Connecting to SQL Server

[riechan]

Hi guys. We're trying to connect to an instance of SQL Server 2000 with this connection string:

Public dbConn As SqlConnection = New SqlConnection("Data Source=192.168.1.2, 1433; Network Library=DBMSSOCN; Initial Catalog=CBIS; User ID='serverinstancename\riechan'; Password='passwordhere'")

and we get this error:

A network-related or instance-specific error occured while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accesible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections.

Questions/Verifications:
1. Do we have to specify the instance name of the SQL Server in the connection string?
2. The SQL Server 2000 instance is up and running. I don't understand why it is saying that the server cannot be found.
3. Is the User ID argument the 'sa' account in the SQL Server? Or is that the database user that you set in Enterprise Manager? I'm thinking that this has something to do with how you install SQL Server, whether it is in Windows Authentication or SQL Server Authentication (since you can't easily set/get the password for the 'sa' account).

Anyone know how to solve this?

[si_the_geek]

Thread moved to 'Database Development' forum

1. If you are using a named instance, you must specify it (because it is effectively a different server) at the end of the Data Source (eg: Data Source=192.168.1.2, 1433\Instance; ).

2. If there isn't a default instance, the server won't be found.

3. You should never use the sa account for anything except high-security DBA activities. You should be using the database user accounts you created.

[techgnome]

Might also try specifying the name of the server, not the IP address.... and 1433 is the default port I believe, and so not necessary to specify it.

-tg