Adding a database server and creating the BIS geodatabase in SQL Server Express

Adding a database server

This section describes adding a database server connection to a Microsoft SQL Server Express instance from the Database Servers node in the Catalog window.

If you choose to store the BIS geodatabase on SQL Server Express, you need to install SQL Server Express software and enable it to store geodatabases before beginning these steps.

1. Start ArcMap.
2. In the Catalog tree view, expand Database Servers.

Tip:

If the Catalog window is not visible in ArcMap, you can open it by clicking the Catalog button on the Standard toolbar or by clicking Windows > Catalog on the main menu.

3. Double-click Add Database Server.
4. On the Add Database Server dialog box, provide the name of the database server. This is in the form <server_name>\<instance_name>, where the server name is the name of the server on which SQL Server Express is installed and the instance name is the name of the SQL Server Express instance.

   For example, if a database server is named SOPHIE\SQLEXPRESS, SOPHIE is the server name and SQLEXPRESS is the instance name.

   If you are unsure of the name to use, contact the administrator of the database server for this information.

5. Click OK.

Creating a personal or workgroup geodatabase

The server administrator can create a new personal or workgroup BIS geodatabase for SQL Server Express. The steps below detail creating a desktop geodatabase (an instance of SQL Server Express) or a workgroup geodatabase.

1. If necessary, log in to your desktop as a user with full control privileges.
2. Start ArcMap.
3. In the Catalog tree, right-click the database server on which you want to create a geodatabase.

Tip:

If the Catalog window is not visible in ArcMap, you can open it by clicking the Catalog button on the Standard toolbar or by clicking Windows > Catalog on the main menu.

4. Click New Geodatabase.
5. Type a name for the new geodatabase in the Geodatabase name text box.

   The name must begin with a letter, cannot contain spaces or special characters (such as *, &, !, %, ., +, or -), and has a maximum length of 31 characters when combined with your server name.

6. If you want to change the database file location, specify the new location in the Geodatabase file text box by clicking the ellipsis button (...) and browsing to the location.
7. Type the size of the new geodatabase in the Initial Size text box.
8. Choose MB or GB from the Units drop-down menu, or use the default size of 100 MB.

   Regardless of the initial size, the geodatabase grows as it needs, up to 10 GB.

   Note:

   The initial size of the geodatabase cannot be smaller than that of the model database in the SQL Server Express instance. The model database is the system template for all new databases. The size of the model database determines the minimum size of any database created in that SQL Server Express instance. If you attempt to create a geodatabase smaller than this minimum size, database creation fails and the following error message is returned:

   Error creating this geodatabase
   CREATE DATABASE failed. 
   Primary file must be at least <size of model> to accommodate a copy 
   of the model database.

9. Click OK.

A progress bar displays while the database file and geodatabase schema are created. When complete, the new geodatabase appears on the Contents tab and in the Catalog tree.