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Local Language Versions in SQL Server

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Applies to: SQL Server - Windows only

SQL Server supports all languages that are supported by Windows operating systems.

Cross-Language Support

  • The English-language version of SQL Server is supported on all localized versions of operating systems.

  • Localized versions of SQL Server are supported on localized operating systems with the corresponding language or on English-language versions of supported operating systems by using the Windows Multilingual User Interface Pack (MUI) settings. For more information, see Configure Operating System to Support Localized Versions.

  • Localized versions of SQL Server can only be upgraded to localized versions of the same language, and cannot be upgraded to the English-language version.

  • Localized versions of SQL Server can also be installed side by side with English-language instances of SQL Server.

Configure Operating System to Support Localized Versions

Localized versions of SQL Server are supported on English-language versions of supported operating systems through the use of Windows Multilingual User Interface Pack (MUI) settings.

However, you must verify certain operating system settings before installing a localized version of SQL Server on a server that is running an English-language operating system with a non-English MUI setting. You need to verify that the following operating system settings match the language of the localized SQL Server to be installed:

  • The operating system user interface setting

  • The operating system user locale setting

  • The system locale setting

If the settings do not match the language of the localized SQL Server to be installed, then use the following procedures to correctly set these operating system settings.

Caution

Installations of different language versions of SQL Server instances on the same computer are not supported.

To change the operating system user interface setting

  1. If not already installed, install the operating system MUI that matches your localized version of SQL Server.

  2. In Control Panel, open Regional and Language Options.

  3. On the Languages tab, for Language used in menus and dialogs, select a value from the list.

    This setting will affect the user interface language of SQL Server, so it must match your localized version of SQL Server.

  4. Click Apply to confirm the change, and OK to close the window.

To change the operating system user locale setting

  1. If not already installed, install the operating system MUI that matches your localized version of SQL Server.

  2. In Control Panel, open Regional and Language Options.

  3. On the Regional Options tab, for Select an item to match its preferences, select a value from the list.

    This setting will affect culture-specific data formatting.

  4. Click Apply to confirm the change, and OK to close the window.

To change the system locale setting

  1. If not already installed, install the operating system MUI that matches your localized version of SQL Server.

  2. In Control Panel, open Regional and Language Options.

  3. On the Advanced tab, for Select a language to match the language version of the non-Unicode programs you want to use, select a value from the list.

    This setting will allow SQL Server Setup to choose the best default collation for your SQL Server installation.

  4. Click Apply to confirm the change, and OK to close the window.

See Also

Hardware and Software Requirements for Installing SQL Server
Install SQL Server