It happens more often than you may think. You set up a SharePoint site and in a short amount of time the end users are hooked! They begin to use it so much that they soon reach the data file size limit set by SQL Express edition.
To get around this, you simply need to purchase the full version of SQL Server and perform a relatively simple upgrade. If this example, we are going to upgrade a simple, single server SharePoint SQL Express Edition 2008 to SQL Server Standard Edition 2014. As best practice dictates, it’s a good idea to have a backup and/or a VM snapshot prior to performing the upgrade.
Install the SQL Server Standard CD in the SharePoint server and navigate to the installation menu. Choose upgrade from from the menu items.
The installer should detect the SQL instances running on your network. Select your SharePoint server’s instance from the list in order to perform the upgrade.
Identify and resolve any pre-requisite upgrade requirements and errors.
Once the prerequisite conditions have been met, the upgrade should be smooth and easy.