Posted by Erland Sommarskog on 01/23/08 12:00

(grzegorz.gazda@googlemail.com) writes:
> I had to detach the database to delete the transaction log as it took
> the hole disk space.

No, you did not have to. The correct action would have been to
backup the transaction and then shrink the log file. Or simply
switch to simple recovery.

BUT NEVER DELETE A LOG FILE! NEVER!

> No I am trying to attach database, however I am not able to do so.

Of course not. You deleted half of the database.

If you have a clean backup of the database, restore the backup.

If you don't have a backup of the database, you are in trouble. There
are possibilities to create a new log file, so that you can access
the database, but the database is likely to be in bad shape, with
corruption in internal structures as well as inconsistencies in
application data.

If this is a database that you cannot afford to lose, I recommend that
you open a case with Microsoft. The methods to access the orphan MDF
depends on the SQL Server version. In any case, the methods requires
good understanding of SQL Server and how to work from this situation.
Which, to be honest, I don't trust someone who deletes his log file to be.
Whence, I recommend you to open a case with Microsoft, so that you have
a support person who ca guide you through the process.

Also, for the future, you need to learn some basics about how the log
file work. Either you go for simple recovery, or you back up your log
file regularly. The reduces the likelyhood for a log file swamping the
disk to a minimum.

--
Erland Sommarskog, SQL Server MVP, esquel@sommarskog.se

Books Online for SQL Server 2005 at
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/sql/2005/downloads/books.mspx
Books Online for SQL Server 2000 at
http://www.microsoft.com/sql/prodinfo/previousversions/books.mspx

[Back to original message]