How to set full text catalog location SQL Server 2008/2012

Question

I want to upgrade my SQL Server 2005 database to SQL Server 2012. In SQL Server 2005 you can set the location of the full text catalog when you create it. But in SQL Server 2012 (and in SQL Server 2008 from what I can deduce from online chatter) you cannot specify the location.

In SQL Server 2005 it was important to be able to set this location because, for performance reasons, we put the catalogs on separate disk. I understand that the full text engine has changed starting in SQL Server 2008 but I can't find information on where the catalogs get physically created and if putting them on a separate disk is still a best practice.

How can I set the catalog location in SQL Server 2008/2012? Or is the best practice of storing them on separate disks no longer necessary to follow?

Answer 1

1. Create a ft catalog
2. Create a filegroup for your ft index
3. Create a file in the filegroup you created above on the drive you want the ft index on
4. Right-click on the table you want to create the ft index for
5. Select Full-text Index -> Define Full-text index...
6. On the first page of the wizard, click Next
7. Select the unique index to use, click Next
8. Select the columns to index, click Next
9. Select the preferred change tracking, click Next
10. Select the ft catalog you created
11. Use the Select index filegroup pulldown to select the ft filegroup you created
12. Click Next
13. Create a schedule if you wish, click Next
14. Click Finish, click Close
15. Richt-click the table, select Full-text Index -> Properties
16. Verify the correct filegroup is indicated

Answer 2

Keith,

Full-text catalog had a complete architecture change in 2008 & above and that's why this option is removed and NOT necessary. Definitely NOT the answer you were looking for :-)

Ref: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms189520(v=SQL.100).aspx

Important Beginning with SQL Server 2008, a full-text catalog is a virtual object and does not belong to any filegroup. A full-text catalog is a logical concept that refers to a group of full-text indexes.

ON FILEGROUP filegroup Beginning with SQL Server 2008, this clause has no effect. IN PATH 'rootpath' Note This feature will be removed in a future version of Microsoft SQL Server. Avoid using this feature in new development work, and plan to modify applications that currently use this feature. Beginning with SQL Server 2008, this clause has no effect.