SQL server error 1639 occurs at the time of the SQL Server installation. It happens due to a number of reasons ranging from issues with folder name to SQL port.

As a part of our Server Management Services, we help our Customers to fix SQL related errors regularly.

Let us today discuss the possible causes and fixes for this error.

What causes the SQL error 1639?

Installation of SQL Server on windows machine fails due to a number of reasons. Some of them to list out are:

• The name of the installation directory has space in it.
• Remnants of the previous installation that leave orphaned entries in the windows installer registry.
• Another service running in the SQL port.
• The issue with the Windows temp folder.

As a result, the installation fails and users face the message that the SQL installation completed with failures. You can get the details of the exact error message from the Summary logs. The error message would look like:

Let us now look at the possible fixes for this error.

How to fix the SQL error 1639?

As we discussed earlier a major reason for this error is unwanted characters in the installation folder name. For instance space between the words in the folder name is not permitted. Therefore, if the installation folder name is SQL Server 2008, it is a good idea to change it to SQLServer2008 or SQL_Server_2008.

Next, we can remove the failed installation from the server using “Add and Remove Programs”. Finally, we can start the installation again by a right-click on the setup file and choosing “Run as administrator” option.

Unnregister and re-register Windows installer

Another reason for this error could be an issue with the Windows installer. We could solve this by an unregister and re-register of the Windows installer.

a) Click Start and the Run.

b) In the Run box type msiexec /unreg and then ENTER.

c) Click Start and the Run.

d) In the Run box type msiexec /regserver and then ENTER.

Stop the service running on the SQL port

By default, the typical ports used by SQL Server and associated database engine services are: TCP 1433, 4022, 135, 1434. If any other service is running in this port, it may cause a failure for the SQL installation. Thus we may need to stop the service running in that port. To find the service running in the port,

1.Open command prompt as administrator.
2.Use the command netstat -a -n -o and it shows the result in the order "protocol, local IP:local port, foreign IP:foreign port, port state, and pid".
3.View the local port and pid from the result in step 2.
4.Open task manager and navigate to details tab.
5.Search for the pid obtained in step 3 in the details tab to get the details of the service.

Now that we have the service name, we could either stop that service or change the port number of the service to complete the SQL installation

 
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Conclusion

In short, the SQL server error 1639 occurs at the time of the SQL Server installation. The major reasons for this error include extra spaces in the installation file name, another service using SQL port, etc. Today we saw how our Support Engineers fixes this error.