If your master device is working fine but you are starting to notice other symptoms that could lead to major problems, use the procedure in this section to prevent those major problems.
Here are some examples of symptoms that could lead to problems with your master device:
Your operating system log reports I/O disk errors.
Databases other than master are starting to exhibit problems.
There is a problem with tempdb or model.
Perform the following procedure if your master device is going bad:
Ensure the consistency of the master database by running dbcc checkalloc and dbcc checkdb.
Ensure the consistency of any user databases located fully or partially on the master device by running dbcc checkalloc and dbcc checkdb.
Dump any user databases located fully or partially on the master device. Save the contents of sysusages, sysdevices, sysdatabases, syslogins, sysloginroles, sysservers, and sysconfigures.
If the consistency checks on the master database do not produce errors, and changes have been made since the last backup, dump the master database.
Perform steps 1 and 2 for the model database if it has been changed since the original installation.
Have your hardware checked and repaired. If the device is replaced, follow the steps listed in “Master Device Is Lost and Valid Dump Exists”.
