Changing SQL Server Instance configurations

This recipe discusses how to change instance configuration settings using PowerShell.

Getting ready

For this recipe, we will perform the following tasks:

• Change fill factor to 60 percent
• Enable SQL Server Agent
• Set Minimum Server Memory to 500 MB
• Change authentication method to Mixed

How to do it...

Let's change some SQL Server settings using PowerShell:

1. Open PowerShell ISE as administrator.
2. Import the SQLPS module and create a new SMO Server Object:

   #import SQL Server module
   Import-Module SQLPS -DisableNameChecking
   
   #replace this with your instance name
   $instanceName = "localhost"
   $server = New-Object -TypeName Microsoft.SqlServer.Management.Smo.Server -ArgumentList $instanceName

3. Add the following script and run:

   <#
   run value vs config value
   config_value," is what the setting has been set to (but may or may not be what SQL Server is actually running now. Some settings don't go into effect until SQL Server has been restarted, or...