Error starting the MSSQLSERVER service:

In midst of developing a crash app for a client, I have fired up ER models in SQL Server. For a demonstration that was due in 2 days, I had to work longer than usual. Anyway, working longer really might not mean work harder. I had a couple of frameworks that could deliver a seemingly robust application in split seconds.

Just 24 hours after commencement, I was also done with the entire product. It was a database-driven web application. I conducted an end-to-end testing and everything seemed perfect. I have eventual saved a day I thought!

There is this gal that I mentor! Just mentoring and nothing else before you begin to whistle. She just crashed her laptop. Adn being the Big brother that I am, I allowed her access on mine. I forgot the rule "Never leave a kid alone with a gadget" and that really burnt me!

By the time I returned, she had left and i just didn't have a stint of what could have happened on my lappy while i was away.

However, being a quite observant individual, I noticed that the naming of all my foldes were "BLUE" and that tells me that my harddrive had been compressed! I did not bother. Maybe she was trying toi save herself some spaces on my lappy i thought.

I got a call from the client and I had to make a litle ammendment to the codes. I launched VS2005 but my SQL Server refused to wink. I could not connect to the database. I knw there was problem. Demo was just 30minutes away by then.

They sudden pressure that held me made me forget everything. But ihad to put this database back on. MOreso, I had collected an upfront payment for the demo app.

Everytime I try to start the service I get this error:

"SQL Server 2005 Error code 3417: Windows cannot start the SQL Server (MSSQLSERVER) on Local Computer. For more Information, review the System Event Log. If this is a non-Microsoft service, contact the service vendor, and refer to service-specific error code 3417."

in a nutshell, I resolved in just bout 5minutes to demo time. All I did was to uncompress the
"C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server" directory and all of its children folders.

The service stated successfully afterward. The sweat I saved coding were eventually used up troubleshooting