In case SSMS (SQL Server Management Studio) crashes, you can set up your system to automatically create a dump file for debugging purposes. Follow these steps to create the necessary registry keys.

Steps to Configure Automatic Dump File Creation for SSMS:

1. Open the Registry Editor:

   • Press Start, type Regedit, and press Enter to open the Registry Editor.

2. Navigate to the following path:

   • HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Error Reporting

3. Create a new key:

   • In the Windows Error Reporting folder, right-click and select New > Key.
   • Name the new key LocalDumps.

4. Create a subkey for SSMS:

   • Inside LocalDumps, create a new subkey named ssms.exe (the name of the executable file for SQL Server Management Studio).

5. Add the following values to the ssms.exe key:

Instructions for Adding Values:

1. Create the DumpFolder value:

   • Select the newly created subkey (ssms.exe) in the tree on the left.
   • Right-click on the right side of the Registry Editor window and choose New > String Value.
   • Name the value DumpFolder.
   • Double-click the new DumpFolder value and set the data to: D:\SSMS_Crashes.

2. Create the DumpType value:

   • Right-click again on the right side and choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
   • Name it DumpType.
   • Double-click the new DumpType value and set the data to: 2.

3. Create the CustomDumpFlags value:

   • Right-click once more and choose New > DWORD (32-bit) Value.
   • Name it CustomDumpFlags.
   • Double-click CustomDumpFlags and set the data to: 1124.

Final Result:

After completing these steps, your registry should look like this:

• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Error Reporting\LocalDumps\ssms.exe