SQL Server Management Studio 18 remember password not working?

galletto 186

With one of the latest updates of SSMS 18 (I'm now on 18.6), the remember password feature does not seem to work anymore. Am I missing something?

Cheers,
Galletto

Leo Muller 26 Reputation points

2020-11-02T11:36:18.317+00:00

It seems that SQL Server Management Studio from time to time randomly sees to forget your password that you clearly asked to remember. Even though many times it may remember, and then one day, it forgets.

This seems to happen ALWAYS when you have something stored in your CLIPBOARD when you open SQL Management Studio.
hermecDBA 1 Reputation point

2020-12-02T23:53:58.13+00:00

If anyone also has this issue, please vote it up here:
https://feedback.azure.com/forums/908035-sql-server/suggestions/41354875-ssms-18-6-remember-password-option-doesnt-work
Will de Haan 1 Reputation point

2020-12-04T08:06:58.167+00:00

@hermecDBA that forum asks me to provide a password, but it's not clear to me for what account?
Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2020-12-17T19:33:55.393+00:00

For the Vote Up, we need an "Up +1000" for this particular issue! It has been doing this for years now, and it is so annoying.
Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2020-12-17T19:34:05.283+00:00

For the Vote Up, we need an "Up +1000" for this particular issue! It has been doing this for years now, and it is so annoying.
galletto 186 Reputation points

2020-12-21T08:15:35.503+00:00

I tried voting, but it won't accept my login there.
Bill Guenthner 1 Reputation point

2021-08-13T14:05:14.007+00:00

I don't understand it either. Microsoft struggles to keep basic functionality working in many of their applications. It can't be a lack of talent so it has to be a lack of caring.

11 answers

Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2023-01-19T19:37:59.2633333+00:00

I found a permanent solution! I am dropping SMSS, and am now using dbForge for SQL Server. This is an awesome tool! The ER diagram tool is compliant with industry standards and lacks all the bugs of SMSS, it saves passwords, and allows you to mark the maturity of each database (Dev, Test, Production...). It also allows you to sync database with a SCM, and compare and sync databases with each other. That's only a small portion of the features, it is so feature-rich I don't think I need another tool again.
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Stacy Clark 21 Reputation points

2022-01-24T07:03:55.157+00:00
I add my servers in the Registered Servers and be done with it. Except for when you have to change the connection on an existing query window, that does suck. Profiler on the other hand...

Also if you're like me and bring your laptop to clients to use SSMS locally where AD auth doesn't work because you're not on their domain, you can use this to launch SSMS with the target domain credentials and login with Windows Auth (assuming you have an account there ofc):

runas /netonly /user:DOMAIN\myusername "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio 18\Common7\IDE\Ssms.exe"
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Scott Craig 1 Reputation point

2023-01-19T13:51:01.9166667+00:00

I've been using SQL Server Managment Studio for over 20 years, and this problem is prevelant in all versions. It is now 2023 and is still happens !!! Why can't MS fix this, surely it must annoy the engineers who write it to !!
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Pham X. Bach 6 Reputation points

2022-01-21T07:44:15.847+00:00

For me, I solve my problem by running "SQL Server Manage Studio" (SSMS) by Admin right (right click, Run as Administrator) and tick check box "Remember password", type password and connect.
Then the next time I run SSMS normally and boom, no need to type password again.
It seems that SSMS have problem writing credential and run as Administrator do solve it.
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Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2022-01-21T14:35:13.993+00:00

@Pham X. Bach I think you missed the point - the problem that we stated was that SSMS sometimes remembers the passwords using that checkbox, but then will forget it at some point. But, I wonder if the intermittent nature of the issue may indicate a permissions problem, so perhaps running as Administrator is a fix. However, if you are operating on a system that you don't control, and you don't have elevation privileges, that is not a solution for you. We need to look into the cause of the issue - and that was the purpose of our efforts.

Pham X. Bach 6 Reputation points

2022-01-22T04:29:27.41+00:00

If the case is as you said (SSMS sometimes remember saved password, sometime not), run as Administrator the first time seems not to be the solution.
If the case is as my case and OP's (the remember password feature does not seem to work anymore) then run as Administrator could be one solution, in case you have enough elevation privileges.
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Lee Lepkowski 31 Reputation points

2021-02-24T14:40:08.403+00:00
Thank you @Abdul Arfat Mohammed and @Sean that simple solution (delete the server from the drop-down options, maybe re-launch SSMS, add the server being sure "Remember password" is checked) seems to do the trick.

In case that fails these are the tedious/manual steps to accomplish the same thing:

Exit SSMS

Edit C:\Users\%username%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio\18.x\UserSettings.xml

Look at the <Servers> and child <Element> with child <Connections> and subsequent child <Element> tags, remove just the <Element>...</Element> items for specific connections and/or servers where the saved password is an issue

Before re-opening SSMS, using Windows 10 Credential Manager under "Windows Credentials" find and delete the Microsoft:SSMS:18:<serverName>:<userName>:<guid>... credentials for the specific logins that were problematic

Re-open SSMS, connect to your server(s) using the "save password" option; the passwords will be saved

Answer is from https://feedback.azure.com/forums/908035-sql-server/suggestions/32906749-ssms-still-forgets-passwords
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6 people found this answer helpful.
Prince 1 Reputation point

2021-03-13T18:41:34.087+00:00

Working good so far. Thanks!

Sean 6 Reputation points

2021-05-13T14:34:02.617+00:00

You can press the delete key on the item in the SSMS server list, which is easier than editing the XML file.
I did so, and then restarted SSMS (not sure if its necessary) and then readded the server and then closed and reopened and the password was remembered!

Bryan Sudol 0 Reputation points

2024-01-12T20:02:00.1633333+00:00

NEVER give a workaround to a Micrsoft bug - they will use it as an excuse to NEVER FIX the BUG in their software. Plus this doesn't resolve the actual issue - your password can still be forgotten in the future.
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Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2021-01-08T14:21:38.187+00:00

@Michael Küfner and @Cris Zhan-MSFT - THANKS for that! As of right now, I have removed the file and recreated connection credentials. Initially, it is working, I can confirm after several restarts it is remembering the password. However, I think time will tell; if it remains working after a week, I would say that is great evidence of a solution. I will check back.

To recap, the solution was to remove C:\Users\userName\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\SQL Server Management Studio\18.0\UserSettings.xml and restart SSMS, and re-enter connection info in the new version.
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Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2021-01-20T16:41:12.2+00:00

Safari sogoodi, it is still working, so I would say that is a good solution.

Jay Imerman 11 Reputation points

2021-02-25T15:48:14.887+00:00

No luck, it took a few weeks, but SSMS has forgotten the password again. I don't know the conditions under which it forgets the password, that I think is the problem with identifying the root cause or a solution.

Kandarp Gautam 6 Reputation points

2022-10-13T10:54:35.397+00:00

Don't you think it's a workaround and not a solution? Microsoft needs to fix this asap.

Kandarp Gautam 6 Reputation points

2022-10-13T10:57:17.047+00:00

For a developer who developed that functionality, it cannot be hard. As he knows how the information flows. But if there's some tester who doesn't know the development and is just hit and tries to recreate the issue, I don't think it's possible to identify the real issue.
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