Installing Multiple Instances of Reporting Services

SQL Server Setup

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New: 14 April 2006

You can install multiple instances of Reporting Services on the same computer. Installing multiple instances is useful if you want to host different content for specific sites. Each instance will have its own report server database, configuration files, and virtual directories. If you want to share a single report server database among multiple instances and you are running SQL Server 2005 Enterprise Edition, you can configure a scale-out deployment. For more information about this deployment scenario, see Configuring a Report Server Scale-Out Deployment.

The following configurations are possible for multi-instance installations:

  • Multiple instances of the same version and edition. Each report server instance connects to its own local or remote report server database.
  • Multiple instances of different versions and editions. For example, you can run SQL Server 2005 Express, SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition, and SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition on the same computer.
    Multiple instance support is provided through SQL Server 2005. If you are running SQL Server 2000 and 2005 on the same computer, you can have only one SQL Server 2000 Reporting Service instance, and it must run as the default instance (that is, as MSSQLSERVER). Each additional instance must be an edition of SQL Server 2005 and it must be installed as a named instance.

Each instance of SQL Server is isolated from other instances that run on the same computer. You can install different versions and editions as separate instances on the same computer (for example, running the SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition and SQL Server 2005 Developer Edition as separate instances).

When you run multiple instances of Reporting Services on the same computer, you can configure all the instances to use the default Web site in Internet Information Services (IIS). In this case, each report server instance is uniquely identified by its virtual directory. Alternatively, you can configure each instance to use a specific IP Address if you want to use non-default Web sites or route all report server requests through a specific IP address.

Installing a Report Server Instance

To install multiple instances of Reporting Services, you must run Setup once for each report server instance you want to install. You cannot install multiple instances at the same time.

Installing a Report Server Default Instance

The first time that you run Setup, you have the option of installing the first report server instance as a default installation if the computer meets the requirements. A default installation is one that uses all default values, resulting in a report server that is ready to use when Setup is complete. You can have only one default instance of Reporting Services on a single SQL Server instance. For more information about requirements for a default installation, see Default Configuration for a Report Server Installation.

If you do not want to use the default values, or if your computer does not satisfy all the requirements for a default installation, you must install Reporting Services as a named instance.

Installing a Report Server as a Named Instance

If you are installing multiple report server instances on the same computer, each additional instance must be installed as a named instance.

To install a named report server instance:

On the file system, the program files for each report server instance are kept in separate instance folders (for example, MSSQL.2, MSSQL.3, and so on). Setup creates the folders in the order in which the instance is installed. For more information about how to install multiple instances, see How to: Install SQL Server 2005 (Setup).

Configuring a Report Server Instance

To configure different report server instances on the same computer, you can use the Reporting Services Configuration tool to select the instance you want to configure. Reporting Services uses SQL Server instance naming conventions to identify each instance:

  • A default instance uses the default instance name of MSSQLServer.
  • A default instance of SQL Server Express is SQLExpress (note that SQL Server Express always installs as a named instance).
  • Other named instances are identified by the name that you provide at Setup.

For more information about how to connect to a specific report server instance, see How to: Start Reporting Services Configuration.

Accessing a Report Server Instance in a Multi-instance Deployment

To access a particular instance of a report server or Report Manager, or to publish reports to a particular instance, you type the URL for the instance you want to use.

The virtual directory for each instance must be unique. If you are creating a virtual directory for a named instance or default SQL Server Express instance, the Reporting Services Configuration tool automatically incorporates instance information to create a unique virtual directory name. For example, suppose you have a server named SERVER01 on which you installed a default report server instance, a named report server instance (identified as TestServer), and a SQL Server Express instance, the default URLs for these instances would be as follows:

  • http://server01/reportserver
  • http://server01/reportserver$SQLExpress
  • http://server01/reportserver$TestServer

Configuring a Report Server Instance to Use a Custom Web Site or Unique IP Address

By default, report server instances are configured to the default Web site, where the IP address is mapped to (All Unassigned). You can use the default Web site with its existing configuration to host all the report server instances you install on the same computer. Alternatively, you can run each report server instance under a separate Web site. Using separate Web sites is required if you want to map a specific IP address for each report server instance. For more information about how to configure each report server instance to use a specific Web site or IP address, see How to: Configure Reporting Services to Use a Non-Default Web Site (Reporting Services Configuration).

Change History

Release History

12 December 2006

Changed content:
  • Clarified restrictions around multi-instance installations.

17 July 2006

Changed content:
  • Clarified default installation process.
  • Moved instructions for how to configure a report server instance to use a specific Web site to a separate topic.

See Also

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