PRB: User Principal Names Are Not Supported by SQL Server 7.0 or SQL Server 2000 (327520)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft SQL Server 2000 (all editions), when used with:
    • the operating system: Microsoft Windows 2000
  • Microsoft SQL Server 7.0, when used with:
    • the operating system: Microsoft Windows 2000
This article was previously published under Q327520

SYMPTOMS

If you try to change the SQL Server startup account in SQL Enterprise Manager (SEM) to an account that uses the User Principal Names (UPN) format (for example, user@domain), you receive the following error message:
The login account is invalid. It must have a domain name followed by a user id.
When you set up multi-server administration, if SQL Server is running under an account in UPN format, you may receive error messages. With the MSX Wizard, you may see target server selection errors. For example, the wizard found the following problems with the selected target servers:
The SQL Server and SQL Server Agent logon accounts must be changed
With the TSX Wizard, you receive the following error messages:
The SQL Server and the SQL Server Agent must run on a valid Windows account to make the server a Target Server (account 'LocalSystem' is not acceptable).

-and-

The Wizard is unable to change the startup accounts from this remote computer. Run it from the Target Server.

CAUSE

SQL Server 7.0 and SQL Server 2000 do not provide UPN compatibility.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this problem, use the NetBIOS style "<Domain name>\<User name>" instead of the UPN format when you define SQL Server startup accounts.

MORE INFORMATION

This problem occurs if the active directory is configured to resolve login names to the UPN format. The UPN format is Microsoft Windows 2000 functionality.

Although you can configure SQL Server startup accounts to logon as a domain account by using the UPN style in the Windows 2000 Services applet, and the UPN style displays correctly for the startup account in the SQL Enterprise Manager (SEM), UPN names are not supported by SQL Server 7.0 or by SQL Server 2000.

REFERENCES

For additional information about the two logon types in a Microsoft Windows 2000 Active Directory domain, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

243280 Users Can Log in Using User Name or User Principle Name

For additional information about how to rename user accounts in Microsoft Windows 2000 Active Directory, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

260390 How to Rename User Accounts in Windows 2000 Active Directory

For more information about how to change SQL Server services accounts properly, see the "Changing SQL Server Services Accounts" topic in SQL Server 2000 Books Online.

For more information about how to remove user principal name suffixes by using Active Directory, see the "Domain and account naming" topic in the Windows 2000 Help file.
Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:11/14/2003
Keywords:kbprb KB327520
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