivot for Excel Installation to install the download Microsoft SQL Server 2012 PowerPivot for Microsoft Exce® 2010
- I installed SSDT. I had thought I installed this when I went thru the SQL Server 2012 installation process since it was an option on the Features Selection menu that I selected. However, this does not install the full SSDT product (SSDT is missing the database project piece), but only a pointer to it that makes SSDT visible when you create a project in Visual Studio 2010. So to fully install SSDT, follow Install SQL Server Data Tools. Yes this is very confusing and I blogged about it at SSDT – Installation confusion
- Install SSDT Power Tools
- I then ran Windows Update and installed the many patches
- Then I installed the SQL Server sample databases: Microsoft Contoso BI Demo Dataset for Retail Industry and Adventure Works for SQL Server 2012
- Next up I installed Master Data Services (MDM), and then the Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Master Data Services Add-in For Microsoft Excel
- Then I installed Data Quality Service (DQS) via the video How Do I: Install and Configure DQS
- Next was installing the Microsoft® SQL Server® 2012 Performance Dashboard Reports
- Then I installed Microsoft SQL Server 2012 Report Builder. This installs the stand-alone version of Report Builder and is optional since you can run Report Builder other ways: How to: Start Report Builder (Report Builder 3.0)
- Finally I created a business intelligence center site in SharePoint Server 2010, created and configured a PerformancePoint Services service application, and configured the unattended service account for PerformancePoint Services
- Step #3 above installed SSRS in SharePoint Mode. Note that you can have both SharePoint Mode and Native Mode installed. To install Native Mode, see Create a Native Mode Report Server Database (Reporting Services)
More info:
How to Build a SQL Server 2012 Hyper-V Virtual Machine (KIWI build)
Build your own SQL2012 Demo Machine Part 1 – Preparation & Summary
Video walkthrough building single server #SQL2012 #MSBI Demo VM with #PowerView
From 0 to SQL Demo lab in a few easy steps – Part 1
Configure Your SharePoint Farm for Business Intelligence
Really nice set of info , I am trying all today only !!
Thanks for all share .
Great info. Thnx.
useful
thnx
Hennie
If I did not wish to worry about SharePoint (or do I even have a choice about this), would I need to install a clone of the VM, and simply install SQL Server 2012 to one VM? What would be the pros and cons of not having SharePoint 2010 integrated to the SQL Server 2012 install?
Hi Jason,
You are not required to install SharePoint…you can just skip the steps that deal with SharePoint. The cons are you won’t be able to use Power View, PerformancePoint, or PowerPivot for SharePoint.
Great post. Thanks for sharing all this information.
Could you tell us which is the configuration of your machine?
Thanks,
André
Glad you like the post. My machine has 16GB of memory. I have the VM setup to use 8GB of memory. That seems to be enough. The VM takes up 43GB of disk space, so be aware of that.
Wow! Great resources you have. Thanks for your quick answer.
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Good post – picked up a few things i’ve missed out on my own build guide – will have to go edit it!
Hi James,
Can you please include at which point do you need to install Powerpivot for Sharepoint?
Also, can you first install SQL Server 2012 and confiuring SSRS, and then install Sharepoint? Is the order important here?
Thank you very much…
Jon
Hi Jon,
PowerPivot for SharePoint can be installed at step #3 above. In the link in that step it takes you to further instructions where PowerPivot is installed in step #5. But it can actually be installed at any time after that step.
You can install SSRS before you install SharePoint, but that would install SSRS in native mode. If you want to install SSRS in SharePoint mode, you need to install if after you install SharePoint.
I try to follow the blog “Building a Completely Free Playground for SQL Server” but I stack with secound node. On secound node I can not connect my iSCASI initiator to Target “Connection Failed. I try to ping same address and has this error ” Destination host unreachable”.
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Hi James,
I am new to sql server and my boss has sent me for sql server 2014 Administrator training course, now he wants me to migrate our sql databases some from version 2005, 2008 to sql server 2014. I am just not so sure where to start ?
Can you give me some points to start with.
Thanks in advance,
Thanh Thai
Hi James,
I need a advice from you regarding the “SQL as a Service” in virtual environment (VMWare). Is it possible to install SQL Server 2014 in Physical (DB) Server & connect 3 or more virtual DB server to the physical DB server to get the access of it i mean all virtual DB Server will run as individual SQL Server DB & take the Service from the Physical DB without installing the SQL Server.
Please provide your advice.