getting the most out of sql server 2005 express

Hi Everyone,
I know there is a 4GB file size limit and a 1GB RAM limit build into
sql server 2005 express.
1. Does this 4Gb file size include the LDF file?
2. If i place multiple databases on one server, does the total file
size of all databases combined have to be less then 4gb or do i get
4gb space per database?
3. If the server has 2 GB of RAM and i want to place 2 databases, can
i assign 1GB to each database or will those 2 databases have to share
1 GB?
4. If the server has 2 CPU's, can i assign one CPU to one database and
the other CPU to the other?
5. Does a duo core or quad core processor count as one CPU?
6. What would be currently the best CPU to use for SQL server?
7. Can Sql server 2005 express edition work with an external raid
cabinet? If yes, what would be the best raid configuration if I want
both performance and stability and if about 60 % of the data access
are select statements and the other 40 % are add/delete/update
statements?
8. When running a select query, does the CPU load come down a lot when
using an external SCSI controler or is most of the CPU load not
related to HDD actions?
8. My idea is to sell a windows C# application to clients. Each client
will require its own database on my hosted server. All databases will
be less then 4GB in size and each will require less then 1 GB RAM to
function normally. I want to put about 30 of such databases on one
server. Each database would serve an average of 2 users. I estimate
that there will be maximum 40 simultanious users (devided over 30
databases) who will require about 2 or 3 simple select/add/update
statements to be executed per minute. Would sql server 2005 express be
sufficient in this case?
Thanks
Hugo1. No
2. Per database
3. Per instance. You would have to install several instances to utilize > 2G
B memory.
4. Yes, using sp_configure and affinity mask.
5. Yes, we count sockets, not cores or logical CPUs.
6. ?
7.
a: Yes, RAID is transparent to SQL Server.
b. As always, it depends. A basic thing is to separate transaction log on a
separate physical disk
(RAID). You have to weigh budget into this.
8. It depends on how well you serve your queries with indexes and the comple
xity of your queries.
9. Possibly. Hard to say without testing.
--
Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
<hlossie@.hotmail.com> wrote in message news:1176286179.388516.214500@.b75g2000hsg.googlegroup
s.com...
> Hi Everyone,
> I know there is a 4GB file size limit and a 1GB RAM limit build into
> sql server 2005 express.
> 1. Does this 4Gb file size include the LDF file?
> 2. If i place multiple databases on one server, does the total file
> size of all databases combined have to be less then 4gb or do i get
> 4gb space per database?
> 3. If the server has 2 GB of RAM and i want to place 2 databases, can
> i assign 1GB to each database or will those 2 databases have to share
> 1 GB?
> 4. If the server has 2 CPU's, can i assign one CPU to one database and
> the other CPU to the other?
> 5. Does a duo core or quad core processor count as one CPU?
> 6. What would be currently the best CPU to use for SQL server?
> 7. Can Sql server 2005 express edition work with an external raid
> cabinet? If yes, what would be the best raid configuration if I want
> both performance and stability and if about 60 % of the data access
> are select statements and the other 40 % are add/delete/update
> statements?
> 8. When running a select query, does the CPU load come down a lot when
> using an external SCSI controler or is most of the CPU load not
> related to HDD actions?
> 8. My idea is to sell a windows C# application to clients. Each client
> will require its own database on my hosted server. All databases will
> be less then 4GB in size and each will require less then 1 GB RAM to
> function normally. I want to put about 30 of such databases on one
> server. Each database would serve an average of 2 users. I estimate
> that there will be maximum 40 simultanious users (devided over 30
> databases) who will require about 2 or 3 simple select/add/update
> statements to be executed per minute. Would sql server 2005 express be
> sufficient in this case?
> Thanks
> Hugo
>|||"3. Per instance. You would have to install several instances to
utilize > 2GB memory. "
So it is possible to install an instance of sql server for each
database so databases can each get 1GB of memory?
And would this not require a lot more resources then 1 instance of a
standard version of sql server?|||> So it is possible to install an instance of sql server for each
> database so databases can each get 1GB of memory?
Yes. Thanks for catching my typo, btw.

> And would this not require a lot more resources then 1 instance of a
> standard version of sql server?
Yes perhaps not "a lot" but "more", but it will allow you to tune things lik
e memory allocation and
processor usage per instance.
--
Tibor Karaszi, SQL Server MVP
http://www.karaszi.com/sqlserver/default.asp
http://www.solidqualitylearning.com/
<hlossie@.hotmail.com> wrote in message news:1176292970.398149.166320@.w1g2000hsg.googlegroups
.com...
> "3. Per instance. You would have to install several instances to
> utilize > 2GB memory. "
> So it is possible to install an instance of sql server for each
> database so databases can each get 1GB of memory?
> And would this not require a lot more resources then 1 instance of a
> standard version of sql server?
>