The EKM provider enabled option controls Extensible Key Management device support in SQL Server. By default this option is off.

To enable or disable the feature, issue one of the following sp_configure commands:

/* Enable the external encryption provider option */
sp_configure 'EKM provider enabled', 1
/* Disable the external encryption provider option */
sp_configure 'EKM provider enabled', 0

This option is disabled on all editions of SQL Server except Enterprise, Developer, and Evaluation.

 See Also

Concepts

Understanding Extensible Key Management (EKM)
Setting Server Configuration Options

Other Resources

Monitoring Resource Usage (System Monitor)
sp_configure (Transact-SQL)
RECONFIGURE (Transact-SQL)

Help and Information

Getting SQL Server 2008 Assistance