My first look at sql 2008 (standard edition, 64 bit, on Windows 2008) was … mixed.
First thing I wanted to do was set-up a full daily on-disk backup. I found I was unable to backup to a remote server IE: ‘\[ipaddress]backup$’, as I would get ‘access denied’. Further, I was then unable to edit the maint-plan as the Modify option from the context menu didn’t seem to work. For now I just deleted the plan and made a new one that backed up locally.
On the brighter side I like the ‘activity monitor’ with the row of graphs at the top. Influenced by Oracle me thinks.
Additionally I found the new object-explorer-details panel a joy. Although its really just a re-working of the old sql2000 ‘Taskpad’ view.
So, my initial impression of sql2008 is that its fresh, reflective of current fashion, and a bit buggy.
Database Consultant 