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I Installed MS SQL 2008 R2 Express And Plesk 11 MS SQL Hostname is ".\MSSQLSERVER2008" Right Now !

I Want Change it to "localhost"

Can U Help Me ?

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closed as not a real question by Greg Askew, Scott Pack, Ward, EEAA, growse Nov 4 '12 at 12:34

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

up vote 4 down vote

That's not the host name, it's the instance name.

".\" is shorthand for localhost, so you've actually got what you want already. The instance name is what comes after the ".\", in this case MSSQLSERVER2008. So what you're asking is to change the instance name, leaving you with localhost\localhost which makes no sense.

So to explain further, what you've got there is a connection string with the following format

<servername>\<instance name>

e.g.:

localhost\mssqlserver2008

For more information on instance names, take a look at this question and answer. If you still want to change the instance name, as far as I know there is no reliable method of doing so without re-installing and picking the right name during the installation process, as discussed in this question and answer on our sister site for database admins.

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Thanks,But I have Another Windows Server 2003 + MS SQL 2008 That Server Name For Conection String iS : localhost i want users use localhost for MS SQL Server in connection stroing – Mehrpouyan Co. Nov 3 '12 at 15:26
1  
Then change the connection string. As you've been told, ".\" and "localhost\" and "servername\" are the same thing. As is "ip address\" and "FQDN\". – joeqwerty Nov 3 '12 at 15:37
1  
You're confusing the addressing of the application layer with the underlying identity of the server. For instance, you can call me Joe, or Joseph or Mr. Webster but you're still talking to me by using any of those and I'll respond to any of those methods of addressing me. – joeqwerty Nov 3 '12 at 15:41
As @joeqwerty says, if you want to change ".\" to "localhost\" then go right ahead. – RobM Nov 3 '12 at 16:12
i want change "localhost\mssqlserver2008" or ".\mssqlserver2008" to "localhost" – Mehrpouyan Co. Nov 3 '12 at 16:19

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