If you can connect to SQL Server in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), but your database does not appear under the Databases folder, the database is usually still there and working. This article explains why that happens on our Plesk for Windows servers and how to keep using your database in SSMS.
For the steps to connect in the first place, see Connecting to SQL Server using Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio version 21.
Signs this is the problem
- SSMS connects successfully with your database username and password.
- Under Databases, you only see System Databases and Database Snapshots. Your website or application database is not in the list.
- Your website or application can still read and write to the database as normal.
Why it happens
By default, SQL Server lets every login see the names of all databases on the server. That does not give access to other people's data, but it does list every database name. On a shared server, that is not appropriate.
From Plesk Obsidian 18.0.82 onwards, Plesk denies the VIEW ANY DATABASE permission for the MS SQL users it creates. That stops one customer seeing another customer's database names.
SSMS has a limitation: if that permission is not granted, Object Explorer will not list databases, even ones your login can use. This is expected after the Plesk change. It is not a sign that your database has been deleted or that the connection has failed.
How to work with your database in SSMS
You can still run queries and manage your database. You just need to tell SSMS the database name when you connect, instead of relying on the Object Explorer list.
- In Plesk, go to Databases and copy the exact name of your MS SQL database.
- Open SSMS and enter your server name, login and password as usual. Do not click Connect yet.
- Click Options. In the Connect to database box, paste your database name, then click Connect. This is also covered in the SSMS connection guide.
- Open a New Query window. Your database should be selected in the database dropdown at the top of the query window, and you can run SQL against it from there.
The database may still be missing from the Object Explorer tree. That is the SSMS limitation described above. Use the query window to work with it.
Confirm which databases you can access
Once you are connected, open a New Query window and run:
SELECT database_id, name FROM sys.databases;You should see master, tempdb and any databases your login can use.
If the result only shows master and tempdb, your login's default database is probably set to master. This can happen when the database user in Plesk was created with access to all databases in the subscription. Reconnect using Options and set Connect to database to your actual database name, then run the query again.
What we do not change on shared servers
There is a server-side permission that would make SSMS list databases in Object Explorer again. On shared servers we do not enable it, because it would also let your login see the names of every database on the server, including those that belong to other customers. Plesk may also remove that permission again after a later update.
If you cannot connect at all, or a query returns an error that your login cannot access the database, that is a different issue. Lodge a support ticket and include the exact error message.
