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master Database

The master database records all the system-level information for a SQL Server system. This includes instance-wide metadata such as logon accounts, endpoints, linked servers, and system configuration settings. In SQL Server, system objects are no longer stored in the master database; instead, they are stored in the Resource database. Also, master is the database that records the existence of all other databases and the location of those database files and records the initialization information for SQL Server. Therefore, SQL Server cannot start if the master database is unavailable.

Physical Properties of master

The following table lists the initial configuration values of the master data and log files. The sizes of these files may vary slightly for different editions of SQL Server.

File Logical name Physical name File growth
Primary data master master.mdf Autogrow by 10 percent until the disk is full.
Log mastlog mastlog.ldf Autogrow by 10 percent to a maximum of 2 terabytes.

For information about how to move the master data and log files, see Move System Databases.

Database Options

The following table lists the default value for each database option in the master database and whether the option can be modified. To view the current settings for these options, use the sys.databases catalog view.

Database option Default value Can be modified
ALLOW_SNAPSHOT_ISOLATION ON No
ANSI_NULL_DEFAULT OFF Yes
ANSI_NULLS OFF Yes
ANSI_PADDING OFF Yes
ANSI_WARNINGS OFF Yes
ARITHABORT OFF Yes
AUTO_CLOSE OFF No
AUTO_CREATE_STATISTICS ON Yes
AUTO_SHRINK OFF No
AUTO_UPDATE_STATISTICS ON Yes
AUTO_UPDATE_STATISTICS_ASYNC OFF Yes
CHANGE_TRACKING OFF No
CONCAT_NULL_YIELDS_NULL OFF Yes
CURSOR_CLOSE_ON_COMMIT OFF Yes
CURSOR_DEFAULT GLOBAL Yes
Database Availability Options ONLINE

MULTI_USER

READ_WRITE
No

No

No
DATE_CORRELATION_OPTIMIZATION OFF Yes
DB_CHAINING ON No
ENCRYPTION OFF No
NUMERIC_ROUNDABORT OFF Yes
PAGE_VERIFY CHECKSUM Yes
PARAMETERIZATION SIMPLE Yes
QUOTED_IDENTIFIER OFF Yes
READ_COMMITTED_SNAPSHOT OFF No
RECOVERY SIMPLE Yes
RECURSIVE_TRIGGERS OFF Yes
Service Broker Options DISABLE_BROKER No
TRUSTWORTHY OFF Yes

For a description of these database options, see ALTER DATABASE (Transact-SQL).

Restrictions

The following operations cannot be performed on the master database:

  • Adding files or filegroups.

  • Changing collation. The default collation is the server collation.

  • Changing the database owner. master is owned by sa.

  • Creating a full-text catalog or full-text index.

  • Creating triggers on system tables in the database.

  • Dropping the database.

  • Dropping the guest user from the database.

  • Enabling change data capture.

  • Participating in database mirroring.

  • Removing the primary filegroup, primary data file, or log file.

  • Renaming the database or primary filegroup.

  • Setting the database to OFFLINE.

  • Setting the database or primary filegroup to READ_ONLY.

Recommendations

When you work with the master database, consider the following recommendations:

  • Always have a current backup of the master database available.

  • Back up the master database as soon as possible after the following operations:

    • Creating, modifying, or dropping any database

    • Changing server or database configuration values

    • Modifying or adding logon accounts

  • Do not create user objects in master. If you do, master must be backed up more frequently.

  • Do not set the TRUSTWORTHY option to ON for the master database.

What to Do If master Becomes Unusable

If master becomes unusable, you can return the database to a usable state in either of the following ways:

  • Restore master from a current database backup.

    If you can start the server instance, you should be able to restore master from a full database backup. For more information, see Restore the master Database (Transact-SQL).

  • Rebuild master completely.

    If severe damage to master prevents you from starting SQL Server, you must rebuild master. For more information, see Rebuild System Databases.

    Important

    Rebuilding master rebuilds all of the system databases.

Rebuild System Databases

System Databases

sys.databases (Transact-SQL)

sys.master_files (Transact-SQL)

Move Database Files