On the latest SQL 6.5 with the latest SQL 6.5 service pack, what's the
trick to creating an account besides sa that has the power to create
databases? I was thinking of calling this account 'sa2'. Why do this?
Well, my boss asked me to do it because of a SOX audit + SAS-70 audit
kind of thing.

I tried using the GUI to do it, but then when using the GUI as sa2, I
find the "Create Database" has been greyed out.

I have a funny feeling that the only way to get this is to hack the
sys* tables, which is a little risky.

Oh, and trust me, if I had the political weight in my company to get
off SQL 6.5, I would, but I don't. And mgmt already knows that SQL 6.5
is past support timeframe and is a ticking timebomb.

Sounds like the SOX audit has given you another excellent reason to upgrade.
Tell the boss.

Sorry, I'm not familiar with 6.5. In 7.0 or 2000 you would create a login
and grant it the dbcreator or sysadmin role. I don't think this was the same
in 6.5 though.

--
David Portas
SQL Server MVP
--

(googlemike@hotpop.com) writes:
> On the latest SQL 6.5 with the latest SQL 6.5 service pack, what's the
> trick to creating an account besides sa that has the power to create
> databases? I was thinking of calling this account 'sa2'. Why do this?
> Well, my boss asked me to do it because of a SOX audit + SAS-70 audit
> kind of thing.
>
> I tried using the GUI to do it, but then when using the GUI as sa2, I
> find the "Create Database" has been greyed out.
>
> I have a funny feeling that the only way to get this is to hack the
> sys* tables, which is a little risky.

On SQL 6.5, there is one 'sa' and that's 'sa'. You can login with
Windows Authentication, and if you belong to BUILTIN/Administrators
you will be sa, not DOMAIN\User as on later versions.

As for the particular example of CREATE DATABASE, this is something you can
give to other users, by means of the GRANT statement. But you cannot
granr all rights that 'sa' to other people.

--
Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel@sommarskog.se

Books Online for SQL Server SP3 at
http://www.microsoft.com/sql/techinf...2000/books.asp