Windows Server 2016 (and above) -or- for isolated computers such as laptops, we can install on Windows 10.
- SQL Server 2008 (and above)
- Windows IIS (Internet Information Services) must be enabled
- If not already installed, Server Manager must be installed
- Settings | Apps | Manage optional features | Add a feature | RSAT: Server Manager | Install
You can use any version of SQL Server, including SQL Express. Regardless of which version you choose, we strongly recommend you choose to install a "default" instance over a "named instance". A default instance is accessed just by using the machine name, e.g. acme-sql-server would be accessed with SQL Management Studio by entering acme-sql-server into the server name field. A named instance would be accessed by entering acme-sql-server\SQLExpress.
You should use a "mixed mode" install, which will allow you to access the server with either Windows Authentication which doesn't require you to specify a username or password in the Comparion configuration file, or SQL Server Authentication which allows you to specify a username and password. Both methods should work however, we've noticed that due to various network policies, Windows Authentication is more problematic to use.
To check that the MSSQLSERVER service is now installed, open up a command prompt (Windows key, cmd, open) and enter this command: sc query MSSQLSERVER and press Enter. If the MSSQLSERVER service is installed, you'll see a list of properties for the type, state, etc. If the MSSQLSERVER service is NOT installed, you'll see a message indicating that the query failed and that "The specified service does not exist as an installed service". If the MSSQLSERVER service is not installed, do not proceed. Instead, go back and make sure your MSSQLSERVER service is installed before proceeding past this point. Your Expert Choice installation consultant may ask for a screenshot of the results of this command to verify the proper MSSQLSERVER setup.
After you've configured your SQL Server, extract the Comparion Application to your machine hosting IIS. We suggest you create a directory called C:\Websites and extract all versions of Comparion provided to you in this directory, in order to save previous versions of the applications in case you need to roll back. So an example of three different versions on your system might look like:
C:\Websites
5.70.016.32132PS-SH
5.70.026.33618PS-SH
5.70.116.44351PS-SH
