SSMS SQL SERVER Management Studio 2012 startup freeze

Question

I have a strange situation. IT installed SSMS on my laptop and it runs well the first time, connected to my SQL servers remotely etc. But then it's frozen. I forced quit and then started SSMS again. Now it's totally frozen, no popup window at all to enter the server-connection text string. Then I did a force quit and got a pop up window (see it here ).

Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio has detected that an operation is blocking user input. This can be caused by an active modal dialog or a task that needs to block user interaction. Would you like to shut down anyway?

Has anyone seen this before? My IT department has no clue.

Answer 1

Often this is due to the new connection dialog being off screen (usually due to changing monitor setup e.g. 1 to 2 monitors or resolution change etc).

If so the really easy fix (if your connection dialog just needed approval without changing fields) is :

1. Focus on SSMS and Hit Enter/Return

..or the easy fix (if above does not work - as your last connection is not ready to go) is:

1. Alt Tab to SSMS
2. Alt + Space - context menu
3. M - select Move (in offscreen context menu)
4. Arrow Key(s) - to move it back onto screen

As per answers here from @Eirik Toft and here from @Lee Chetwynd

Answer 2

Fixed an issue which presented the same on my machine today by renaming a entry in my registry:

After some digging there seems to be multiple issues that can produce the same error (Application, settings, registry). This blog entry covers it pretty well: http://www.armedia.com/blog/2012/08/sql-server-management-studio-freeze/

In my case deleteing the SQL server management studio folder under AppData ( c:\users\%userName%Appdata\raoming\microsoft\ ) didn't work.

However I was successfully after deleting / renaming the regisitry entry: [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Microsoft SQL Server]

(update) Worked out the underlying issue on my laptop - was using additional 2 screens with much higher resolutions which caused windows / SSMS to open up the connect to new data source dialog off all of them. If your using multiple screens try returning to just use the native laptop screen to see if you can find the dialog that SSMS is waiting on your input for.

Answer 3

I just had this same situation, with two additional screens connected to my laptop. SQL Server Management Studio was opened on the third screen, with the modal dialog nowhere to be seen.

Two options:

1. Press tab three times and enter. This cancels the dialog. Now you can move the window to another screen.
2. Set Windows to only use one or two screens. SSMS opens on the first and should still open there when you move back to using three screens.

When SSMS is on your primary or secondary screen, the modal dialog opens on the first and should be usable.