There are two aspects of installing an ArcSDE geodatabase:
Installing and configuring the database management system (DBMS) software
Installing and configuring the ArcSDE component
The steps you take to accomplish this vary slightly depending on how the ArcSDE geodatabase is licensed and the DBMS used to store it.
For ArcSDE geodatabases licensed with ArcGIS Server Enterprise, you can utilize one of the following DBMS products: IBM DB2, IBM Informix, Microsoft SQL Server, Oracle, or PostgreSQL. For the first four DBMS products listed, you obtain the installation of the DBMS software separately from the ArcSDE component installation. Therefore, you need to read the setup instructions provided with your DBMS installation media to complete the DBMS installation. For ArcSDE for PostgreSQL, the DBMS installation for certain operating systems is provided as part of the setup, and documentation is also provided.
There are three parts to a new installation of the ArcSDE component of ArcGIS Server Enterprise: preinstallation tasks, installing the ArcSDE component of the software, and postinstallation tasks. An overview of the specific tasks you must complete for each of these parts for each supported DBMS can be viewed in the following topics:
Installation summary for the ArcSDE component for DB2Installation summary for the ArcSDE component for InformixInstallation summary for the ArcSDE component for OracleInstallation summary for the ArcSDE component for PostgreSQLInstallation summary for the ArcSDE component for SQL Server
For complete installation instructions, consult the installation guides provided with the ArcGIS Server Enterprise installation media. You can also download portable document format (PDF) versions of the installation guides from the Geodatabase Resource Center.
In the case of ArcSDE for SQL Server Express, the DBMS installation executable is included on the ArcGIS Desktop (ArcEditor or ArcInfo), ArcGIS Engine, and ArcGIS Server Workgroup media. You install SQL Server Express and register it to store geodatabases. There is no separate ArcSDE component installation. The files that allow you to create, connect to, and use ArcSDE geodatabases are built into the client software. Once the SQL Server Express instance is created and set to store geodatabases, you add a database server connection in ArcCatalog or use the ArcObjects IDataServerManager interface to create geodatabases, add users, and administer the DBMS and the geodatabase stored in it.
See Installing SQL Server Express and enabling it to store ArcSDE geodatabases for a summary of the installation and postinstallation steps for these geodatabases.
