Updated: 5/10/2006

The most up-to-date version of this file is available online at the Microsoft Download Center.

The SQL Server documentation team cannot answer technical support questions, but welcomes your suggestions and comments about this readme documentation. You can quickly and directly send e-mail feedback by using the link provided. Send your feedback in English.

To submit written feedback about this document, click here: Submit feedback.

Contents

1.0 Introduction

Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Express Edition Toolkit (SQL Server Express Toolkit) provides tools and resources to manage Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Express Edition (SQL Server Express), and Microsoft® SQL Server™ 2005 Express Edition with Advanced Services (SQL Server Express). It also allows creating reports by using SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services (SSRS).

The kit includes:

  • Connectivity Components

    Installs components for communication between clients and server. These include network libraries for OLEDB and ODBC.

  • Business Intelligence Development Studio

    Installs tools that are used in a development environment. These include Business Intelligence Development Studio, Report Designer, and software development kits.

  • Software Development Kit

    Installs software development kits for programmers.

  • Management Studio Express

    Installs tools to access, configure, manage, administer, and develop components of SQL Server Express.

Note:
SQL Server Express Toolkit contains all updates that are included in SQL Server 2005 Service Pack 1.

[Top]

2.0 Downloading and Installing SQL Server Express Toolkit

This section contains information about how to install Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0, SQL Server Express toolkit, and the hardware and software requirements to install SQL Server Express Toolkit.

[Top]

2.1 .NET Framework 2.0

You must install the .NET Framework 2.0 before you install SQL Server Express Toolkit.

SQL Server Express Toolkit depends specifically on the .NET Framework 2.0 version. If you have a different version, your SQL Server Express Toolkit installation might function unpredictably. You can download the .NET Framework 2.0 from this Microsoft Web site.

[Top]

2.2 SQL Server Express Toolkit

SQL Server Express Toolkit is available for download at this Microsoft Web site.

Note:
Be sure to follow the instructions provided at the download site to download and extract the product.

[Top]

2.3 Installation Requirements

Hardware and software requirements for installing SQL Server Express Toolkit are also summarized in the Installation Requirements for SQL Server 2005 Express Edition Toolkit document.

[Top]

3.0 Additional Information

3.1 Business Intelligence Development Studio and Reporting Services

SQL Server Express Toolkit Setup installs Business Intelligence Development Studio. This is required to create and modify reports that can be hosted on Reporting Services. There is a different setup program that you must run to install Reporting Services. The setup program, Microsoft SQL Server Express with Advanced Services (SQL Server Express) Setup, guides you through the Reporting Services installation.

Note:
SQL Server Express is available for download at this Microsoft Web site.

When Reporting Services is installed, you can view reports by using your report server. However, to create reports, you must use Business Intelligence Development Studio.

Business Intelligence Development Studio is the Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 environment with enhancements that are specific to SQL Server 2005 business intelligence solutions. The following project templates are available in Business Intelligence Development Studio. You can use either of these templates to create reports that run on a Reporting Services report server:

  • Report Server Project

  • Report Server Project Wizard

[Top]

3.2 How To Use SQL Server Management Studio Express

SQL Server Management Studio Express (SSMSE), which is installed by running SQL Server Express Toolkit, provides a graphical management tool for instances of SQL Server Express. SSMSE can also manage relational engine instances that are created by any edition of SQL Server 2005. SSMSE cannot manage SQL Server 2005 Analysis Services (SSAS), SQL Server 2005 Integration Services (SSIS), SQL Server 2005 Notification Services, SQL Server 2005 Mobile Edition, , or SQL Server Agent.

[Top]

How to connect to SQL Server Express by using SSMSE

To connect SSMSE to a SQL Server Express Database Engine instance, follow these steps:

  1. In the Connect to Server dialog box, specify one of the following:

    • .\sqlexpress

    • (local)\sqlexpress

    • computer_name\sqlexpress

  2. Click Enter.

    Note:
    The default installation of SQL Server Express uses the instance name SQLExpress. This instance name must be provided to connect to SQL Server Express by using SSMSE. If you have an instance name other than SQLExpress, connect by using computer_name\instance name.

[Top]

3.3 Help Experience in Business Intelligence Development Studio

By default, SQL Server 2005 Books Online is not installed with Business Intelligence Development Studio. Therefore, if you press F1, the MSDN online Help opens. By pressing F1, you are able to access F1 Help topics, but you do not see a table of contents or have access to the rest of the SQL Server 2005 documentation. To access the SQL Server 2005 documentation, install SQL Server 2005 Books Online from this Microsoft Web site. After installing Books Online, in the Contents pane of the Books Online, you can use the SQL Server Express filter to hide the content that does not apply to SQL Server Express edition.

Caution:
When you press F1, the topics that open might refer to user interface elements or features that are not supported by SQL Server Express. This is because the documentation was written for the full version of SQL Server 2005.

[Top]

3.4 Upgrade to the Final Release Version of SQL Server Express Toolkit Is Not Supported

A pre-release version of SQL Server Express Toolkit cannot be upgraded to the final release version. You must uninstall the pre-release version of SQL Server Express Toolkit before you can install this version.

Caution:
When you uninstall a pre-release version of SQL Server Express Toolkit on a computer that also has Visual Studio 2005 installed, you must repair the Windows Registry before you can use the Visual Studio Dataset Designer. For more information, see Knowledge Base article 917635.

[Top]

4.0 Getting SQL Server Express Toolkit Assistance

There are three principal sources of information about SQL Server Express:

[Top]

5.0 Providing Feedback on SQL Server Express Toolkit

To provide suggestions and bug reports about SQL Server Express Toolkit, you can do one or more of the following:

  • Send suggestions and bug reports about the features and user interface of SQL Server Express Toolkit at the MSDN Product Feedback Center.

  • Send suggestions and report inaccuracies about the documentation by using the feedback functionality in SQL Server 2005 Books Online at this Microsoft Web site.

  • Send error reports and feature usage data automatically to Microsoft for analysis. For more information, see "Error and Usage Report Settings (SQL Server Express)" in SQL Server 2005 Books Online.

[Top]

6.0 Books Online

Starting with the April 2006 update of SQL Server 2005 Books Online, a separate Books Online for SQL Server Express is unavailable. SQL Server 2005 Books Online is the primary documentation for SQL Server Express.

SQL Server 2005 Books Online is available at this Microsoft Web site. After installing Books Online, in the Contents pane of the Books Online, you can use the SQL Server Express filter to hide the content that does not apply to SQL Server Express edition. For more information about SQL Server Express documentation, see "Using SQL Server Express Books Online" in SQL Server 2005 Books Online.

The April 2006 update of Books Online reflects all product upgrades that are included in this service pack, and also includes other improvements to the documentation. We strongly recommend that you install this update to keep the information in your local copy of the documentation current with SQL Server Express.

[Top]