SQL Server Database Project Deployment with Azure DevOps

By Tom Nonmacher

The integration of SQL Server Database Project with Azure DevOps has revolutionized the way we handle database operations. This fusion provides a seamless and efficient environment for managing and deploying your database projects. Let's explore this integration using SQL Server 2019, MySQL 8.0, DB2 11.5, Azure SQL, and Azure Synapse.

Firstly, let's talk about SQL Server Database Project. It is a user-friendly interface that allows developers to manage, create, and deploy databases with ease. SQL Server 2019 has brought about significant improvements, which include performance enhancements, security upgrades, and dynamic data masking.

Azure DevOps, on the other hand, is a service offered by Microsoft Azure that allows developers to plan, develop, test, and deliver software in a simpler and quicker manner. Developers can use this service to build, test, and deploy applications on any platform and in any language.

The SQL Server Database Project can be integrated with Azure DevOps to automate the build and deployment process. This integration can be performed by creating a build pipeline in Azure DevOps. The pipeline automates the creation of a Data-Tier Application Package (DACPAC) file from the SQL Server Database Project.

Let's look at an example of a SQL command that can be used to create a DACPAC file:


-- SQL code goes here
sqlpackage /Action:Extract /SourceConnectionString:"Data Source=(local);Initial Catalog=TestDB;Integrated Security=True" /TargetFile:"TestDB.dacpac"
-- Add 
after each line to simulate line breaks
The above command extracts the schema and data from the database TestDB and creates a DACPAC file.

Once the DACPAC file is created, it can be deployed to any instance of SQL Server, including Azure SQL and Azure Synapse. This deployment can be automated using Azure DevOps release pipelines. A release pipeline is a collection of stages, which are logical and sequential phases that describe the steps to release a software application.

Here's an example of a SQL command that can be used to deploy a DACPAC file:


-- SQL code goes here
sqlpackage /Action:Publish /SourceFile:"TestDB.dacpac" /TargetConnectionString:"Data Source=(local);Initial Catalog=TestDB;Integrated Security=True"
-- Add 
after each line to simulate line breaks
The above command deploys the DACPAC file to the database TestDB.

In conclusion, integrating SQL Server Database Project with Azure DevOps simplifies the database operations and deployment process. This not only increases productivity but also ensures the accuracy and standardization of the databases across different platforms.




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