System requirements for SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview

SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview is a powerful tool for managing SQL Server instances, Azure SQL databases, and Azure SQL managed instances. This document outlines the system requirements needed to install and run SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview effectively.

Ensure your system meets these requirements to take full advantage of the features and capabilities of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS). For more information about SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview, see Release notes for SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview.

Download SQL Server Management Studio 21

To download the latest version of SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview, see Install SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview. For instructions on installing and updating SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview, see Update SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview. Also, see instructions on how to install offline.

Download SSMS 21 Preview

Tip

For SQL Server Management Studio 20 and earlier versions, see Download SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).

SQL Server Management Studio 21 system requirements

SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview is supported on the following 64-bit operating systems:

  • Windows 11 minimum supported OS version or higher: Home, Pro, Pro Education, Pro for Workstations, Enterprise, and Education
  • Windows 10 minimum supported OS version or higher: Home, Professional, Education, and Enterprise.
  • Windows Server 2022: Standard and Datacenter.
  • Windows Server 2019: Standard and Datacenter.
  • Windows Server 2016: Standard and Datacenter.

The following operating systems aren't supported:

Hardware

  • x64 processor; Quad-core or better recommended.
    • ARM64 processors aren't supported for SSMS 21 Preview 1
    • ARM32 processors aren't supported.
  • Minimum of 4-GB of RAM. Many factors impact resources used; we recommend 16-GB RAM for typical professional solutions.
  • Hard disk space: Minimum of 4-GB up to 50-GB of available space, depending on features installed; typical installations require 20-50 GB of free space. We recommend installing Windows and SSMS on a solid-state drive (SSD) to increase performance.
  • Video card that supports a minimum display resolution of WXGA (1366 by 768); SSMS works best at a resolution of 1920 by 1080 or higher.
    • Minimum resolution assumes zoom, DPI settings, and text scaling are set at 100%. If not set to 100%, minimum resolution should be scaled accordingly. For example, if you set the Windows display Scale and layout setting on your Surface Book, which has a 3000x2000 physical display, to 200%, then SSMS would see a logical screen resolution of 1500x1000, meeting the minimum 1366x768 requirement.

Supported languages

SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview is available in English, Chinese (Simplified), Chinese (Traditional), Czech, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Russian, Spanish, and Turkish. You can select the language of SSMS during installation. The Visual Studio Installer is available in the same 14 languages, and matches the language of Windows, if available.

Additional requirements and guidance

  • Administrator rights are required to install or update SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview.
  • Refer to Create an offline installation of SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview for guidance on how to install, deploy, update, and configure SQL Server Management Studio in an offline scenario.
  • .NET Framework 4.7.2 or above is required to install SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview. SQL Server Management Studio 21 Preview requires .NET Framework 4.8 to run. If .NET Framework 4.8 isn't already installed, it's installed during setup.
  • Team Foundation Server 2019 Office Integration requires Office 2016, Office 2013, or Office 2010.
  • Smart App Control, which is a Windows feature, isn't recommended to be enabled on machines. Any setting other than "off" might negatively impact SQL Server Management Studio performance.