StorageEngineUsed set to TabularMetadata. For databases in this mode, you must use Tabular APIs to administer the database

Question

I am an administrator in SSAS.

I have many data warehouse servers.

In some servers I have SQL Server and SSAS on the same machine.

I successfully backup the SSAS databases and even check if the backups are healthy

Recently, however, one of our servers which is managed by a third party company based in Canada, needed to be replaced, and while migrating all the ssas databases from the old server to the new one

this is the old server:

this is the new server:

I am getting this error message while processing the database in the new server:

This command cannot be executed on database 'DWCA' because it has been defined with StorageEngineUsed set to TabularMetadata. For databases in this mode, you must use Tabular APIs to administer the database.

Answer 1

It sounds like you are trying to process your tabular model (which is of version >= 1200) with XMLA script (so all in all command is in XML). That kind of tabular model has to be processed with JSON command. I had the same error message and it just turned out that I was trying to refresh the newer tabular model (of version >=1200) with XMLA command. After using JSON command - it all worked. Probably for some reason while moving the tabular model from one server to another - the version of that tabular model was somehow upgraded to >= 1200. Or you are using old SSMS which is only capable of producing XMLA commands.

Answer 2

After some time I manage to find a solution for this. Unfortunately, there are no ways (at least that I could find) to change SSAS, that worked in all environments.

I did this: How to uninstall SSAS

Changing an Analysis Services instance to tabular mode

It worked in some servers but not on other server. Also:

Be Careful ! SSAS Analysis services cannot be uninstalled from a SQL cluster once installed

Therefore my solution was to change SSAS when not possible to remove SSAS. what I was really wanted to achieve was to get the tabular mode installed with default instance name.

get to this:

More information is here:

Install SQL Server Analysis Services

and specially this link:

Determine the Server Mode of an Analysis Services Instance

After that you can check Tabular In-Memory mode, which is very interesting.