The specified sa password does not meet strong password requirements

Problem

When entering the sa password while installing SQL Server you get the following error: “The specified sa password does not meet strong password requirements.“

Solution

If the computer is on a domain

1. Go to Administrative Tools / Domain Security Policy :: Security Settings | Account Policies | Password Policy
2. Set “Minimum password length” = Not Defined
3. Set “Password must meet complexity requirements” = Not Defined

Not on a domain

1. Go to Administrative Tools / Local Security Policy :: Security Settings | Account Policies | Password Policy
2. Set “Minimum password length” = 0
3. Set “Password must meet complexity requirements” = Disable