In case your SA account is disabled and you cannot log in to SQL Server, this article from TipsMake will guide you on how to log in to SQL Server if your SA account is disabled.
If the SA account is disabled, and you attempt to connect, you will receive the error message "Login failed for user 'sa'. Reason: The account is disabled. (Microsoft SQL Server, Error: 18470)".
This article from TipsMake will guide you on how to log in to SQL Server if your SA account is disabled.
If the SA account is the only account logging into SQL Server with administrator privileges, you will encounter SQL Server login errors and lose control of your database. Fortunately, there is still a way to reactivate a disabled SA account without reinstalling SQL Server 2014, 2012, 2008, and 2005. With SQL Server Password Changer, you can log into SQL Server even if the SA account is disabled by reactivating it with just a few clicks.
How to activate a SA account that is disabled offline
First, you must stop SQL Server in SQL Server Configuration Manager. Then, download and install the SQL Server Password Changer application on your local computer.
Download and install the SQL Server Password Changer application here: Download SQL Server Password Changer
Open the SQL Server Password Changer program. Click the Open File button , and a File Open dialog box will appear. It will ask you to select the master database (master.mdf) for SQL Server. SQL Server stores login credentials in the master.mdf file, located in the following directory:
C:Program FilesMicrosoft SQL ServerMSSQL10MSSQLDATA.
After selecting the master database file, the program will analyze the file format and extract all user databases from it. Select your SA account and click the Change Password button. In the pop-up window that appears, enter the password you want to use and click OK .
The program will assign the new password you just created to the SA account, and allow you to enable/unlock the SA account if it is disabled. Open SQL Server and you should be able to connect to the SA account successfully from SQL Server Management Studio.
In summary, TipsMake has just guided you on how to log in to SQL Server if your SA account is disabled. If your SA account is disabled, you can use SQL Server Password Changer to specify a new password and reactivate the SA account, or you can follow the instructions on how to reset a lost SA password on SQL Server to log in to your administrator account.