What's New in Database Edition
Microsoft Visual Studio Team System Database Edition has been updated to support the following functionality:
SQL Server 2008.
Server projects, which you can create to manage changes to the objects and settings of a database server (such as logins and custom error messages).
More flexible configuration of build and deployment settings. For example, you can build your database once and then deploy the resulting compiled project to any of several target databases (with potentially different configurations).
A stand-alone command-line tool that you can use to deploy a database or to import a database schema.
The ability to save schema comparisons, either as part of your database project or in a stand-alone file.
Automated analysis of database code to identify common design, naming and performance issues.
New types of refactoring so that you can quickly and easily move objects to a different schema or fully qualify names of objects.
New extensibility points that you can use to create additional rules for analyzing database codeand additional refactoring types and targets.
Updated organization of help content that is more focused on user scenarios.
SQL Server 2008
This release of Database Edition supports SQL Server 2008. With this release, you can also compare schemas between different versions of SQL Server.
Server Projects
In addition to using database projects to manage changes to your databases, you can now use server projects to manage changes to the objects and settings on a database server. For more information, see An Overview of Database and Server Projects and Starting Team Database Development.
Build and Deployment
In earlier versions of Database Edition, you had to build your database project for each target deployment environment. Now you can build your project one time and then deploy it into different deployment environments. For more information, see Build and Deploy Databases to an Isolated Development Environment and Build and Deploy Databases to a Staging or Production Environment.
Standalone Command-line Deployment and Import
You can now deploy your database project from a computer that is not running Database Edition. If you copy the new command-line tool, VSBDCMD, and its supporting files to a Universal Serial Bus (USB) drive, you can use it to deploy your database from a remote computer. You can also use VSDBCMD to import objects and settings from a database or server into a .dbschema file. For more information, see How to: Prepare a Database for Deployment From a Command Prompt by Using VSDBCMD and How to: Import a Schema From a Command Prompt.
Save Schema Comparisons
You can now save Schema Compare sessions to your database project or to a standalone file. By doing this, you can perform the same comparison later.
Analyze Database Code
You can now use Database Edition to analyze database code just as you analyze managed code. By analyzing your code, you can identify common design, naming, and performance issues. For more information, see Improving Database Code with Static Analysis.
New Refactoring Types
In earlier versions of Database Edition, you could use rename refactoring to replace all references to an object name. Now, you can use refactoring to move an object to a new schema, expand wildcard characters, or fully qualify names in an object definition. For more information, see Move a Database Object to a Different Schema, Expand Wildcard Characters in SELECT Statements, and Fully Qualify the Names of Database Objects.
Create Feature Extensions
By creating feature extensions, you can add rules to analyze database code, types or targets for database refactoring, conditions for unit tests, or types of data generators. For more information, see Extending the Features of Database Edition.
Scenario-based Content
In addition to changes in Database Edition, this release also introduces a new type of help topic that focuses on broader user scenarios and the tasks that they comprise. Based on customer feedback that the older "orientation" topics were not especially helpful, each scenario topic highlights a problem that you might be trying to solve. The topic then describes what tasks you must perform to solve that problem and provides links to more information. You can send us feedback on this new type of topic.