During a remote installation of SQL Server via command prompt, you may encounter an error message stating “The Reporting Services catalog database file exists.” This error can be frustrating, but there is a simple solution to fix it.

When faced with this error, you may be tempted to delete the file mentioned in the error message and run the setup again. However, there is an easier way to resolve this issue without going through the hassle of deleting files and parsing logs.

The error message indicates that the installation was done on a machine that already had a prior installation of SQL Server with Reporting Services. In a fresh installation, this error would not occur. To avoid this error, you need to modify the configuration file used during the installation.

Open the configuration file (SQLInstall.ini) and add the following line:

RSINSTALLMODE=FilesOnlyMode

This line specifies that the installation should be in “Files Only” mode, which means that only the Reporting Services files will be installed without the SQL Server Database engine. By adding this line, the setup deployment will proceed smoothly even if the SSRS files are already present.

Here is an example of the command that you can use for the installation:

cmd /c setup.exe /q /IAcceptSQLServerLicenseTerms /Action=Install /ConfigurationFile="C:\SQLMedia\SQLInstall.ini"

Make sure to replace “C:\SQLMedia\SQLInstall.ini” with the actual path to your configuration file.

By following these steps, you can easily fix the error “The Reporting Services catalog database file exists” during a remote installation of SQL Server via command prompt.

Have you encountered a similar issue during a SQL prompt installation via command prompt? Let us know in the comments below!