We have an sql server 2008 database that has been in service for nearly 3 years. The users of the database are in the states. Recently, we received some company name data that contained extended ASCII characters, such as, Ç (0xc7), Ã (0xc3), '.' (0xa0). The database mangled the characters, including increasing the number of bytes.
What are the best practices for handling the extended ASCII? Should they be converted to something close in regular ASCII, like C and A in the above example? Or is there a setting that enables sql server to treat these extended characters correctly. If it's a setting, is it safe to apply and what is the best way to apply the steps.