Stop SQL services


Run the below command on run box


sc start MSSQL$SQLEXPRESS -m


open management studio


Step 1: Login to MS SQL Server , right click on it and click on Properties.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 1

Step 2: Click on Security ,click SQL Server and Windows Authentication mode option as show below and click on ok. 

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 2

Step 3: once you clicked Ok button, you will get below message to restart MS SQL Server.

Restart the MS SQL SQL Server to take effect and enable Windows and SQL Authentication mode.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 3

Step 4: once again login to MS SQL server , click on Logins and goto ‘sa‘ user.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 4

Step 5: Right click on ‘sa‘ user and click on Properties as shown below. 

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 5

Step 6: In General section , change the password and confirm password and you can uncheck Enforce password policy if you don’t want and click on Ok.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 6

Step 7: Navigate to Status page , In Login settings click on Enabled to enable sa login and click on Ok.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 7

Step 8: Press the Windows+R, type ‘services.msc‘ and restart the SQL Server as shown below.

How to Enable sa Account in SQL Server [ 2 Steps] 8

Now you can login to SQL Server using SQL Authentication mode , ‘sa’ user and password.