Unleashing The Power of SSDT (SQL Server Data Tools): Question And Answer

Q.1. What is SSDT (SQL Server Data Tools)?

Ans. SSDT, short for SQL Server Data Tools, is a robust integrated development environment (IDE) provided by Microsoft with the release of SQL Server 2012. It enables the creation, testing, and deployment of SQL Server databases directly within Microsoft Visual Studio (versions 2010 and Visual Studio 11). SSDT offers significant improvements over previous tools like SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) and Visual Studio Database Professional edition (DbPro).

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Q.2. Why Does Microsoft Develop SSDT?

Ans. SSDT is not meant to replace SSMS; instead, it is an advanced version of DbPro. While SSMS remains the go-to management tool for database administrators maintaining stable SQL Server systems, DbPro's limited design-time experience hindered its widespread adoption. Before SSDT's release, programmers predominantly used SSMS for development work since it was more focused on management-oriented tools rather than developer-focused tools like Visual Studio.

With the introduction of SSDT, developers now have a single environment hosted in Visual Studio specifically tailored for database development. This eliminates the need to switch back and forth between different tools while designing and building databases.

Q.3. What are The Challenges that Developers Face While Designing Databases?

Ans. Developers face several challenges while designing databases, including:

• Dependencies: Databases involve complex dependencies between various schema objects, making development more challenging. Minor changes can quickly escalate into complex issues when dependencies are involved.
• Late error detection: Creating intricate scripts takes time, and errors may only surface when deploying them to the database or during runtime, causing issues for users.
• Detection of "Drift": Databases are continually evolving, and discrepancies between different environments may occur, leading to differences that need to be identified and fixed.
• Versioning: Managing database versions and keeping them consistent with application versions can be difficult, especially when changes need to be synchronized.
• Deployment: Deploying databases across various versions of SQL Server, including SQL Azure, can pose compatibility and deployment challenges.

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Q.4. Why Did SSDT Release by Microsoft?

Ans. SSDT was released to address the prevailing practice of using management-oriented tools like SSMS for database development instead of developer-focused tools like DbPro. DbPro was a step towards offline database creation but did not gain wide adoption due to its limited design-time experience in Visual Studio. With SSDT, developers now have a single integrated environment in Visual Studio, eliminating the need to switch between tools for database design and development.

Q.5. Where is The Root Cause of The Developer's Problems While Designing Databases?

Ans. The root cause of many problems faced by developers during database design lies in the "statefulness" of the database. Unlike a .NET application that initializes to a consistent "new" state when built and run, databases have a continuous "old" state with existing schema and data. This necessitates considering both the design and implementation of the database and how to align them given the current state of the database.

Q.6. How Should Developers Tackle The Root Causes of Their Problems?

Ans. SSDT addresses the root cause of developers' problems by adopting a declarative and model-based approach to database design. Working declaratively allows developers to focus on declaring what the database should be, rather than writing scripts to make changes. SSDT handles creating the necessary change scripts to deploy the design to the target database securely.

Q.7. How Does SSDT Use a Declarative, Model-Based Development?

Ans. SSDT employs a declarative, model-based approach where all SSDT tools, such as designers, validations, IntelliSense, and schema compare, work on an in-memory representation of the database known as an SSDT database model. The model can be populated from a live database, an offline database project under source control, or a snapshot of an offline project. The tools exclusively interact with this model, providing a consistent experience across different scenarios.

The declarative approach means that every object in the SSDT model has a T-SQL representation expressed as a CREATE statement, defining what the object should look like. SSDT generates the necessary change script, either an ALTER or CREATE statement, depending on the state of the target database, to deploy the object's definition correctly.

Q.8. How Does SSDT Provide Connected Development?

Ans. While SSDT primarily emphasizes a declarative model, developers can still work proficiently with live databases in a connected mode, similar to SSMS. The new SQL Server Object Explorer in Visual Studio serves as the foundation for the connected SSDT experience. It allows developers to perform various database development tasks that were previously done in SSMS.

In connected mode, SSDT builds a model from the actual database, allowing developers to edit and validate it. Any schema updates made with the new table designer are captured, and SSDT generates the necessary change script to update the database accordingly. This buffered-while-connected method of database development ensures a smooth experience for developers working with both offline projects and connected databases.

Q.9. What is a Database Snapshot on SSDT?

Ans. A database snapshot in SSDT is a serialized representation of a database model at a specific point in time, stored in the .dacpac file format. It contains the entire database schema and serves as a snapshot of the database's structure. Developers can use snapshots with various SSDT tools, such as schema compare, to deploy and synchronize database structures across different databases, both online and offline.

Q.10. What Capabilities can a Snapshot Provide to The Developer?

Ans. Database snapshots offer three valuable capabilities to developers:

• Instant Deserialization: A snapshot can be deserialized into a model at any time, allowing developers to compare the snapshot with live databases, offline projects, or other snapshots taken at different points in time.
• Providing Change Script to DBA: When developers need to provide a change script for execution by a database administrator (DBA) but don't have access to the target database, they can send the change script along with a snapshot of the database project before any offline work was done. The DBA can compare the snapshot with the live database to ensure the script's compatibility.
• Detecting Drift: The dual-model strategy of SSDT, using both the connected and offline project models, helps detect drift in the database schema by comparing the changes made by multiple users and identifying any issues that may arise during deployment.

Q.11. How Does SSDT Target Different SQL Server Versions?

Ans. In SQL Server Database Projects, the target platform switch allows developers to specify the exact SQL Server version they want to deploy the project to. This configuration serves as the basis for all validation checks against the project-backed model. This enables testing and deployment of the database to any specific version of SQL Server, including SQL Azure. Choosing SQL Azure as the target ensures compatibility and smooth deployment to the cloud.

Q.12. How Does SSDT Provide Disconnected Development?

Ans. SSDT's model-based approach allows disconnected development, where developers can work offline on a local project that accurately represents the database. The SQL Server Database Project is the foundation for the model SSDT develops. Design-time warnings and errors help developers identify and fix issues, similar to the experience in standard .NET development with C# or Visual Basic .NET. Once the build issues are resolved, the updates can be submitted to the database.

Q.13. How To Upgrade Existing Db Pro Projects To SSDT Projects?

Ans. Existing DbPro projects can be easily converted to SSDT projects by selecting "Convert To SQL Server Database Project" from the project's right-click menu in Solution Explorer. However, it's essential to note that this conversion is one-way, and certain DbPro artifacts that SSDT does not yet support may not convert.

Certain critical functions, such as data generation, data comparison, schema view, and database unit testing, are still exclusive to DbPro. For now, developers may need to continue using DbPro to address these features until SSDT offers comparable functionality

Conclusion:

SSDT (SQL Server Data Tools) represents a game-changing integrated development environment (IDE) provided by Microsoft, facilitating the creation, testing, and implementation of SQL Server databases. With a focus on the declarative and model-based approach, SSDT enables developers to concentrate on defining the database's desired state rather than getting bogged down in manual scripting. This seamless integration within Microsoft Visual Studio eliminates the need to switch between tools, enhancing productivity and efficiency for developers.

Through SSDT's connected and disconnected development capabilities, developers can work effortlessly with live databases or offline projects, ensuring smooth transitions between different environments. The ability to create and utilize snapshots of database models provides a reliable means to compare, validate, and deploy changes securely, promoting collaboration among developers and database administrators.

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