Retrieve data but with all the services stopped

Is that possible?
Thanks a lot,Are you talking about stopping SQL Server service, and still access the data
from the databases? In that case, it is not possible.
--
HTH,
Vyas, MVP (SQL Server)
SQL Server Articles and Code Samples @. http://vyaskn.tripod.com/
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:572D7F2A-3307-4507-92E5-EDE88A66E285@.microsoft.com...
Is that possible?
Thanks a lot,|||Well, I meant not using "standard methods". Once all the services has been
stopped, SQL Server provides any kind of internal access using any dll or
interface?
In case that SQL "officially" doesn't provide any tool, in your opinion, it
would have any possibility to access?
Regards,
"Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:

> Are you talking about stopping SQL Server service, and still access the da
ta
> from the databases? In that case, it is not possible.
> --
> HTH,
> Vyas, MVP (SQL Server)
> SQL Server Articles and Code Samples @. http://vyaskn.tripod.com/
>
> "Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:572D7F2A-3307-4507-92E5-EDE88A66E285@.microsoft.com...
> Is that possible?
> Thanks a lot,
>
>|||> Well, I meant not using "standard methods". Once all the services has been
> stopped, SQL Server provides any kind of internal access using any dll or
> interface?
No.

> In case that SQL "officially" doesn't provide any tool, in your opinion, i
t
> would have any possibility to access?
No. It isn't worth looking into. You would have to decode the database forma
t (most isn't
documented). It wouldn't be supported and you'd have to write a lot of low-l
evel code and you will
probably corrupt the data. I don't know anyone who has done this (after work
ing with SQL Server for
17 years now).
--
Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:1D32B125-D754-45FD-B0D5-179A734756D8@.microsoft.com...
> Well, I meant not using "standard methods". Once all the services has been
> stopped, SQL Server provides any kind of internal access using any dll or
> interface?
> In case that SQL "officially" doesn't provide any tool, in your opinion, i
t
> would have any possibility to access?
> Regards,
> "Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:
>|||Once the SQL Server service is stopped, the only way to access the data
would be to read the database files manually, provided you know the layout
of the files.
--
HTH,
Vyas, MVP (SQL Server)
SQL Server Articles and Code Samples @. http://vyaskn.tripod.com/
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:1D32B125-D754-45FD-B0D5-179A734756D8@.microsoft.com...
Well, I meant not using "standard methods". Once all the services has been
stopped, SQL Server provides any kind of internal access using any dll or
interface?
In case that SQL "officially" doesn't provide any tool, in your opinion, it
would have any possibility to access?
Regards,
"Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:

> Are you talking about stopping SQL Server service, and still access the
data
> from the databases? In that case, it is not possible.
> --
> HTH,
> Vyas, MVP (SQL Server)
> SQL Server Articles and Code Samples @. http://vyaskn.tripod.com/
>
> "Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:572D7F2A-3307-4507-92E5-EDE88A66E285@.microsoft.com...
> Is that possible?
> Thanks a lot,
>
>|||I am astonished myself because using a free editor (textpad) I can be able
to read layouts and real data inside of the MDF file.
Of course, these data are between a large amount of NULLS symbols, but...
Amazing or not?
"Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:

> Once the SQL Server service is stopped, the only way to access the data
> would be to read the database files manually, provided you know the layout
> of the files.
> --
> HTH,
> Vyas, MVP (SQL Server)
> SQL Server Articles and Code Samples @. http://vyaskn.tripod.com/
>
> "Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:1D32B125-D754-45FD-B0D5-179A734756D8@.microsoft.com...
> Well, I meant not using "standard methods". Once all the services has been
> stopped, SQL Server provides any kind of internal access using any dll or
> interface?
> In case that SQL "officially" doesn't provide any tool, in your opinion, i
t
> would have any possibility to access?
> Regards,
> "Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:
>
> data
>
>|||Why would that be astonishing?
Yes, the data is inside the database files. So an editor will display some o
f the data (string
columns) as readable text.
Yes, the database format is complex and not documented.
Do you find anything of above astonishing? Perhaps I'm missing the point...
Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:299AA62B-188A-4DB3-BD8E-E06E53FFD35E@.microsoft.com...
>I am astonished myself because using a free editor (textpad) I can be able
> to read layouts and real data inside of the MDF file.
> Of course, these data are between a large amount of NULLS symbols, but...
> Amazing or not?
> "Narayana Vyas Kondreddi" wrote:
>|||Tibor,
At first I must say that I am just a newbie (only six years with SQL) and in
my humble point of view if my son (5 years) is be able to open doing
double-click
above MDF and read the data, so this way I was wondering, what would do a
expert programmer with that same file?
Regards,
"Tibor Karaszi" wrote:

> Why would that be astonishing?
> Yes, the data is inside the database files. So an editor will display some
of the data (string
> columns) as readable text.
> Yes, the database format is complex and not documented.
> Do you find anything of above astonishing? Perhaps I'm missing the point..
.
> --
> Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
> http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
> http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
>
> "Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:299AA62B-188A-4DB3-BD8E-E06E53FFD35E@.microsoft.com...
>|||I wouldn't say 5 years make you a newbie, Enric ;-).
Yes, an expert programmer can of course interpret the information, provided
enough time and
documentation. And indeed, that has been done. The product is called "Micros
oft SQL Server" ;-).
My point is that to my knowledge, no-one outside MS has ventured this path,
probably not enough
possible payback compared to the time needed to invest. And one should also
consider that MS can and
does change things in the file formats between versions.
--
Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:31798C46-4BB6-441C-A0D7-E5F992C98AA7@.microsoft.com...
> Tibor,
> At first I must say that I am just a newbie (only six years with SQL) and
in
> my humble point of view if my son (5 years) is be able to open doing
> double-click
> above MDF and read the data, so this way I was wondering, what would do a
> expert programmer with that same file?
> Regards,
> "Tibor Karaszi" wrote:
>|||Basically, what you are proposing is commonly refrred to as hacking ;) It
could be an intersting excercise, I suppose, but who has the time? What you
are talking about is no different than using a byte level file editor.
Anything is possible, but do you REALLY understand what happens when you
start twiddling your bits at that level?
Bob Castleman
DBA Poseur
"Enric" <Enric@.discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:31798C46-4BB6-441C-A0D7-E5F992C98AA7@.microsoft.com...
> Tibor,
> At first I must say that I am just a newbie (only six years with SQL) and
> in
> my humble point of view if my son (5 years) is be able to open doing
> double-click
> above MDF and read the data, so this way I was wondering, what would do a
> expert programmer with that same file?
> Regards,
> "Tibor Karaszi" wrote:
>