I have been working in a business writing advanced software apps, and obviously im provided with access to our SQL server and all the connection strings needed.This is fine for my job now - but what if i wanted to do this for a new (very small) business... If i wanted to purchase a small database server and set up a piece of software that talks to the databases on this server, how would i go about a) Talking and connecting to the server in code (c#) and b)What would i need regarding things like internet/phone connections etc to make this possible.
Edit: the reason it would need a server is because it would need to be accessed from 2 or 3 different computers in different locations?
Actually there are quite a few ways to create a database connection, but I would say one of the easiest ways is to utilize the methods and classes found in System.Data.SQLClient. A basic connection would look something like the following:
using System.Data.SQLClient;
namespace YourNamespace
{
public class DatabaseConnect
{
public DataType getData()
{
DataType dataObj = new DataType();
SqlConnection testConn = new SqlConnection("connection string here");
SqlCommand testCommand = new SqlCommand("select * from dataTable", testConn);
testConn.Open()
using (SqlDataReader reader = testCommand.ExecuteReader())
{
while (reader.Read())
{
//Get data from reader and set into DataType object
}
}
return dataObj;
}
}
}
Keep in mind, this is a very, very simple version of a connection for reading data, but it should give you an idea of what you need to do. Make sure to use a "using" or "try/catch" statement to ensure that the connection is closed and resources are freed after each use (whether it successfully gets data or not).
As for your other question about what equipment you may require. In the beginning I would suggest just creating the database on your local machine and running tests from there. Once you are confident with trading data back and forth, feel free to move the database to another box or an online server. Any internet connection type should suffice, though I can't vouch for dial-up, haven't used it in years.
One final note, if you do happen to decide to move to an online server system, make sure that the service you use allows for outside connections. Certain services use shared server systems, and force users to use their internal database interfaces to manage and write to the database.
--- EDIT ---
As for the server system itself, build up a separate box on your local network that you can see, and load up the database software of your choice. Since you are using C#, it would probably be easiest to go with Microsoft SQL Server 2005 / 2008. The installation is rather straightforward, and it will prompt you to automatically create your first database while installing.
After installation it will be up to you to add in the tables, stored procedures, custom functions, etc... Once your base structure is created, go ahead and use the above code to make some simple connections. Since you are familiar with the above practices then I'm sure you know that all you really need to do is target the server machine and database in the connection string to be on your way.
In case your application is small (by small I mean the usage of resources like CPU and memory) then your SQL Server can reside on the same box.
Else you need to have a separate server box for your database and connect to that from your application. In this case, preferably your database box and application box would be on the local area network.
Check this link for having a connection to SQL Server from C# code - http://www.codeproject.com/KB/database/sql_in_csharp.aspx
cheers
You should probably expose your database with an xml web services layer, so that your architecture will be scalable. The general idea is host your sql server and webservices, using Native SQL Server XML Web Services you can make this available to your remote clients. When in your clients you simply add a service reference in Visual Studio and your data will now be available in your client app.
Hope this helps some.
Cheers
You may find the connectionstrings website useful - worth bookmarking.
Related
After a few years, I have returned to writing in C# and I am really struggling here - I would like to have my app to have a local SQL database. I have added Service-based database and "Database1.mdf" was added to my project. I created a table and added some data just to see if it is working but I cannot connect to it. I tried numerous connection strings with no success (Server not accessible).
Do I need to run something else in the background? I thought that I might have a local database and with .NET client I can access it, and I hoped it would work whenever I bring my application (also not requiring any SQL server running). Is that wrong?
If you don't require any SQL server, take a look at SQLite. This is lite SQL database engine. Database is just one file. C# has a great library to SQLite on NuGet: https://www.nuget.org/profiles/mistachkin
SQLite is widely used, event in Android (as a native db engine).
here is what i use to connect. it appears as a Data Connection in Server Explorer.
string con2 = #"Data Source=(LocalDB)\MSSQLLocalDB;AttachDbFilename=" + Application.StartupPath + "\\jobfile_2017.mdf;Integrated Security=True;Connect Timeout=30";
when i first started working with these, i used this source 1
it works on PC's that i have nothing installed (not even office) but as i said i'd be interested to know of any shortcomings of this method
I experiencing same problem and decided to move mdf file to static c:\db directory. Connection string was changed to incorporate new file location (AttachDbFile).
But AttachDbFile has some issues also (by some reason one table in db is inaccesible and error is access denied).
So I decided to move to Sqlite. LocalDb has many issues to work with. I read good note to resolve problem: in command line stop/remove/start name of instance. But it nuissance.
Wish you good luck to work with these db files.
I currently run MongoDB pointing to the appropriate data directory using the command line below:
mongod --dbpath "somePath/data"
But currently this is a manual step that I run before running a particular suite of tests. Is there a way I can set the path within the code (without calling a script or batch file) using the Mongo C# driver to use a specific data directory?
Update:
To clarify, the reason I'm looking to do this isn't for use in production code, but to isolate test databases for different test suites and to point at a disposable and isolated data directory so that each server instance is clean at the time of running tests and is only populated with the data it requires for the same server settings as production.
You probably won't find any way to do that. The Mongo C# Driver is for programming a MongoClient, not a server. The documentation for C# Driver for MongoDB says - MongoClient class serves as the root object for working with a MongoDB server. When you are programming a client, you automatically would assume that the server is up and running. Whether you do it manually or you write another code for it, that is a different story.
Very rarely would you allow people to connect to a machine and let them start a server AND A CLIENT on it. And why is it rare? You may try to start a server on another machine and screw up with that machine (which may be providing some other completely different service too!). There are some ways (and there are times when it is needed) to start a server remotely, but that is not what you can do using the MongoDB C# Driver.
Now, in order to get your task done, you can try this:
Start one mongod per database on your server, and make each mongod listen to a different port. Then in your code, you can connect your MongoClient to mongod running on the concerned database's port. You can achieve this by using a simple if condition (or a switch case) and checking what database the MongoClient wants to connect to and thus finding the right port value to put in the connection string. Each mongod can serve only one database or more or whatever you want.
So if you are running three mongod's on port1, port2 and port3 and all those three are connected to their respective db paths, the code can be somewhat like this:
var DBNAME = name_of_the_db;
string connectionString;
switch (DBNAME)
{
case name_of_first_DB:
connectionString = "mongodb://[user:pass#]hostname[:port1][/[DBNAME][?options]]";
break;
case name_of_second_DB:
connectionString = "mongodb://[user:pass#]hostname[:port2][/[DBNAME][?options]]";
break;
case name_of_third_DB:
connectionString = "mongodb://[user:pass#]hostname[:port3][/[DBNAME][?options]]";
break;
default:
Console.WriteLine("Invalid DB Name");
}
Answering the updated part of the question:
You can start mongod's on different partitions of the server. Even start the daemons from different drives altogether and make them listen to different ports. Goes without saying that the dbpaths should not be pointing to the same drive for any two databases to at least pretty closely mimic what you wanted.
Just to complete this answer I am adding what #Schaliasos has mentioned in comments.. Consider installing mongo as a window service.
I have C# application which uses SQL Server R2 as its database. That database is on a separate PC by the name of SERVER. SQL Server's instance name also server.
My windows application uses DataSet to communicate with the database. Now my SQL installed PC name is change to another name, ex SERVERHP. Now all my coding works want to change my connection string. Are there any other easy way to do it ?
I am to tried to edit hosts file, but it does not work for me.
This is my coding style (http://goo.gl/FQrkp). I am using DataSet with DataAdapter with IDE designers.
I have 100 ~ 150 forms. Now I cannot compile all codings. I want to easy method to connect that SQL Server database.
I want to have a way to hide the change of the hostname of the computer
You have a couple of options:
Globally replace all server names with IP address in connection strings in the app
Globally replace all server names with the new server name in the app
Add a CNAME record to the DNS table on the server (assuming of course you're in the same network, which you are if you're using computer names)
Add an entry to the LMHOSTS file (you can add as many names as you'd like that point to the same IP)
As I understand, it is SqlConnection used to connect to database, or something like that. Why don't you use SqlConnectionStringBuilder? Then you can dinamically construct connection string you need. Also, to get list of servers, you can use SqlDataSourceEnumerator, from namespace System.Data.Sql.
It sounds like you want to have a way to hide the change of the hostname of the computer (Server/Desktop/Virtualized instance of Windows, whatever) that is running your SQL Server.
This isn't my area of expertise, but I can't think of a way to do it that only involves your application code and just the computer.
If you control the local DNS you can create a CNAME entry with the old name that "points" at the new one. Depending on how your connection strings are stored, you might have to edit them or you might not. But you won't have to worry about the location of your SQL Server changing again because you can always edit your CNAME to point at the new location.
Note for the future - not your current problem: If you continue to use MS SQL Server in particular you'll want to be careful about moving it to a computer where it isn't the default instance because then you need to put the instance name in the connection string as well, which might force you to edit all of your application web.configs and app.configs again.
Are you using Visual Studio 2012 with your development efforts? I ran into a conflict with the mini SQL db VS installs (Using Premium version) and had to modify the ConnectionStrings section of my Machine.config file to point to my SQL database. For whatever reason, VS will write references to the mini db in the Machine.Config file (for whatever version of .Net you are leveraging) throwing potetial conflicts.
The file can be found in %systemroot%\Microsoft.Net\Framework64\dot net version\Config
If you're using an x86 processor the Framework64 folder is just called 'Framework'.
I created a windows forms application in C #, and a database MS SQL server 2008 Express, and I use LINQ-to-SQL query to insert and edit data.
The database is housed on a server with Windows Server 2008 R2 (standard edition). Right now I have the application running on five different computers, and users are authenticated through active directory.
One complaint reported to me was that sometimes when different data is entered and submitted, the same data do not appear in the listing that contains the application. I use try catch block to send the errors but errors do not appear in the application; but the data simply disappear.
The id of the table records is an integer auto-increment. As I have to tell them the registration number that was entered I use the following piece of code:
try{
ConectionDataContext db = new ConectionDataContext();
Table_Registers tr = new Table_Registers();
tr.Name=textbox1.text;
tr.sector=textbox2.text;
db.Table_Registers.InsertOnSubmit(tr);
db.SubmitChanges();
int numberRegister=tr.NumberRegister;
MessageBox.Show(tr.ToString());
}
catch{Exception e}
I wonder if I'm doing something wrong or if you know of any article on the web that speaks how to insert data from different clients in MSSQL Server databases, please let me know.
Thanks.
That's what a database server DOES: "insert data simultaneously from different clients".
One thing you can do is to consider "transactions":
http://www.sqlteam.com/article/introduction-to-transactions
Another thing you can (and should!) do is to insure as much work as possible is done on the server, by using "stored procedures":
http://www.sql-server-performance.com/2003/stored-procedures-basics/
You should also check the SQL Server error logs, especially for potential deadlocks. You can see these in your SSMS GUI, or in the "logs" directory under your SQL Server installation.
But the FIRST thing you need to do is to determine exactly what's going on. Since you've only got MSSQL Express (which is not a good choice for production use!), perhaps the easiest approach is to create a "log" table: insert an entry in your "log" every time you insert a row in the real table, and see if stuff is "missing" (i.e. you have more entires in the log table than the data table).
I'm making an app that will be installed and run on multiple computers, my target is to make an empty local database file that is installed with the app and when user uses the app his database to be filled with the data from the app .
can you provide me with the following examples :
what do I need to do so my app can connect to its local database
how to execute a query with variables from the app for example how would you add to the database the following thing
String abc = "ABC";
String BBB = "Something longer than abc";
and etc
Edit ::
I am using a "local database" created from " add > new item > Local database" so how would i connect to that ? Sorry for the dumb question .. i have never used databases in .net
Depending on the needs you could also consider Sql CE. I'm sure that if you specified the database you're thinking of using, or your requirements if you're usure you would get proper and real examples of connection strings etc.
Edit: Here's code for SqlCe / Sql Compact
public void ConnectListAndSaveSQLCompactExample()
{
// Create a connection to the file datafile.sdf in the program folder
string dbfile = new System.IO.FileInfo(System.Reflection.Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().Location).DirectoryName + "\\datafile.sdf";
SqlCeConnection connection = new SqlCeConnection("datasource=" + dbfile);
// Read all rows from the table test_table into a dataset (note, the adapter automatically opens the connection)
SqlCeDataAdapter adapter = new SqlCeDataAdapter("select * from test_table", connection);
DataSet data = new DataSet();
adapter.Fill(data);
// Add a row to the test_table (assume that table consists of a text column)
data.Tables[0].Rows.Add(new object[] { "New row added by code" });
// Save data back to the databasefile
adapter.Update(data);
// Close
connection.Close();
}
Remember to add a reference to System.Data.SqlServerCe
I'm not seeing anybody suggesting SQL Compact; it's similar to SQLite in that it doesn't require installation and tailors to the low-end database. It grew out of SQL Mobile and as such has a small footprint and limited feature-set, but if you're familiar with Microsoft's SQL offerings it should have some familiarity.
SQL Express is another option, but be aware that it requires a standalone installation and is a bit beefier than you might need for an applciation's local cache. That said it's also quite a bit more powerful than SQL Compact or SQLite.
Seems like you're:
-Making a C# app that will be installed and run on multiple
computers
-That needs a local database (I'm assuming an RDBMS)
-You need to generate a blank database at installation
-You then need to be able to connect to the database and populate it when
the app runs.
In general, it seems that you need to read up on using a small database engine for applications. I'd start by checking out SQLite, especially if you need multi-OS capability (eg., your C# program will run on Microsoft's .NET Framework and Novell's Mono). There are C# wrappers for accessing the SQLite database.
I believe this question is about the "Local Database" item template in Visual Studio:
What are you considering as a database? From what little you've provided in your question, I'd suggest SQLite.
You can get sample code from their site Sqlite.NET
Not sure I fully understand what you're asking but Sqlite is a good option for lightweight, locally deployed database persistence. Have a look here:
http://www.sqlite.org/
and here for an ADO.NET provider..
http://sqlite.phxsoftware.com/
For 1)
The easiest way to provide this functionality is through SQL Server Express User Instances. SQL Server Express is free, so your user does not have to pay additional license for SQL Server, and the User Instance is file-based, which suits your requirement.
For 2)
This is a big topic. You may want to go through some of the tutorials from Microsoft to get the feeling of how to connect to DB, etc.