Well, I blew it already on my WSS server.  I installed WSS on it before I installed SQL Server, so it installed the MSDE database instead.  Well, I tried to upgrade it to SQL Server 2000, SP 3, but I couldn't get it to upgrade correctly.  Instead of upgrading the MSDE database, it installed SQL along side it, and I don't know if it transfered the data.  I couldn't get the SQL Server service started, and I couldn't get into MSDE via Enterprise Manager.  I'm glad 99% of my customization at this point had been to the .CSS and XML files rather than the database.  I've backed that up.

I tried uninstalling, well, everything, but there was a problem with the MSSearch service.  For whatever reason, it decided it wanted to install itself on my network home directory (H: drive).  I couldn't get it off.  I removed all the registry entries I could find for SQL, I removed the registry entries under HKLM\Service for MSSearch, and I tried simply reinstalling SQL.  Nothing worked.  SQL would install OK for me, but when I tried applying SP3, it would fail on MSSearch.

So, I'm doing the only thing left to do now: reinstall Windows 2003 from scratch.  Oh well...previously I had used Windows Server 2003 Standard when I wanted to use the Web Server Edition.  I couldn't find the disks at the time, but I found them now, so I get to have that right, at least.

A word from the newly experienced: if you plan on using SQL Server, select Web Farm configuration during WSS installation, and more importantly, install SQL Server BEFORE you install WSS.  In writing that last sentence, it all seems pretty obvious, but I guess when you feel you know what you're doing, you get careless.

Good luck to you!

Andrew