#Sql 2012 express service pack update install#
#Sql 2012 express service pack update iso#

#Sql 2012 express service pack update install#

If you have Microsoft Update (which is a superset of Windows Update) installed on your machine, it will offer up SQL Server Service Packs as updates, but I prefer to obtain and install them myself. Service Packs are cumulative, so you can go directly from RTM to SP4 without installing any intervening Service Packs. You can download Service Packs directly from Microsoft without making any special requests. Then you can decide whether to go through the pain of getting them tested and installed. When you look at the list of fixes for each Cumulative Update, you can determine whether they seem to address any issues that you have been experiencing in your environment. Cumulative Updates are a collection of hotfixes over the previous eight weeks. Hotfixes don’t get added to SQL Server on a whim, they are only added after working with CSS and the Product Team, and convincing them that the issue that is prompting the hotfix is important enough to actually fix and release. You are also more likely to run into issues that were fixed after the product went RTM.

If you don’t do something about it, you could be on an “Unsupported Service Pack”, which means that you will only get limited troubleshooting support from Microsoft if you ever need to open a support case with Microsoft CSS. I often run into production instances of SQL Server that are still running the RTM build of a particular major version of SQL Server, which in my opinion is both lazy and irresponsible. Depending on how long ago that major version of SQL Server was released, that build of SQL Server that you just installed could be years old. When you first install a shiny new copy of SQL Server 2012 (or an earlier version of SQL Server) from the DVD that came with the box, what you have is the RTM build of that major version of SQL Server.

Service Packs are typically released every 12-18 months. Cumulative Updates are released every eight weeks.Ī Service Pack is a much larger collection of hotfixes that have been fully regression tested. Cumulative Updates are not fully regression tested.

#Sql 2012 express service pack update iso#

what you get on the DVD or when you download the iso file from MSDN.Ī Hotfix is designed to fix a single issue, usually after a case has been escalated through Microsoft CSS to the SQL Server Product Team.Ī Cumulative Update is a cumulative package of hotfixes (usually 20-40) that also includes all previous cumulative updates for that Service Pack. It is the original, released build version of the product, i.e. If you are in charge of one or more SQL Server instances, whether they are on your laptop, or a large Production data center, you should be aware of how SQL Server updates and fixes are released, and how you can obtain them from Microsoft.