Create mdf file?

Scenario:
I have a fully licensed SQL server 2005 database that my production
application uses. I have several contract sales people who take my web
application, visit prospective clients and perform a demonstration of our
product (by connecting to the internet to access the database).
I would like to have the application run completely on the laptops my sales
team uses, so I am wondering how to move my existing SQL 2005 database to a
.mdf file that can be places in the app_data folder so the application will
not have to access the Internet for the demonstration).
I don't know what the steps are to do this, or how to create the conection
string to point to a local database in the app_data folder.
Thanks in advance!
BrianBrian,
Of course, the laptop will need to have SQL Server installed on it. If your
database is not too big (<4 GB) you can use SQL Server Express. BACKUP your
database and RESTORE the backup to the laptops. (This will place an MDF and
an LDF on the laptop. You need both.)
Since logins will not come over with the restore, you will also need to set
up a login for the person demonstrating your product. But that should not
be a problem to do.
I would suggest that you do this once on a single laptop. Once you have it
just the way you want it, take backups of all the databases on the laptop.
Then for the other laptops, install SQL Server Express and then restore all
the backups to each traveling laptop.
RLF
.
"AutoTrackerPlus" <brian.cesafsky@.autotrackerplus.com> wrote in message
news:Oz5QIkTzHHA.4652@.TK2MSFTNGP05.phx.gbl...
> Scenario:
> I have a fully licensed SQL server 2005 database that my production
> application uses. I have several contract sales people who take my web
> application, visit prospective clients and perform a demonstration of our
> product (by connecting to the internet to access the database).
> I would like to have the application run completely on the laptops my
> sales team uses, so I am wondering how to move my existing SQL 2005
> database to a .mdf file that can be places in the app_data folder so the
> application will not have to access the Internet for the demonstration).
> I don't know what the steps are to do this, or how to create the conection
> string to point to a local database in the app_data folder.
> Thanks in advance!
>
> Brian
>|||It is not as simple as including the data files. Your application
does not touch the files, and would not know what to do with them if
it did. Your application talks to the SQL Server service running on
the server, and SQL Server deals with the database files.
To run the application on the laptops you will need SQL Server
installed and running on the laptops. In this case you can probably
get away with SQL Express, which is free. That assumes the database
is no more than 4GB, the SQL Express limit. You will probably want
reasonably robust laptops, particularly when it comes to memory where
1GB is probably a minimum. I suggest thorough testing to confirm that
performance is good enough to show customers
Roy Harvey
Beacon Falls, CT
On Mon, 23 Jul 2007 09:51:57 -0500, "AutoTrackerPlus"
<brian.cesafsky@.autotrackerplus.com> wrote:
>Scenario:
>I have a fully licensed SQL server 2005 database that my production
>application uses. I have several contract sales people who take my web
>application, visit prospective clients and perform a demonstration of our
>product (by connecting to the internet to access the database).
>I would like to have the application run completely on the laptops my sales
>team uses, so I am wondering how to move my existing SQL 2005 database to a
>.mdf file that can be places in the app_data folder so the application will
>not have to access the Internet for the demonstration).
>I don't know what the steps are to do this, or how to create the conection
>string to point to a local database in the app_data folder.
>Thanks in advance!
>
>Brian
>