Old server name still showing

Question

I renamed SQL instance

exec sp_dropserver 'oldname'
go
excec add_linkedserver 'newname'

Rebooted server

select @@servername shows new server, but, exec sp_helpserver shows old and instance names.

In the registry, i updated name under SQL server keys but it didn't change anything

EDIT

As soon as i run sp_dropserver 'oldname', 'droplogins'

and run exec sp_helpserver

it shows only new name but if i run sp_helpserver again, old one appears too in second row

Answer 1

According to your post, you've used sp_addlinkedserver which is not the partner procedure for sp_dropserver. The correct partner is sp_addserver. Please note that depending on the setup, configuration, and feature use, changing the server name may cause unintended side effects.

Answer 2

Run the below query to update the server name in the sys.servers catalog:

USE master;
GO

-- Update the server name in sys.servers
EXEC sp_configure 'show advanced options', 1;
RECONFIGURE;
EXEC sp_configure 'allow updates', 1;
RECONFIGURE;

UPDATE sys.servers SET data_source = 'newname' WHERE server_id = 0;

-- Turn off the ability to update system catalogs
EXEC sp_configure 'allow updates', 0;
RECONFIGURE;
EXEC sp_configure 'show advanced options', 0;
RECONFIGURE;