SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 2 CTP Available from Download

  • Article

You can now download the community preview of Service Pack 2 for SQL Server 2008.

SQL Server 2008 SP2 CTP contains the cumulative updates up to SQL Server 2008 SP1 cumulative update package 8, and fixes to issues that have been reported through our customer feedback platforms. These include supportability enhancements and issues that have been reported through Windows Error Reporting.

What's New

  • SQL Server Utility The SQL Server 2008 R2 Utility supports SQL Server 2008 instances that have SP2 installed. The SQL Server Utility models SQL Server-related entities in a unified view. Utility Explorer and SQL Server Utility viewpoints in SQL Server Management Studio provide administrators a holistic view of resource health through an instance of SQL Server that serves as a utility control point (UCP). For more information about the SQL Server Utility, see Managing the SQL Server Utility.
  • Data-tier Applications SQL Server Management Studio in SQL Server 2008 R2 supports all data-tier application (DAC) operations for SQL Server 2008 instances that have SP2 installed. DAC is an entity that contains all databases and instance objects used by an application. A DAC provides a single unit for authoring, deploying, and managing the data-tier objects instead of having to manage them separately. A DAC allows tighter integration of data-tier development with the development of the associated application code. It also gives administrators an application level view of resource usage in their systems through the utility control point. For more information about data-tier applications, see Understanding Data-tier Applications.
  • Reporting Services in SharePoint Integrated Mode (Feature Pack) The Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Service Pack 2 (SP2) Reporting Services Add-in for Microsoft SharePoint Products 2007 allows you to connect to SQL Server 2008 R2 Report Servers. The new features include:
    • Improved handling of credentials and shared data sources.
    • Utilization of the existing instances of Report Builder configured on the Report Server.
    • Support for Report Part Gallery, shared datasets, and shared report items.
    • Report Builder 3.0
    • ATOM feed renderer. For more information, see the ‘Rendering Reports to Data Feeds’ section in "What's New in SQL Server 2008 R2".

These packages have been made available for general testing purposes only. Do not deploy the CTP software in production. Peer-to-peer support is available in the SQL Server 2008 forums.

You can use these packages to upgrade any of the following SQL Server 2008 editions:

  • Enterprise
  • Standard
  • Evaluation
  • Developer
  • Workgroup

Note: To get SQL Server 2008 SP2 CTP for Express Edition or Express Edition with Advanced Services go here.

Bruce D. KyleISV Architect Evangelist | Microsoft Corporation

cid:image010.png@01C9DEED.1FDB2200 cid:image011.png@01C9DEED.1FDB2200 cid:image012.gif@01C9DEED.1FDB2200 channel9