Microsoft Releases SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2

REDMOND, Wash., Feb. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Microsoft Corp. today released Microsoft(R) SQL Server(TM) 2005 SP2, an update to its award-winning data management and analysis platform. Customers can now take advantage of enhancements in the familiar and easy-to-use Windows Vista(TM) operating system and 2007 Microsoft Office system to easily connect and integrate with the power, security and reliability of SQL Server 2005. In addition, Microsoft announced that it is expanding virtualization use rights to allow unlimited virtual instances on servers that are fully licensed for SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition. For customers who want maximum flexibility in their use of virtualization technology, now or in the future, SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition is the ideal choice.

"SP2 delivers customer-driven improvements and new features that align with out data platform vision," said Ted Kummert, corporate vice president of the Data and Storage Platform Division at Microsoft. "SP2 realizes a step forward in enabling organizations to bring the business intelligence capabilities of SQL Server 2005 directly to end users in the tools they use every day."

  Key enhancements to SQL Server SP2 include the following:

  -- Data Mining Add-ins for the 2007 Microsoft Office system enable data
     mining functionality from SQL Server Analysis Services (SSAS) to be
     used directly within Excel(R) 2007 and Visio(R) 2007.
  -- SQL Server Reporting Services (SSRS) compatibility with Microsoft
     Office SharePoint(R) Server 2007 provides integration with the Report
     Center in SharePoint, enabling the seamless consumption and management
     of SSRS reports within SharePoint.
  -- SQL Server Analysis Services improvements for Excel 2007 and Excel
     Services relate to performance and functionality.
  -- Data compression (varDecimal) is an important feature for data
     warehousing scenarios, requiring less disk storage of decimal data and
     increasing overall performance.
  -- Manageability enhancements, based on customer feedback, provide
     management capabilities for database administrators such as
     improvements in database maintenance plans, enhanced management reports
     and a new copy database wizard.
  -- Management reports added to SQL Server Express Edition enable customers
     to get insights into the performance of their Express Edition and SQL
     Server Compact Edition databases.
  -- Interoperability improvements including Oracle support in the Report
     Builder feature enable customers to use its functionality on top of
     Oracle data sources. Customers also have access to SQL Server Reporting
     Services to build reports on top of Hyperion's Essbase cubes.

Customers can download SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 2 immediately from http://www.microsoft.com/sql/sp2.mspx .

In related news, Microsoft announced that the Common Criteria evaluation of SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 1 has been submitted to the German Federal Office for Information Security for certification and that SP2 is undergoing EAL4+ evaluation. The Common Criteria evaluations of SP1 and SP2 will be formally recognized by the governments of 24 countries that signed the Common Criteria Recognition Agreement, including Canada, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States, and informally recognized by as many as 30 additional countries. Applying for Common Criteria certification -- a procurement requirement of many governments and a preference for several industries and customers -- demonstrates Microsoft's commitment to building security technology into SQL Server 2005.

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