Standard Edition is the data management and analysis platform for small and medium-sized organizations. It includes the essential functionality needed for e-commerce, data warehousing, and line-of-business solutions. Standard Edition's integrated business intelligence and high-availability features provide organizations with the essential capabilities needed to support their operations.

Organizations today face numerous data challenges, such as the need to make faster and more data-driven decisions, the need to increase the productivity and flexibility of development staff, and pressure to reduce overall information technology (IT) budgets while also scaling the infrastructure to meet ever-increasing demands.

SQL Server 2008 is designed to help enterprises address these challenges. This next-generation data management and analysis solution delivers increased security, scalability, and availability to enterprise data and analytical applications, while making them easier to build, deploy, and manage.

Extending the strengths of SQL Server 2005, SQL Server 2008 provides an integrated data management and analysis solution that can help organizations of any size to do the following:

• Build, deploy, and manage enterprise applications that are more secure, scalable, and reliable.
• Maximize IT productivity by reducing the complexity of developing and supporting database applications.
• Share data across multiple platforms, applications, and devices to make it easier to connect internal and external systems.
• Control costs without sacrificing performance, availability, scalability, or security.

SQL Server 2008 advances your data infrastructure in three key areas: enterprise data management, developer productivity, and business intelligence (BI). It also breaks new ground in affordable pricing and licensing, upgrade paths to SQL Server 2008, and the Microsoft Windows Server System.

Systems Requirements

Framework
SQL Server Setup installs the following software components required by the product:
.NET Framework 3.5 SP11
SQL Server Native Client
SQL Server Setup support files

Software
SQL Server Setup requires Microsoft Windows Installer 4.5 or a later version

Network Software
Network software requirements for the 64-bit versions of SQL Server 2008 R2 are the same as the requirements for the 32-bit versions.
Supported operating systems have built-in network software. Stand-alone named and default instances support the following network protocols:
Shared memory
Named Pipes
TCP/IP
VIA

Virtualization
SQL Server 2008 R2 is supported in virtual machine environments running on the Hyper-V role in Windows Server 2008 SP2 Standard, Enterprise and Datacenter editions. The virtual machine must run an operating system supported for the specific SQL Server 2008 R2 edition listed later in this topic.

In addition to resources required by the parent partition, each virtual machine (child partition) must be provided with sufficient processor resources, memory, and disk resources for its SQL Server 2008 R2 instance. Requirements are listed later in this topic.3

Within the Hyper-V role on Windows Server 2008 SP2, a maximum of four virtual processors can be allocated to virtual machines running Windows Server 2008 SP2 32-bit or 64-bit editions. A maximum of 2 virtual processors can be allocated to virtual computers that are running Windows Server 2003 32-bit editions. For virtual computers that host other operating systems, a maximum of one virtual processor can be allocated to virtual computers.

Internet Software
Microsoft Internet Explorer 6 SP1 or a later version is required for all installations of SQL Server 2008 R2. Internet Explorer 6 SP1 or a later version is required for Microsoft Management Console (MMC), SQL Server Management Studio, Business Intelligence Development Studio, the Report Designer component of Reporting Services, and HTML Help.

Hard Disk
Disk space requirements will vary with the SQL Server 2008 R2 components you install.

Drive
A CD or DVD drive, as appropriate, is required for installation from disc.

Display
SQL Server 2008 R2 graphical tools require Super VGA or higher resolution: at least 800x600 pixel resolution.