The server was not found or was not accessible - Server was lost for 6 hours

Question

First off, I only have a very basic understanding of SQL. I can create tables etc. but configuration is beyond me. I am running my web site with MVC3 ASP.Net on a windows 2008 server using SQL Express.

Everything works fine, my connection strings are correct, I can use the website and it reads and writes to the dB, I can also view the dB with management studio on the server.

Today I got the following error:

A network-related or instance-specific error occurred while establishing a connection to SQL Server. The server was not found or was not accessible. Verify that the instance name is correct and that SQL Server is configured to allow remote connections. (provider: SQL Network Interfaces, error: 26 - Error Locating Server/Instance Specified)

When I tried to log on to the database in management studio on the server I get a similar error. the only fix I have found is for a server restart. The database was down for 6 hours before I noticed which is not good for a start up website.

Has any one seen this issue before? Is this an express issue? Any help or advice would be great.

Answer 1

Troubleshoot as you would any network error. Start with the server's event logs.

As for notification of downtime, there are a lot of web services that will monitor your web site and email or send you an SMS message if it's not responding. Two that I've used are uptimerobot.com and basicstate.com . There are dozens of others.

You could also rewrite your ASP.Net app to email or text you when certain kinds of errors happen.