How to Recover and Reset the SysAdmin Administrator Password for SQL Server 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019
Start Single User Mode Step by Step
0) SQL Server Configuration Manager - Make sure to enable NamedPipes/TCP Locally
1) List the Services
a) net start
b) services.msc
2) Stop the Service - net stop [SQL-SERVICENAME]
3) Start Single User Mode
a) net start [SQL-SERVICENAME] -m"SQLCMD"
b) "C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL14.SQL1\MSSQL\Binn\sqlservr.exe" -sSQL1 -m"SQLCMD"
4) SQLCMD -S [SQL INSTANCE]
5) sqlcmd - Login
a) SQL User - CREATE LOGIN [name] WITH PASSWORD='password'; GO
b) Windows User - CREATE LOGIN [domainName\login_name] FROM WINDOWS; GO
6) sqlcmd
a) SP_ADDSRVROLEMEMBER name,'SYSADMIN'; GO
b) Confirm - SELECT name FROM syslogins; GO;
7) sqlcmd - exit
8) Stop the Service - net stop [SQL-SERVICENAME]
9) Start the Service normal - net start [SQL-SERVICENAME]
