SQL Server Installation error: Unable to start SQL Server Service

Summary

This article explains how to resolve a SQL Server Express installation failure on a PC caused by incompatible modern NVMe SSDs.

A common cause of SQL Server 2022 Express Database Engine installation failure, particularly on Windows 11 systems with modern NVMe SSDs, is disk sector size incompatibility. 

The installation may fail because the storage device reports a physical sector size larger than 4 KB, preventing the database engine service from starting.

Both Dell and Microsoft have identified the SanDisk / Western Digital (WD) SN5000S NVMe SSD series as a primary contributor to this issue on Windows 11 systems.

Root cause
The SN5000S is a high-performance PCIe Gen4 NVMe SSD. Under Windows 11, the default Microsoft NVMe storage driver may report the drive’s physical sector size as 16 KB or larger.

SQL Server was designed to support only the following sector sizes:

• 512 bytes
• 4096 bytes (4 KB)

If SQL Server detects an unsupported sector size during setup, it cannot properly create or format the system databases, which may cause the SQL Server service to crash and the installation to fail.

Solution

Step 1: Fix the Windows 11 Disk Sector Size Issue
If you are using a newer PC or laptop with an NVMe SSD, Windows may report a 16 KB sector size. To resolve this issue, configure Windows to emulate the standard 4 KB sector size required by SQL Server.

1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator. 

2. Run the following command:

   REG ADD "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\stornvme\Parameters\Device" /v 
   "ForcedPhysicalSectorSizeInBytes" /t REG_MULTI_SZ /d "* 4095" /f``

3. Restart the computer.

Step 2: Perform a Clean SQL Server Reinstallation
After applying the registry workaround, completely remove the previous SQL Server installation before reinstalling. 

1. Uninstall all SQL Server components. 

2. Delete the SQL Server installation directory: 

   C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server 

   Note: Adjust the drive letter if SQL Server was installed on a different drive. 

3. Restart the computer. Sign in using a local or domain administrator account. 
4. Reinstall SQL Server 2022 Express.

Additional Notes 

• This issue primarily affects newer NVMe SSDs that use the default Windows 11 NVMe storage drivers. 
• The registry workaround forces Windows to present a compatible 4 KB physical sector size to SQL Server.
• After applying the fix and restarting the system, the SQL Server installation should complete successfully without the “Unable to start SQL Server service” error.

Contacting SKF Technical Support Group

For further assistance please open a support case using the Technical Support group's self-help portal at www.skf.com/cm/tsg. Once your support case is submitted, a technician will contact you to begin working on your issue. For urgent issues we are available at these times by phone:

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