Method 1: In SQL Server 2008 and above, with the DMV sys.dm_os_sys_info returns a column called sqlserver_start_time. This column contains the date and time SQL Server was last started:
SELECT sqlserver_start_time FROM sys.dm_os_sys_info
Method 2:
SELECT start_time FROM sys.dm_exec_requests WHERE (session_id = 1)
Method 3:
SELECT MIN(login_time) FROM sys.sysprocesses
Method 4: TempDb is created every time SQL Server is started, so another workaround is to look at the creation date of the TempDb database:
SELECT create_date FROM sys.databases WHERE name = 'tempdb'OR
SELECT crdate FROM sysdatabases WHERE name='tempdb'
Method 5:
SELECT start_time FROM sys.traces WHERE is_default = 1
Method 6: Dashboard Reports
We can use the SQL Server Dashboard Report in SQL 2008 and above. Right click on the server name in SSMS and select Reports -> Server Reports -> Server Dashboard and you will get a report in which we can find Server Start Time.
Method 7: Windows Event Viewer
Windows Event Viewer is also an option to look for the start up time. If we open Windows Event Viewer and filter Event Sources for the SQL Server instance you can find all of the start up times that are still in the Event Viewer log.
Method 8: SQL Server Error Log
If you open the current SQL Server error log in SSMS under Management > SQL Server Logs and scroll to the bottom of the error log you can see when the server was started. Note the text "SQL Server is starting". You will want to look for this to make sure the error log was not cycled and give you a false impression of the start time. The error log method can be used for any version of SQL Server.
SP_ReadErrorLog 0,1,'Copyright (c)'
