0

My client is utilizing software that is SQL-based, the database having been set up by the software vendor for us. During a call I had made to the software vendor to ask them to connect to the SQL server to look at a problem we were having with the software, the software vendor told me that they could not proceed with troubleshooting and investigating the issue because Always Encrypted had been set on the database. Unfortunately the support technician could not tell me much about this, only that it was a road block for them and that it needed to be disabled, and that managing SQL databases to that extent was out of scope for their support.

I tried to look up how to disable or remove that feature from our database but all of the information I have found so far is about setting it up, not taking it down. I haven't tried to "tinker" with this at all on my own as what I have read so far tells me that this is definitely something that should not be touched without sufficient familiarity with managing SQL databases to know that modification of that feature on the database won't have potential negative ramifications (besides the data not being encrypted).

How can I remove or disable this feature from our database so I can get the software vendor to continue taking a look at their database?

Notes: We have SQL Server 2017. I don't know much about SQL Server - if a solution would have complications I might be expected to be aware of in trying it, I'm afraid I really won't be aware of them they're mentioned, which is something I'm also hoping to get from an answer (if applicable). I want to make sure I do it right.

Curious Administrator
  • 1
  • 2
  • You've seen this I trust? https://stackoverflow.com/questions/43878655/how-to-remove-always-encrypted-from-a-column-in-sql-server-2016 – Dale K Mar 12 '20 at 20:05
  • Ah, no, must've used the wrong search terms. But the accepted answer on that is then followed by another answer that indicates that it's way more involved than just running the wizard again, which is something that I am worried about happening if I just tried to fix it on my own - that something I didn't know or understand about SQL, like several parts of the second answer in that question, would result in the client's database being FUBAR'ed in some way. I'm looking for an answer that takes in to account I don't know much about potential SQL complications in changing this stuff. – Curious Administrator Mar 12 '20 at 21:00

0 Answers0