Hello everyone! I am having a lot of trouble trying to figure this out and im pretty sure its a lot more simple than what I am making it out to be. Issue: Trying to access my 2 SQL DB instances over my VPN connection. (I am working from home) When I open up SQL management studio and try to browse for my instance it does not show up on the list. Nothing shows up on the list! However when I use IPADDRESS\INSTANCENAME it works like a charm and I am able to connect but it does not pick up the server/instance name. How do I fix this naming issue? I am thinking that it is a naming issue. I think my DNS server isn't changing the name into an IP address. Reason why I think it is this because I am not able to remote desktop into my server using the server name. It works with its local ip address but it doesnt work with the name. However when I am on the network at work I am able to use the server name to connect and I am able to see all my databases when I browse for them. Any idea on where I should start or if there is a best practice in configuring my network/vpn settings to change the name into an IP address? If you guys need anymore information i can post it. :) thanks!

Hello, Issue: Trying to access my 2 SQL DB instances over my VPN connection. (I am working from home) When I open up SQL management studio and try to browse for my instance it does not show up on the list. Nothing shows up on the list! However when I use IPADDRESS\INSTANCENAME it works like a charm and I am able to connect but it does not pick up the server/instance name. How do I fix this naming issue? Maybe this is related to name resolution. I assume here that you are using the server NetBIOS name to access: If yes then you will need to have DNS suffixes configured correctly. What if you use the Fully Qualified Domain Name (server.domain.com)? Also, check that you are pointing to the correct DNS server. Use nslookup to check DNS resolution. This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees , and confers no rights. Microsoft Student Partner 2010 / 2011 Microsoft Certified Professional Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator: Security Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows 7, Configuring Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Designing and Providing Volume Licensing Solutions to Large Organizations Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Enterprise Administrator Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator Microsoft Certified Trainer

Hello, Issue: Trying to access my 2 SQL DB instances over my VPN connection. (I am working from home) When I open up SQL management studio and try to browse for my instance it does not show up on the list. Nothing shows up on the list! However when I use IPADDRESS\INSTANCENAME it works like a charm and I am able to connect but it does not pick up the server/instance name. How do I fix this naming issue? Maybe this is related to name resolution. I assume here that you are using the server NetBIOS name to access: If yes then you will need to have DNS suffixes configured correctly. What if you use the Fully Qualified Domain Name (server.domain.com)? Also, check that you are pointing to the correct DNS server. Use nslookup to check DNS resolution. This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties or guarantees , and confers no rights. Microsoft Student Partner 2010 / 2011 Microsoft Certified Professional Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator: Security Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer: Security Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Network Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows Server 2008 Applications Infrastructure, Configuration Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows 7, Configuring Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Designing and Providing Volume Licensing Solutions to Large Organizations Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Enterprise Administrator Microsoft Certified IT Professional: Server Administrator Microsoft Certified Trainer