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The error message means that you were not able to connect to the SQL Server instance you specified. There could be all sorts of reasons for this. Here are a few:
If you are in a corporate environment, you should talk to your IT folks how to reach the SQL Server instance.
If you are at home, follow this troubleshooter.
And, oh, if all you did was to download and install SQL Server Management Studio, that will not take you very far. You need to install SQL Server as well.
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I would also take a moment to thank @Erland Sommarskog , for actively participating in the forum and for the solutions you’ve been sharing in the forum. Your contributions make a real difference.
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