I want to import data from an Excel file - assume Excel 2003 / .xls - to Sql Server 2008.
Have tried adding a linked server to the JET OLE DB Access driver, and of course it fails on the 64-bit machine.
But when I try to drop the linked server while experimenting, there's another error saying that the linked server already/still exists!
I have also tried changing the Excel driver to 32-bit (regedit tool) but am not sure if it's doing anything, same error is coming up!
Some more details:
Say Table1 in Excel file has 5 columns.
I want to map to Database.dbo.Table1 with 5 columns again, but with different names in table.
Is there a way to do even do such an import?
From your SQL Server Management Studio, you open Object Explorer, go to your database where you want to load the data into, right click, then pick Tasks > Import Data.
This opens the Import Data Wizard, which typically works pretty well for importing from Excel. You can pick an Excel file, pick what worksheet to import data from, you can choose what table to store it into, and what the columns are going to be. Pretty flexible indeed.
You can run this as a one-off, or you can store it as a SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) package into your file system, or into SQL Server itself, and execute it over and over again (even scheduled to run at a given time, using SQL Agent).
Update: yes, yes, yes, you can do all those things you keep asking - have you even tried at least once to run that wizard??
OK, here it comes - step by step:
Step 1: pick your Excel source
Step 2: pick your SQL Server target database
Step 3: pick your source worksheet (from Excel) and your target table in your SQL Server database; see the "Edit Mappings" button!
Step 4: check (and change, if needed) your mappings of Excel columns to SQL Server columns in the table:
Step 5: if you want to use it later on, save your SSIS package to SQL Server:
Step 6: - success! This is on a 64-bit machine, works like a charm - just do it!!
There are several tools which can import Excel to SQL Server.
I am using DbTransfer (http://www.dbtransfer.com/Products/DbTransfer) to do the job.
It's primarily focused on transfering data between databases and excel, xml, etc...
I have tried the openrowset method and the SQL Server Import / Export Assitant before.
But I found these methods to be unnecessary complicated and error prone in constrast to doing it with one of the available dedicated tools.
In SQL Server 2016 the wizard is a separate app. (Important: Excel wizard is only available in the 32-bit version of the wizard!). Use the MSDN page for instructions:
On the Start menu, point to All Programs, point toMicrosoft SQL Server , and then click Import and Export Data.
—or—
In SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT), right-click the SSIS Packages folder, and then click SSIS Import and Export Wizard.
—or—
In SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT), on the Project menu, click SSIS Import and Export Wizard.
—or—
In SQL Server Management Studio, connect to the Database Engine server type, expand Databases, right-click a database, point to Tasks, and then click Import Data or Export data.
—or—
In a command prompt window, run DTSWizard.exe, located in C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\100\DTS\Binn.
After that it should be pretty much the same (possibly with minor variations in the UI) as in #marc_s's answer.
Related
I need to export the db including all the tables from SQL Server and then to import it to another computer with SQL Server.
I tried to do:
tasks-> generate scripts
But when I tried to import this db
by attach he doesn't recognize this file.
how should i do it correctly?
we did our project on my friend computer but i want to get it for myself to...
What you tried is to generate the scripts in order to create the database structure (if you want to use these scripts you need to execute them from SQL Management Studio on your other computer). That's a good solution if you only want to create the database structure on another computer.
If you want to restore the database on another computer with all the structure and data of your database, right-click on your database from SQL Management Studio -> Tasks -> Back Up.
After creating a backup of your database you simply need to copy the generated file to another computer and proceed the restore process.
Here is a link that explains the entire process: Create a Full Database Backup
Hope this will help you.
You can use Backup\Restore technique to make exact copy of your database, But like you said, you only want your tables to be transferred so you can use 'SQL Server Import Export Wizard' for the same.
Right Click on db -> tasks -> Export data
Using above option you can store all data into a flat file also and take that flat file to destination and import the same.
I have a database on one server that I need to copy to another server. I can do this manually using the Export Data task, which is fine for a one time export, but I would like to speed this up as it is going to be repeated.
The database will always contain the same set of tables, I just need to get a copy of this database with it's tables and their data from one server to another.
I'd like to create some sort of reusable tool that allows you to specify the source and target database servers and then copies this specific database from one to another. Is this possible?
The Export Data task in SQL 2005 and later uses SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) under the hood. You can save the package you're already using and run it on a schedule or on demand. You can also edit it (once it is saved) using the Business Intelligence Development Studio (BIDS).
At the end of the Export wizard (on the "Save and Run Package" screen), you can tick the "Save SSIS Package" check-box to store the package either within SQL server or on the file system. The file system is probably simpler.
Once you have the package you can execute it from the command line using the dtexec tool, or from a SQL Agent job using an Execute SSIS task.
SSIS is too big a subject to cover in full here - there are decent tutorials within SQL server books online if you need more details - alternatively, as another SO question if you get stuck.
I need to import to Access a .sql database backup file created with MySql .
Is there a way to perform this operation?
You can't restore a MySQL backup into any other database system.
If you want to import the MySQL data into Access, you could export it all into CSV files and import those to Access. You will still need to recreate relationships, defaults, indexes (?) and other data.
You can import SQL Server data into a new Access table. In general, importing is a way to convert data from a different format and copy it into Access. The source table or file is not altered in this process. You can import directly from a SQL Server database using an ODBC connection, a text file exported from SQL Server, or an XML file exported from SQL Server.
To make frequent import operations more convenient, you can automate them by creating a macro or creating a Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) procedure. This is useful, for example, when you import data on a regular schedule or you have unusual or complex requirements for importing data.
if you use SQL Server Management studio then you can open the .SQL files and it will give you help in figuring out what syntax works in SQL -- and which doesn't.
For example, if you have a table name that is mis-spelled, SQL Server Management Studio will give you red squigglies under that table name.
I don't see that functionality in Access, and I don't think that it's coming any time soon. Access (Jet) hasn't gotten any new features in almost fifteen years.
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.
Is it possible to restore a backup of a SQL Server 2008 database onto an instance of SQL Server 2005?
I need to work on an sample application for which database backup is in sql server 2008.
But I'll not be able to install 2008. So is it possible to restore that back up in 2005?
No. It is not possible to restore a database from a backup of a newer version.
If you are dead set on it, I think your best option is to selet the database in the Object Explorer in SQL 2008,
right-click, select Tasks->Generate Scripts.In the options dialog emable about everything, including Script Data.
And make sure you select "Script for SQL 2005".
Source
When importing the objects into your target server, if the objects are large you may find that you can't open the SQL file via Management Studio (with a completely useless "The operation could not be completed" error, no less). That's okay, just load the file via sqlcmd.
One important thing is missing in all answers and that is the fact that Generate Scripts in SSMS doesn’t order the scripts correctly.
Scripts have to be ordered in the correct dependency order so that child tables are created after parent tables and such.
This is not an issue for small databases where its easy to reorder the scripts manually but it can be a huge issue when dealing with databases that have 100+ objects.
My experience is that its most convenient to use third party tools that can read backup and generate scripts in the correct order. I’m using ApexSQL Diff and Data Diff from ApexSQL but you can’t go wrong with any popular vendor.
No, not directly. SQL Server 2008 database backups are not backward compatible with SQL Server 2005. However, with SQL Server 2008 Management Studio, you can script data and schemas in SQL Server 2005 mode. This article describes the process in detail.
Yes it is possible
Using the export in the SQL Server 2008. Go to All Programs --> Microsoft SQL Server 2008 --> Import and Export Data
Then SQL Server Import AND Export Wizard window will be opened. Press Next
Choose a Data source (in your case from SQL Server 2008). Choose a Destination( in your case from SQL Server 2005).
Select Copy data from one or more tables or view
Select the source's tables and destination's tables
Click Next & Finish
to complete.
I have had this problem for a long while.
You cannot restore SQL2008 backups onto an SQL2005 instance.
And for me, workarounds like import/export wizzard or to script the database from SQL2008 using the generate scripts with the for SQL2005 option won't work.
Because simply, my databases cross-reference each other inside their views and stored procedures or udfs. They do not befall to my responsibility completely and so I cannot consolidate them into 1 database.
They are a set of 6 dbs that refer to each other directly inside their views and stored procedures.
When I transfer them from one SQL2005 instance onto another, I usually do full-backup/restore.
If I were to script them, even with the with dependencies option I would get errors at re-creation time as db1 will not find views inside db3 because it so happened that I executed the create db1 script first. If I tried db3 first I get similar exceptions.
The only way to script them so that I won't have such dependency exceptions, is to figure out a sequence that works and script them partially in that manner: say: db1_tables followed by db2_tables followed by db2_views followed by db1_views, sp, udfs etc.
I have such a sequence. And when I need to create a new set of such 6 dbs, I executed the smaller partial scripts in sequence.
This explains why the generate scripts, with dependencies and with data and set to SQL2005 version scripts, will just not work for me.
The import/export wizzard is better in my case because it will copy tables and then you still have to script all views, sp, udfs etc.
What I really need is a conversion tool for SQL2008 backup files, to convert them to SQL2005 format. Then my problem will go away.
Or some kind of a tool that would allow restore from SQL2008 full-backup files, without asking me too many questions.
If anyone knows such tools and have used them, let me know.
You can use DBSave, it's a great freeware tool to backup and restore ms sql server on different machines.
It's verry simple to setup and to use.
No you can't, but tools like red gate's SQL Compare/Data Compare can read backup files directly & transfer the info across to a live database, dealing with any syntax or settings that aren't compatible on SS2005
Having had no luck with the Import/Export stuff (flat file exports failed on import claiming charset mapping issues [even though same charset used throughout] and/or truncation issues [even though source and destination had exact same structure]), and having had no luck with using the "generate scripts" option suggested by Garry Shutler (it generated a script with syntax errors), I was finally able to copy the big table I wanted to copy from 2008 to 2005 using the SQL Server bcp utility. So that's another option for this situation, although for an entire database it would be table-by-table and probably doesn't help with views and such.
The steps I used:
On the source server, use "Script Table As...CREATE" to get the structure, run that on the target server.
On the target server, create a bcp format file using your newly-created table:
bcp database.owner.table format nul -f table.fmt -n
(If you're not using Windows auth, you may need the -U and -P options to specify username and password.)
Copy that format file to the source server (if necessary).
Export the data to file on the source server:
bcp database.owner.table out table.dat -f table.fmt
(Again, possibly with -U and -P.)
Copy the data file to the target server (if necessary).
Import the data on the target server:
bcp database.owner.table in table.dat -f table.fmt
(Again, possibly with -U and -P.)
In hopes that proves useful to someone else.