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KB #240084: SQL will not start. The System cannot find the file specified

⏱️ 2 min read

Type

Information

Summary:

SQL Server does not start and the System Event log has an entry from the Service Control Manager: “The system cannot find the file specified.” This can be caused by a few issues. See below for more information.

Additional Information:

Failure of SQL to autostart after reboot, or to start after a manual request, can be caused by several factors. This article references issues where the Service Control Manager reports “The system cannot find the file specified”.

Causes:

SQL Server may not start for other reasons with different error messages. Articles related to SQL not starting are listed below.

Related Topics:

240040: Cannot start SQL Server or encrypted database is inaccessible when profile is on a remote machine

240082: Secured Instance of SQL Server does not AutoStart if McAfee On Access Scanning is enabled

240061: SQL does not start – Error: Another version of the product is already installed.

240070: Error “The specified file is not encrypted” when starting SQL

240077: Error “Another version of this product is already installed” when starting SQL

240091: NLCBTASK Service fails to start with error “The system cannot find the file specified”

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