I have developed a small application with SQL SERVER back end and I also make an installer for the application with Indigo Rose Setup factory 8.0. What I need is I want to automatically create the database back end with specific user account during the installation of the application.
Before the installer a user is asked to install either SQL server or SQL express as prerequisite, when the database is installed the installation of the software continues. I tried to do using SQL script but I don’t how to do it before installation on the installer software. I though also to embed the database creation program in the main application and it will execute on the user need upon the completion of the installation but I have never tried it before whether it works or not.
Incase if it need I developed the system using C# with SQL SERVER 2005 backend.
So would you please give me some answer to tackle the problem?
Thank you
The simplest way would be to have the installer call sqlcmd.exe to run a sql script. To call that, you will need to know the data source (location) of the sql instance. You will need to get that from the user. For example, machinename, machinename\instancename or typically sqlexpress is machinename\SQLExpress.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms165702.aspx
You can also side step the pre-req and install sqlexpress for your customer. There's a cmdline to install it:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms144259.aspx
Another option with no sql dependencies is to write your own custom action (command line/API), parse between the GO statements in the script and execute with ADO.net.
Another option outside of setup is to separate setup and configuration. Setup only lays down bits and the database is created at runtime via a configuration phase of the runtime of the product. This has many benefits including being able to update your bits (either with a patch or automatically) after the setup phase and before the configuration phase. You can also give a better interactive experience and handle issues at runtime - with setup, your choices are to fail setup and roll it back which is a bad experience.
Hope that helps.
Bryan already gave you good advice. My recommendation would be to have the application itself be capable of deploying the database by running the deployment script(s). You can use a library like dbutilscmd that parses the .sql scripts and executes the batches from inside the application. I would also advise to have your scripts be capable of upgrading the database, not just deploy it. This will be very handy when you release v. 2.0 of the application. See Version Control and your Database.
One thing to consider is that often the initial database deployment requires an elevated privilege context. There are some options, see Teach Your Apps To Play Nicely With Windows Vista User Account Control.
Related
I am building a WPF application that connects to a SQL Server database. I am wondering how I should go about, deploying the application on the client's computers together with the local database.
My initial thoughts are (assuming that the client computers have SQL Server installed):
Deliver the .exe file of the application
Provide a script file that runs my stored procedures for creating the database and tables
Is there a better way of doing this? I could create a service inside the application that sets some sort of boolean value in the registry of the computer and runs the "init-database-scripts" only the first time but it feels wrong.
Any other suggestions?
Thank you!
First off, I would strongly consider making an actual installer using a tool like WiX. It can run the script for you at install time so you don't have to deal with the registry and such.
There is another option assuming you are using Entity Framework - Code First; you can use a database initializer to create your database. If you never think your model will change DropCreateDatabaseIfModelChanges will work, otherwise enable migrations and use a migration initializer.
To use the initializer you picked, make sure to call Database.SetInitializer in your applications startup routine.
Add a SQL Server database project to your Visual Studio solution. When you build the project, a Dacpac file is created which can be installed on a client machine using SQLPackage.exe. Basically, your app installation script/software calls SQLPackage along with your Dacpac file to install/update the SQL database. Here is a link to a tutorial on setting up a SQL database project: Tutorial
I'm pretty new to developing in Visual studio and working on databases.
I am working on a program that deals with reading and writing data to a database that I created with Visual studio.
I need to work on this project from another computer and copying over the project files was a breeze but I'm facing issues when it came to copying the .mdf database file.
Upon research it seems like, at least in the Microsoft SQL Server program, that I would have to "Detach" the database before copying it over to a different computer. So I am assuming I would have to do something similar with my Visual Studio Database as well.
Anyone has any inputs with regards to this?
If there is not much that I can do, I guess I could recreate all my tables and everything in Microsoft SQL Server program, so that it would be easier to move the database if needed.
I was in a similar situation such as yourself when I began developing my first core application. You have a few different options including:
Detach an already created database from the hosted SQL Server service and "re-attach" to another SQL Server service that is accessible from the desired set of hosts. You have to essentially disconnect the database from the service before you are able to transfer or migrate it since the process will have an exclusive lock on the .mdf file. https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms190794.aspx
Create the necessary .sql scripts to construct the database and run in the appropriate order e.g. create database, create tables, etc. to re-construct the database at the service location.The neat thing about this technique is if you have already created the database (which it sounds like you have) SQL Server allows you to generate scripts rather than having to write them yourself. https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms178078(v=sql.105).aspx
Finally you may use a subscription based service such as SQL Server through Azure to host the service for controlled global access aka DBaaS (Database as a Service). I can't post anymore links, but look at Microsoft's Azure SQL Server hosting service if you are curious about this option.
The unfortunate part you have to decide is how much time you would like to invest in this. I began developing the application from scratch which led me to developing scripts to conjure up the database for deployment purposes. Good luck!
I have a Windows Form application that uses 2 databases and there are tables that are used as flags and references. What is usually done to deploy these databases with tables filled with data by default? I was thinking of using Script database as CREATE to then put all of those generated scripts into one SQL file and just have my application execute it but, it only creates the database or the tables but not the data needed.
EDIT
Also, if my application also is going to have a Windows Service, do I have to separate the setup for that or can I include that with my client application setup?
What is usually done to deploy these databases with tables filled with
data by default?
As you have already mentioned, One of the option is to include the scripts to create the database schema and then insert the necessary data required. and during the deployment of your application you could execute these scripts. SMO(SQL Server Management Object) should be the best option to execute scripts.
Second option would be to use LocalDB, it's a lightweight version of SQL Express. you could add the database file to your installer project and copy to user machine along with other files. When the application runs you could refer to this DB file in the connection string using AttachDbFileName property.
if my application also is going to have a Windows Service, do I have
to separate the setup for that?
Well, technically you could use a single setup to deploy your client application and install windows service but to install the service you will have to write extra code. Unless you have a requirement to use single MSI to deploy both i would advice you to create a separate setup to deploy your service.
I have finished developing the first release of my application which uses MySQL (locally under one license and hosted under another).
Connecting the application to the hosted database works fine, i edit the connection details within my application to the hosted server details and it works fine.
However, when I try and use it locally (server:localhost etc..) i get an error stating it can not access the server. In my application, i have included the mysql DLL files, but I would prefer the user not to have to install MySQL server which is about a 100MB download (i know its quite small these days but want the install to be as pain free as possible).
I know it would be an easy fix just to add this install as a prerequisite, but i am sure there is a way to do it without this, or maybe not. Is there a script i can run which will run through and setup the server with users etc?
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks
Shaun
Connecting to a local mysql database implies there's a mysql database service running and was previously installed.
If you want a database you can distribute with your program without having to install a fully fledged database there are quite a few around such as MSSQLCE.
But otherwise, your user is going to have to install mysql on his own machine and keep it running.
Or you could use SQLLite, which is what i have had the best experience with so far.
It should be easy to refactor your Program to use this, and it takes no user setup to use it.
Hope this helps :)
I want to create a window based application in C# so that we can run it without installing the application into each and every system.
It need to connect that application through database as well.
I want to create this application so that it can be run directly through pendrive and can write into database as well.
I know how to work with database though window application but with installer only.
I have created many window application
but all runs on client machine after
Installing the deployed setup. But now
i want client need not install the
setup deployed. He can use my
application by directly clicking my
executable file
There is nothing in Windows that requires an application to be installed. That said, installation is intended to:
Make things more simple for the end user.
Setup the registry, usually for path information and uninstall information.
Initialize any initial information the software may need before it's first run.
Simply avoiding using the registry and saving files locally to your application is usually enough to make your application portable.
That said, as long as you allow the user to select a database location within your software, you should be fine. Saving the information on the pen-drive, in an .ini file for instance, would allow each computer you plug into to read these same settings.
If you expect each computer to have a difference connection string to the database, you could save your settings to the %appdata% directory. When the user plugs the pendrive back in later, his settings will still be there, and no other user will see these same settings.
The downside to the second approach, however, is that the user has no way to "uninstall" and recover the space written to %appdata% automatically. However, for most private business applications, this isn't much of a concern.
Edit: If your real question here is how to distribute an application without an installer, simply build the Release version of your application, and look in /bin/Release/ within your project. Copy these files to another location, remove any debug or unneeded files, and make sure you have all your dependencies in order.
If you just want to connect to a database, you can do that in the EXE without any kind of installer needed. How that is done would depend on which database it is, and how you are connecting to it, but generally the item that requires encoding in the EXE (or in an outboard XML file which the EXE can read) is a connection string. This connection string is probably what the installer is managing.
A good tutorial on building your first Windows application in C# can be found here:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/360kwx3z.aspx
If you don't know where and how to start window form application or how to connect to database or so, there are plenty tutorials and you can Google for it very easily ;)
Here are few examples:
GUI related:
Tutorial: Working with Windows Forms
- Part I
GUI Windows Forms « C# / CSharp Tutorial
Windows Forms
tutorial with C#
Databases related:
Creating a database connection
Simplest form of installation; use an if/else; when application start, it would check for some registry key (lets say, installation=done), if the value of registery key is="done", then run the else part, which means run the app. If its "notdone", then setup all initial settings and then run the app. A pseudo will go as follows:
if(HasValidRegistryKeys()) //Check if initial settings are already there
{
Runnable=true;
}
else
{
//Not installed, lets setup app settings
//Assume that the application is running for the first time.
try
{
SetupRegistry(); //Set installation=done
SetupDatabase();
//Setup more things.
Runnable=true;
}
catch()
{Runnable=false;}
}
//Run the app
if(Runnable)
{
RunApp();
}
else
{
MessageBox.Show("Some error");
}