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 Installation SSE Advanced with Visual Studio

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smaug
Starting Member

1 Post

Posted - 2007-03-01 : 08:48:44
I´d like to use the SQLServer2005 Express Advanced Service with Visual Studio Express 2005. Before I´ll make a mistake with the install I´d like to ask which is the correct way so that I can use all available features of SQLServer2005 Express and connect VB2005 to SQLServer2005 databases.
Should I first install VS (complete -together with SQLServer2005 Express) and then upgrade direct by "over-install" to the Advanced Service SP-2 by starting the setup file from Advanced Service SP-2?
or
should I install first the SQLServer2005 Express Advanced Service (SP-2-file) and then VS 2005 Express without SQLServer2005 Express (if there is any option to switch off Server compounds in Visual Studio)?
Is it in both cases possible to connect VB2005 to a database in SQLServer2005 Advanced Service version and using the Management Studio in the SQLServer environ or are there any problems ?
Thanks in advance

mikewa
Microsoft SQL Server Product Team

84 Posts

Posted - 2007-03-02 : 11:18:38
Both are supported and will work fine, but you will optimize your time by installing SQL Express Advanced first. (This is because you would need to upgrade the default SQL Express installed by VS Express, which is basically installing SQL Express twice.) If you haven't found it yet, the SQL Express download center is at http://msdn.microsoft.com/vstudio/express/sql/download and has the latest versions of SQL Express.

Your last question is a bit more complex. You can certainly connect to database with both the VS data tools and with Management Studio Express, but when you create a database in VS Express it uses a special instance of SQL Express called a User Instance. The User Instance is create at runtime of your applciation and the database created in VS for use in the User Instance are not visible to the parent instance of SQL Express that you will see when you open Management Studio Express.

In general, you can perform all the necesary database tasks that you need directly in VS Express. If you really feel you need to open your database in Management Studio you will either need to attach the database to the parent instance of SQL Express (which requires you to manually set permissions on your user profile directory where VS stores its databases so that Network Service can access the files) or connect Management Studio directly to the User Instance. In structions for the latter can be found on the SQL Express blog at http://blogs.msdn.com/sqlexpress. (Click the FAQ link to shorten the list and you should find the article on connecting to User Instances.)

I typically choose to connect Management Studio to the User Instance so that I don't have to mess with permissions and attach/detach all the time.

Regards,
Mike Wachal
SQL Express

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