TF246017 Error opening TFS Administration Console

Question

When I log in to our TFS server using my own domain account and try to open the TFS administration console, I get the following error:

TF246017: Team Foundation Server could not connect to the database. Ensure that the server hosting the database is running and that network problems are not blocking communication with the server.

The TFS database runs locally on the TFS server. When I log in to the TFS server using the local computer administrator account (presumably the account used to install TFS), the Administration Console loads without errors. Thus, I used SSMS to view the local TFS database and its logins, as well as the local user account of the local TFS server is specified with full permissions, but I do not have a domain account. Hence the error.

Finally, my question. What I would like to do is to grant specific users permission to access the TFS database (and, therefore, the ability to start the Administration Console without errors), as well as the local administrator account. Instead of adding each of these users as logins via SSMS, is there a TFS group to which I can add them that will automatically grant them permission to the TFS database? It would seem a little cleaner.

Thanks.

Answer 1

The easiest way to solve this problem is to find someone from your team who can use the Administration Console and add them to the list of users of the Administration Console. It is located in the "Application Level" section of the tree node. If you watch the “wizard”, you will notice that it adds the user to all kinds of things, such as groups, SQL roles, perhaps more than you want to coordinate manually. I spent a good hour doing something with AD groups, manually adding users to SQL roles, etc., to get another member of my team to work. In the end, I just added it through the Administration Console, and after a minute it was configured.

Answer 2

I would recommend creating a group in AD called TFS Administrators, which you then give permissions to the database server, admin console, sharepoint, ssrs and ssas.

Answer 3

Try logging in with a user administrator account, rather than using an administrator account.