Description
In this lab, you will learn how to use Data-tier Applications to deploy and upgrade SQL Azure databases. Using the SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT) you will create new database projects to publish a database schema and upgrade it with new changes.
Overview
SQL Azure Database supports a variety of mechanisms for deploying, versioning and migrating databases. You can use the traditional Transact-SQL script based approach to create your database objects, then populate your data either using scripts, BCP or SQL Server Integration Services. Schema upgrade scripts tend to be either hand coded or generated using additional tools. This approach is well known by SQL Server developers, but can be tedious for developers who are new to SQL Azure, especially when dealing with the complexities associated with database schema versioning.
Microsoft is addressing this complexity with a new framework called the Data-tier Application Framework, or DAC Fx, which makes it much easier to deploy, migrate and version your database schemas for SQL Server and SQL Azure. DAC Fx shipped initially with SQL Server 2008 R2, and support was soon added for SQL Azure. Since then, DAC Fx has evolved significantly and is an important part of the developer and managability story for SQL Azure. It is being integrated into developer tools like the SQL Server Data Tools, management tools like SQL Server 2012 Management Studio, and as a service accessible from the Windows Azure Management Portal.
Objectives
In this hands-on lab, you will learn how to:
- Create a new SQL Server project using SQL Server Data Tools (known as SSDT) to target SQL Azure.
- Publish a Data-tier Application to SQL Azure using SQL Server 2012 Management Studio.
- Extract a .dacpac file from a SQL Azure database, using SQL Server 2012 Management Studio.
- Import a .dacpac file in SSDT and update the schema.
- Upgrade a Data-tier Application in SQL Azure using the updated .dacpacfile.
Prerequisites
You must have the following items to complete this lab:
Exercises
This hands-on Lab includes the following exercises:
- Deploying Data-tier Applications to a SQL Azure Database
- Upgrading Data-tier Applications in SQL Azure
Estimated time to complete this lab: 45 minutes.
