I want to document a SQL Server 2008 database. I have been asked for the Diagram and the specifications of the tables, fields, data type, etc. (Data Dictionary).
The problem is that I can not find a program that suits my requirements. The Erwin Data Modeler has a reverse engineering tool, but it is not useful because it does not allow me to specify only the tables that I want to diagram, at the very same request the schemas (But it is in this program that I am asked to do the diagramming) . SQL Server Management Studio is not an option because it is the same that manages the Databases (it implies modifying the DB in some way) and it is not very flexible with the choice of tables.
So I resorted to Data Modeler works perfectly with an Oracle database, you can make diagrams, generate scripts (the latter helped me to pass diagrams to Erwin), and even generate documentation of objects, etc. But I have not been able to connect it to SQL Server 2008 to do the same thing I did with Oracle. I downloaded the jtds-1.2.jar to make the connection but I do not know exactly how to do it.
In summary I need a program that allows me to choose the tables to which I want to diagram (These are things that are achieved with the Data Modeler) and then be able to open them in the Erwin (With the script that generates the latter) which is the target program. And also the field documentation, although this is a secondary issue to the question.
It would be helpful if you know of any other method, program or procedure.
download from sourceforge jTDS v1.3 or 1.3.1
get the JAR out of the zip
add it to your sqldev folder
open preferences in the tool, and go to third party drivers, under database page i think, and then when you get to connection dialog, there will be a SQL Server and Sybase connection type
i talk about this in more detail here
You can connect to a SQL 2008 db and RE the databases into one or more data models, and then generate data dictionary reports and DDL scripts. And a lot more..get v4.2 if you want to generate HTML reports that include the diagrams themselves.
Related
I've been running into an issue recently when I attempt any tutorials that involve using a SQL database, entity framework, dapper, etc.
When it comes time to publish a database, or utilize an ORM, I'm given duplicate options for the same localdb under SQL Servers. Furthermore, then I attempt to publish, the database doesn't show up under the localdb that I've chosen.
I'm wondering how I go about removing the other SQL Servers and just having the one available.
If you look at the image below, the Browse option gives me two of the same LocalDbs. Plus I also get a 3rd one under \ProjectModels. I'm wondering what's causing this and how it can be fixed since no matter which one I choose, the sql database I attempt to publish doesn't show up within any of them.
My advice is not to use this method to publish the database. (right click to delete)
Please refer to this official documentation.
File-based databases like SQLite or SQL Server Express are designed to store their data in easily transferable files that can be served with your application/site.
"Copy to Output Directory" Property of the database file to "Copy if newer". Just point the address to it.
If you are using a server-based database like SQL Server, MySQL, etc., you need to make sure that the target machine/environment has the same database server installed, and you need to write a deployment script to append the pre-populated data files to the server. This might be troublesome for you.
You can also refer to these links. 1,2,3
What kind of database the Sql Server Migration Assistant uses as an internal data repository and stores it in the source-metabase.mb file?
I guess that this it is one of standard tool that I could use to open and edit some entries (I need to autamatically add some custom scripts for tables with BLOBs data migration )
You could also just suggest the way how to check most popular database formats: SqlServer Compact, MySQL, Access..
it is one of standard tool that I could use to open and edit some entries
I would not count on it :) It was a proprietary metadata format that has nothing to do with DB products that SSMA supports. It can store metadata for representing Oracle and also SQL Server among others, obviously formats are not connected with file structure that actual DBs use. SSMA format has no open docs, also it may fail to synchronize your changes after manual intervention if you reverse engineer it (due to the fact it was designed just as the migration tool to target SQL Server and was supposed to mostly create new objects there based on source database counterparts).
Can you just write some stored procedures or triggers in your database? For most DBs metadata is exposed as special tables/views anyway. Probably you need to do it only for SQL Server as it's your target db after migration, right? Looking into ways to directly parse or manipulate files managed by "big" DB (like SQL Server or Oracle) doesn't seem to be a good idea for most scenarios. (except digital forensics, for example)
SQL Server metadata related views are here and functions are here. You may profile your SQL Server instance while connecting to it with SSMA just to get some feel what it does to extract metadata (object names, columns of tables, source of SPs etc.)
Data manipulation is pretty much clear from the DB side if you need it too.
I want to know how to convert an Access database file into a SQL Server (.mdf file) database?
The MS Access "Upsize Wizard" was discontinued with Access 2012. SQL Server Migration Assistant (SSMA) is now recommended. Reference: https://accessexperts.com/blog/2013/01/30/access-2013-is-here-but-wheres-the-sql-server-upsizing-wizard/
However, as Johnny Bones noted, I found it relatively easy to create a new empty SQL Server (2012) database and then import:
SQL Server Management Studio, R-click on the newly created Database | Tasks | Import Data -> SQL Server Import Wizard
I used "Access Database Engine" instead of "Jet Database Engine" for
no reason other than I GUESSED Jet was older. Mine is a throw-away
project you may want to research the difference.
I 'weeded out' the
Access queries (views) and just imported the tables.
So far it looks
like everything was imported OK.
The simple answer is; you can not "convert" an Access database to a SQL database. You can, however, import the Access database (tables only) into SQL. Remember that SQL is a true database, and, as such, contains no front end or GUI creation mechanisms. You will still need Access (or C# or VB or another front-end builder) to create the interface.
You may already know this, but in SQL Server a Query is called a View, and Modules are called Stored Procedures. You will need to convert your Access queries and modules accordingly if you're planning on having that all reside server-side.
It's actually pretty easy to import Access tables into SQL Server, you would just create a database on a server, right-click on the database name and choose Tasks --> Import Data. There you will choose Microsoft Access as your Data Source. The rest should be pretty self-explanatory.
JonnyBones wrote a good full answer. Other have made suggestions for tools which may work. However, the SSMA (SQL Server Migration Assistant) is likely to be the best option now. (See this youtube video for help with understanding some of the issues to overcome and an explaination of how to use SSMA.
Befre you consider using other tools, which may do more, you should find out why to use them instead of SSMA. Check out the youtube video as a starting point.
Be aware that the MS Access Upsizing wizard was great but is now discontinued, and there was a bit of a gap before MS created a decent version of SSMA, which is when&why these other tools came into existence.
SSMA should do what you need.
There are some access things that do not get moved to SQLServer and some that do.
eg Access triggers do not. Access tables constraints do, Access boolean datatypes so - of sorts - but you need to do some work. The video will explain most issues well.
Harvey
You can try with the Upsize Wizard or copy content of the table from SHOW TABLE DATA and paste to the target table with the same structure as the source.
I'm looking for the best approach (or a couple of good ones to choose from) for extracting from a Progress database (v10.2b). The eventual target will be SQL Server (v2008). I say "eventual target", because I don't necessarily have to connect directly to Progress from within SQL Server, i.e. I'm not averse to extracting from Progress to a text file, and then importing that into SQL Server.
My research on approaches came up with scenarios that don't match mine;
Migrating an entire Progress DB to SQL Server
Exporting entire tables from Progress to SQL Server
Using Progress-specific tools, something to which I do not have access
I am able to connect to Progress using ODBC, and have written some queries from within Visual Studio (v2010). I've also done a bit of custom programming against the Progress database, building a simple web interface to prove out a few things.
So, my requirement is to use ODBC, and build a routine that runs a specific query on a daily basis daily. The results of this query will then be imported into a SQL Server database. Thanks in advance for your help.
Update
After some additional research, I did find that a Linked Server is what I'm looking for. Some notes for others working with SQL Server Express;
If it's SQL Server Express that you are working with, you may not see a program on your desktop or in the Start Menu for DTS. I found DTSWizard.exe nested in my SQL Server Program Files (for me, C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server\100\DTS\Binn), and was able to simply create a shortcut.
Also, because I'm using the SQL Express version of SQL Server, I wasn't able to save the Package I'd created. So, after creating the Package and running it once, I simply re-ran the package, and saved off my SQL for use in teh future.
Bit of a late answer, but in case anyone else was looking to do this...
You can use linked server, but you will find that the performance won't be as good as directly connecting via the ODBC drivers, also the translation of the data types may mean that you cannot access some tables. The linked server might be handy though for exploring the data.
If you use SSIS with the ODBC drivers (you will have to use ADO.NET data sources) then this will perform the most efficiently, and as well you should get more accurate data types (remember that the data types within progress can change dynamically).
If you have to extract a lot of tables, I would look at BIML to help you achieve this. BIML (Business Intelligence Markup Language) can help you create dynamically many SSIS packages on the fly which can be called from a master package. This master package can then be scheduled or run ad-hoc and so can any of the child packages as needed.
Can you connect to the Progress DB using OLE? If so, you could use SQL Server Linked Server to bypass the need for extracting to a file which would then be loaded into SQL Server. Alternately, you could extract to Excel and then import from Excel to SQL Server.
We are trying to build a data access layer for using both Oracle and SQL Server (not at the same time).
We use EF Model-first for creating the model and the create the SQL scripts for building the database. Our first thought was to create 2 EDMX files, one for each type, and use the appropriate one depending on the client's need. We are using the Oracle and SQL Server database generation workflow and DDL generation template to create the scripts for each database.
Our main problem is when the database schema changes we do not want to drop and recreate the DB but only create the migration scripts to update the DB base on our model (clients have many data that will be lost).
We use EF power pack for extracting the migration scripts for SQL Server but there is nothing like it for Oracle.
We want help to find a good data layer (1 EDMX for both Oracle and SQL Server if it's possible and not complicated) and a good way to generate database changes from our model to update existing client DBs in case of a new application release
We found this as a starting point
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/data/ff830362 but there is not mention for Oracle support.
We have tried code-first and EF Migrations but Oracle failed us again on the DB creation and migration.
Any recommendation on how we can accomplish this?
Thank You
There is no way to have single EDMX for both SQL Server and Oracle. EDMX consists of three parts CSDL (entity definition), SSDL (database definition), MSL (mapping between those definitions). SSDL must always target concrete database so you need at least separate SSDL for Oracle and SQL Server and if you are lucky you will not need separate MSL as well (mapping must be exactly same which will probably not happen if you are using any tool to generate the database).
So you always need at least part of EDMX file for second DB and manually maintain it.
If you need DB migration supporting Oracle you must look for tool from Oracle (or third party). For example RedGate offers tools supporting schema migration for both SQL Server and Oracle.
Visual Studion Premium and Ultimate edition also offers tools for comparing database schemas. It by default supports only SQL Server but Toad Extensions should add support for Oracle as well.
Once you have any of these tools you just need to compare schema deployed on customer server with your new schema and the tool should create migration script for you.
The best article I found on this topic is from Paul Reynolds Blog.
Try to go through from part 5 to part 9.
There are so many gotchas about Oracle mentioned there... is very helpful!