
Script Your Database #75
Chapter 9, Server Explorer Hacks
|
309
HACK
HACK
#75
Script Your Database Hack #75
Most applications involve some sort of data, and where you have data you
probably have a database. Script the creation of your database with the
Database Project and the Server Explorer.
Managing databases is always a difficult task; you have to manage not only
the tables but also the views, stored procedures, functions, and triggers. In
an enterprise environment, you are most likely working with multiple data-
bases. Keeping those databases synchronized with one another is a daunting
task. All of this is not easy, but using the Database Project and the Server
Explorer can help make these tasks much more manageable.
The Database Project
The Database Project is different than most of the projects you are used to
using in Visual Studio. The project does not have an output like an execut-
able or assembly, but instead is just something that can be used to collect
and store SQL scripts. The idea behind the Database Project is that, instead
of trying to use one of your many databases as the “master” database, you
should instead maintain a store of create scripts that can be used to create
your database at any time. If you need a new copy of the database, you sim-
ply run this collection of scripts, instead of trying to make a copy of the
database. This has a number of benefits:
• You can ensure that all ...