Connecting to a pre-SQL 2012 SSIS Instance with SQL 2012 SSMS

If you are using SQL Server Management Studio in SQL 2012 to try to connect to an older SSIS instance (SQL 2008 R2 and earlier) called “SSISServerName”, you will get an error:

Connecting to the Integration Services service on the computer “SSISServerName” failed with the following error: “Class not registered”.

This error can occur when you try to connect to a SQL Server 2005 Integration Services service from the current version of the SQL Server tools. Instead, add folders to the service configuration file to let the local Integration Services service manage packages on the SQL Server 2005 instance.

Not to worry, there is a workaround. It’s not the most logical workaround, but it will work. The SSIS service has a concept of “folders.” Read on for more details.

You see them when you connect to an SSIS instance through SSMS:

We can add additional folders that connect to remote instances (yes, even pre-SQL 2012 instances) by editing the MsDtsSrvr.ini.xml file on a SQL 2012 instance (perhaps your local machine) and restarting the SSIS service on the same machine. Here’s how.

• Open the MsDtsSrvr.ini.xml file. It is typically located in C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\110\DTS\Binn\MsDtsSrvr.ini.xml.
• Add a folder to the TopLevelFolders node. This folder should be configured to point to your remote non-SQL 2012 SSIS instance.
• Restart the SSIS service.

An example XML file that adds a new folder that points to the named SQL instance, MyServer\SQL01 will look like:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<DtsServiceConfiguration xmlns:xsd="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
   <StopExecutingPackagesOnShutdown>true</StopExecutingPackagesOnShutdown>
   <TopLevelFolders>
      <Folder xsi:type="SqlServerFolder">
         <Name>MSDB</Name>
         <ServerName>.\SQL2012</ServerName>
      </Folder>
      <Folder xsi:type="FileSystemFolder">
         <Name>File System</Name>
         <StorePath>..\Packages</StorePath>
      </Folder>
      <Folder xsi:type="SqlServerFolder">
         <Name>MyServerFolder</Name>
         <ServerName>MyServer\SQL01</ServerName>
      </Folder>
   </TopLevelFolders>
</DtsServiceConfiguration>

Once the folder entry for “MyServerFolder” has been added, save the file, and then restart the SSIS Service via the Services Control Panel or via the SQL Server Configuration Manager.

Then connect to your local SSIS service in SSMS to see the new folder. It should look as so:

Let me know if you have any additional questions.