Rename WSUS Database

When installing the Windows Software Update Service (WSUS) role on Server 2008 SP1 you are prompted to either install the database using the Windows Internal Database or a remote SQL instance.  However, you are never prompted to specify the database name and the WSUS  installer will use the database name ‘SUSDB’.  If you have a larger environment and plan on installing multiple WSUS servers (downstream servers) and want to use the same SQL backend, you have a problem.  Trying to use the same instance for a second WSUS install will result in overwriting the first database, thus hosing your first WSUS install.

In order to install a second WSUS install, you have to first rename the database from the first WSUS install.

First, go ahead and shut down the current WSUS install so that all database connections to the SUSDB database.  Once the server is shut down open up SQL Management Studio and detach the SUSDB database.  Dig into the file system and find the SUSDB.mdf (data file) and SUSDB_log.ldf (log file) files and rename the files to something like SUSDB01.mdf and SUSDB01_log.ldf. 

Next reattach the database with the new files and a new name (like SUSDB01).  You have to browse to .mdf file and then also set the path of the data file and log file to the new .mdf and .ldf files.  The database should now attach.

Finally, the WSUS server needs to point to the SUSDB01 database instead of the default SUSDB database.  Start the WSUS server and use regedit to locate the registry key:

HKLM\SOFTWARE\MICROSFT\Update Services\Server\Setup\SqlDatabaseName

Change this key from SUSDB to the new database name (SUSDB01 in this case).  Go ahead and reboot again and startup the WSUS Admin Console.  If you don’t get a database not found error then everything worked.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 9th, 2009 at 4:07 pm . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

One Response to “Rename WSUS Database”

  • Bob Mahle Says:
    May 22nd, 2010 at 7:32 am

    I recommend people do not follow this rename process. Microsoft’s official view on this topic is the susdb cannot be renamed because several stored procedures in the DB are coded to use this along with source code that specifically references SUSDB.

    To work around this you can use named instances of SQL with one in each or reinstall WSUS using the windows internal database.

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