Wednesday, July 16, 2008

You need to backup the mssqlsystemresource database files

So, you think you have all the necessary database backups you need? Well, think again. This might be your mindset after moving from SQL Server 2000 to SQL Server 2005. SQL Server 2005 includes a read-only, hidden database that contains all the system objects. It comes in the form of mssqlsystemresource.mdf and mssqlsystemresource.ldf files located in :\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL.1\MSSQL\Data\ by default. This database is required by the master database and will definitely affect how your SQL Server service behaves during restarts. If you move the master database, you should also move these files no the same location. Since it is a hidden database, SQL Server won't be able to backup this database as part of your database maintenance plan. One approach you could use is to xcopy it to the location of your database backups on a regular basis.

MSDN has a documentation on what this is all about but let me tell you one thing - you MUSt include this in your backup procedures. If you want to have an idea of how critical these files are, stop your SQL Server 2005 service and rename the mssqlsystemresource.mdf file. You won't be able to restart your SQL Server service afterwards

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Microsoft Source Code Analyzer for SQL Injection

With the recent mass SQL injection attacks, Microsoft has developed a new static code analysis tool for finding SQL Injection vulnerabilities in ASP code. Web developers can run the tool on their ASP source code to identify the root cause of the attack and address them to reduce their exposure to future attacks. You can download the tool from the Microsoft Download Center and use it on your own infrastructure to test. If you find any bug or what not, just go to this site to report it.

Now, this doesn't mean only web applications are prone to SQL injection attacks. Even Windows-based applications are so make sure you check them as well.
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