We are working for a client with an asp.net/SQL server application which has been using a SQL Server 2005 system till now. The client has decided to upgrade the database to SQL Server 2008 R2 and has procured a powerful server machine with 16 processors with enough RAM and installed Windows Server 2008 64 bit on the system. Now we are tasked with the installation of SQL Server 2008 on the system followed by migration of the existing DB from the SQL 2005 box. Now I am not a SQL Server DBA nor am I a System Administrator by role. Hence, in spite of reading up a lot of the literature on the net, I am not quite able to make sense of it all or put it in the right order of execution. Can somebody explain me the following items, preferably in terms of bullet lists:
What are the points of consideration during installation of SQL Server 2008, specifically in terms of
Configuring memory usage
Configuring the SQL Server to take advantage of the multiple processors available
Other factors to configure to enable SQL Server 2008 features for performance and scalability
Other points, if any, for configuring the Windows Server 2008 with respect to SQL Server 2008
Note: We will only use the Database Engine services in SQL Server. The applications does not use SSIS, SSRS, etc.