To change the default location of SQL 2005 files, follow the instructions below:
- Open SQL Server Management Studio
- Right click the server name and choose Properties
- On the Server Properties page, select Database Settings
- Under Database default locations type in the path to the respective locations for Data and Logs.
One thing I learned while trying to setup default paths is that SQL expects data files to be found in a child directory named Data. For more information about SQL Server 2005 paths visit File Locations for Default and Named Instances of SQL Server 2005.