Can I delete SQL Server database secondary data file?

What is SQL Server database secondary data file?

Secondary data files are useful when we want to stripe the data across multiple drives of the database server. For example, if you want to keep the tables on X drive and indexes on Y drive, then you can keep the tables on the primary data file and indexes on the secondary data file.

Can we delete .NDF file?

1 Answer. A file can be removed from the database only if the file is empty. Without SHRINKFILE , the implication is that the file must be the only file in a user-defined filegroup and you must first drop or move all the objects (or partitions) from the filegroup to a different file group.

Can we delete .mdf file?

These files can be deleted manually by using Windows Explorer. Drop the database is just to bring it offline. You need to manually delete the mdf and ldf file (see here on how to locate them); then refer to this image: After that, you can recreate the database.

How do I delete a SQL Server database file?

Using SQL Server Management Studio Expand Databases, right-click the database from which to delete the file, and then click Properties. Select the Files page. In the Database files grid, select the file to delete and then click Remove. Click OK.