Some useful functions of MySQL Workbench for SQL Server management studio - ssms

Our project is moving from MySQL to MS SQL and after a long time working with MySQL Workbench I really miss some features in SQL Server Management studio (2014).
Do you know whether they exist in SSMS or there is an alternative/replacement application for SSMS to work with database?
Functions are listed below:
Generate update data script to review and to be able to copy-paste it. Do not update data when I move to another row when the table is opened for editing.
Some changes are still made in database in our project, and sometimes it's easier to add some rows manually in 5 tables, get the script, test it and run the script at production environment. I don't want to write a script for each update and I don't want to make a mistake when copying data to production server using edit table option.
Review update table script BEFORE the changes were made, not after (I am talking about Tools - Options - Designer - Auto generate change scripts).
Upload a file using select file dialog into a binary field.
Again, I know about using OPENROWSET function, just interested how to do it as I used to.
Ability to view large text fields in a convenient way in SSMS. Now I have to copy data from a field and paste it into notepad. (For example, error message with a long trace log)
Save a few tabs with some useful scripts and open all of them when I open SSMS.
Is there any way to organize tabs to be able to work with 10+ tabs more effectively? Now only 6 of them can be shown on the screen (compate it to 15 tabs in MySQL WB).
Simple 'search field' (like Ctrl+F in Excel) to be able to search data in all fields displayed on the screen.
I would appreciate any ideas.
Thank you.

Related

Need to View/Convert .bak file contents

I've got a .bak file from an HR software we used to use and have been asked to review the contents. I've never done this before, so I've pieced things together from research. So far, I've installed SQL Server 2008 R2 w/ Management Studio and managed to Restore the database from the .bak file.
I've got it in there, but don't know what I'm looking at, how to get the data in a viewable format, export it as .sql, .csv or anything. Not really sure what the next step is to view this in an understandable format. Need a push in the right direction.
With your knowledge with databases, I suggest you follow the following steps to extract a table to Excel
From object explorer, open databases by clicking the plus sign on Databases folder
You will see many databases. Click the plus sign for any of them.
Open a folder called Tables, you will see the data tables in that database.
Click on CTLR + N with the database name selected.
A query editor will open. Type SELECT * FROM TableName. You need to replace TableName with the Name of the table you want to explore.
Click F5. This will display data for you in a grid at the bottom.
Right click on the top left of the data that you see and click on Copy with Header.
Go to an excel sheet and paste the data.
This is the way to do it table by table. But you are highly encouraged to consult with a database developer or colleague with database knowledge if you want to learn how to manipulate data inside management studio.
This Link might be helpful for you http://www.w3schools.com/sql/sql_intro.asp
Hope this will help.

How to export data from SQL Server 2008.2010 in DML (SQL script)?

Is there a tool or special query to do that. I'm not an database administrator.
Here are the steps to generate the scripts from a database along with data. The screenshots were taken using SQL Server 2012 Management Studio but I believe that the steps are similar for SQL Server 2008 as well.
Connect to the instance in which you would like to scrip the database along with data.
Right-click on the database and select the option Tasks --> Generate Scripts...
On the Generate and Publish Scripts wizard, click Next button.
On the Choose objects step, I have left the default selection Script entire database and all database objects checked. You can also select the option Select specific database objects and pick the objects of your choice.
On the Set Scripting Options step, select the path where you would like to save the script. Click on the Advanced button.
On the Advanced Scripting Options dialog, scroll down to the option Types of data to script. By default, this is set to Schema only, which means it will generate only the create object statements. If you want both object creation script along with data, select the option Schema and data. Click OK on the Advanced Scripting Options dialog and click Next on the Set Scripting Options step
On the Summary step, it will show all the options that you had selected. Click Next.
On the Save or Publich Scripts step, if everything goes well you will see Success status appear against each object and the script should be saved to the location that you specified on the Set Scripting Options step.
Scripting the entire AdventureWorks database turned to be a huge 522 MB script file!
Hope that helps.
Do you mean generating data script? If it is so then simply right click on the database name -Generate Scripts. In the advanced option in the wizard you get to choose "Type Of data script to add". Select data only there and you can get the data script
to what format?
are you only referring to 1 table or the whole database?
if you are exporting to an excel file from 1 table then all you have to do is
run a sql query statement to display all records then highlight all rows thru clicking on the top most right space of the grid and right click copy with column headers.
open excel and paste.
should be good to go.
Have you tried using SSMS tool pack? It is one of the best addins for SSMS.

Generate changes script

Let's imagine I added new column for some table in SQL Server Management Studio. Is there any way to get change script which is executed when I press save?
What I want to achieve is to apply the same change to other databases (we have a separate database for each developer for debuggin purposes).
I assume you are using table designer in MS SSMS.
Do the changes in the designer and just before hitting Save, go to the Table Designer menu and select Generate Change Script....

extract raw SQL query from a Crystal Report .rpt file

I've got an .rpt file that I did not write and can find no documentation about. I want to be able to review the SQL that is generated from this report so that I can figure out, well, what data it was pulling and what WHERE clause parameters were used.
I can open it up and see the report layout. But when I select Database|Show SQL Query... the report tries to connect to the data source. The problem is, the data source being used is unknown to me, probably an ODBC connection used by whoever wrote the query. All I can do at that stage is 'Cancel' and I'm back to looking at the report designer.
Am I missing something? Can I get to the SQL query without connecting to the datasource? It seems like viewing the selection criteria shouldn't be dependent on a data connection.
Thanks.
version: Crystal Reports 2008
I know that this is an old thread, but I encountered this same problem. Effectively we used to have a database/application that has since been aquired by an external agency.
Although they now have the database/application they don't have access to crystal reports, so we can't just send them the old report that we used to run. Likewise we can't run it as we don't even have the database set up anywhere.... So instead our plan was just to extract the SQL code generated by the report and forward that on.
We experienced the same problem, but the solution is actually pretty simple.
If you don't have access to the original data source, just create a new 'blank' datasource (such as an ODBC connection). As long as the connection to the datasource works (i.e. it is some kind of valid datasource this it works fine). When running the 'Show SQL' option point the report to this datasource. As long as you don't try to actually run the report (and only show the SQL) the operation wont fail. This worked for our situation anyway. (Crystal Reports 2008)
(I can give more details if it helps in any way.)
It should be possible to find out some details about the existing datasource, by selecting Database > Set Datasource Location... .
As well as enabling you to change the datasource location, this should show you some information about the current datasource, such as which type of datasource is being used, and possibly (dependant on the type of driver) the name of the database. It is likely to be less helpful if (as you surmise) the datasource is ODBC, but if it uses a native driver there may be something useful.
Without the password, I'm not sure how much you can do. It seems "Show SQL Query" requires to report to run first, then generate the SQL plan.
It's not ideal, but you could go to Database > Visual Linking Expert to at least see the tables and how they are joined, and the go to the Record Selection Formula Editor and see what the custom WHERE statements are.
Viewing the SQL of a Command in a Crystal Report File
There are times you have just the report file, but not the associated database structure that the report uses.
This is common when dealing with example reports of functionality you wish to mimic.
This is a workaround ONLY to allow you to see the SQL of a Command that a Crystal Report is based on, when you don't have the underlying database connection that the report is based on.
In essence, the dialog box has to be satisfied before it will show the SQL, so we fool it with a legitimate Data Source, just not one that would work with the SQL that is actually in the SQL Command.
Why does a report use a command? Doesn't Crystal Reports have the ability to link tables?
When a Crystal Report is based on a record set that is too complex for the table linking functionality within Crystal Reports, the report can instead be based on a SQL Query, usually developed/tested in another editor tool and pasted into the command. This allows advanced SQL functions to be utilized.
If you don't already have a Data Source on your computer set up that you can connect to, you will need to build one first.
A simple Microsoft Access .mdb file saved in a simple location will suffice.
I placed mine with the path C:\A_test\test.mdb to make it easy to find.
If you don't have one, google for a sample mdb file and download it, saving it with a name and location you can remember. (You won't ever actually open this file, but just connect to it.)
Once you have the file saved, open the ODBC Administrator and create a New Data Source.
(you can get to the ODBC Administrator quickly from Start > type ODBC in the Search)
On the User DSN tab, click the Add button.
Scroll down the driver list to Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb), select it and click the Finish button.
In the Data Source Name box, type a name (I used MyTest).
Click the Select Button and select the mdb file you saved from a previous step, click OK.
Click OK again. You will see your new Data Source listed by the name you gave it. Click OK.
You now have the data source you will need for the next steps.
Open the Crystal Report you want to see the SQL command for, and click on Database Expert button or Database>Database Expert Menu.
Under Selected Tables, right click on the Command and choose View Command
The Data Source Selection Box appears. Select the Data Source you created (or one you already use) and click the Finish button. The View Command box should open with the SQL in the left pane. Copy the SQL into your favorite text editor.
Whats happening is that the crystal reports needs a database to connect to regardless if its the original source DB or not.
Create a local database or use a database stored on a server, added it to your ODBC Datasources and use it when connecting. After a successful connection you should be able to view the SQL query without an error.

How to get script of SQL Server data? [duplicate]

This question already has answers here:
What is the best way to auto-generate INSERT statements for a SQL Server table?
(24 answers)
Closed 6 years ago.
I'm looking for a way to do something analogous to the MySQL dump from SQL Server. I need to be able to pick the tables and export the schema and the data (or I can export the schema via SQL Server Management Studio and export the data separately somehow).
I need this data to be able to turn around and go back into SQL Server so it needs to maintain GUIDs/uniqueidentifiers and other column types.
Does anyone know of a good tool for this?
From the SQL Server Management Studio you can right click on your database and select:
Tasks -> Generate Scripts
Then simply proceed through the wizard. Make sure to set 'Script Data' to TRUE when prompted to choose the script options.
SQL Server 2008 R2
Further reading:
Robert Burke: SQL Server 2005 - Scripting your Database
SQL Server Management Studio
This is your best tool for performing this task. You can generate a script that will build whichever tables you wish from a database as well as insert the data in those tables (as far as I know you have to export all of the data in the selected tables however).
To do this follow these steps:
Right-click on your database and select Tasks > Generate Scripts
In the Generate and Publish Scripts wizard, select the "Select specific database objects" option
Expand the "Tables" tree and select all of the tables you wish to export the scheme and data for, then click Next
In the next screen choose how you wish to save the script (the Output Type must remain set as "Save scripts to a specific location"), then click the Advanced button in the top right corner
In the newly opened window, under the General section is a setting called "Types of data to script", set this to "Scheme and data" and click OK
Click Next, review the export summary and click Next again. This will generate the script to your selected destination.
To restore your database, simply create a new database and change the first line of your generated script to USE [Your.New.Database.Name], then execute. Your new database will now have all of the tables and data you selected from the original database.
I had a hell of a time finding this option in SQL Management Studio 2012, but I finally found it. The option is hiding in the Advanced button in the screen below.
I always assumed this contained just assumed advanced options for File generation, since that's what it's next to, but it turns out someone at MS is just really bad at UI design in this case. HTH somebody who comes to this thread like I did.
If you want to script all table rows then
Go with Generate Scripts as described by Daniel Vassallo. You can’t go wrong here
Else
Use third party tools such as ApexSQL Script or SSMS Toolpack for more advanced scripting that includes some preprocessing, selective scripting and more.
Check out SSMS Tool Pack. It works in Management Studio 2005 and 2008. There is an option to generate insert statements which I've found helpful moving small amounts of data from one system to another.
With this option you will have to script out the DDL separately.
SqlPubWiz.exe (for me, it's in C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft SQL Server\90\Tools\Publishing\1.2>)
Run it with no arguments for a wizard. Give it arguments to run on commandline.
SqlPubWiz.exe script -C "<ConnectionString>" <OutputFile>
BCP can dump your data to a file and in SQL Server Management Studio, right click on the table, and select "script table as" then "create to", then "file..." and it will produce a complete table script.
BCP info
https://web.archive.org/web/1/http://blogs.techrepublic%2ecom%2ecom/datacenter/?p=319
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa174646%28SQL.80%29.aspx
I know this has been answered already, but I am here to offer a word of warning.
We recently received a database from a client that has a cyclical foreign key reference. The SQL Server script generator refuses to generate the data for databases with cyclical references.