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Asked: 2026-06-08T22:12:23+00:00

I am following some tutorials and I’m completely lost on how MVC/SQL Server connect.

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I am following some tutorials and I’m completely lost on how MVC/SQL Server connect.

I am going through a tutorial and the person mentions that the following code automatically creates a database for me:

<connectionStrings>
   <add name="LibraryContext" 
        connectionString="Data Source = |DataDirectory|Library.sdf" providerName="System.Data.SqlServerCe.4.0"/>

Can you please tell me what the above code does in a simple and detailed way. What |DataDirectory|Library.sdf does and what SQL Server CE..etc…all of it.. PLEASE & THANK YOU!

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    • SQL Server CE is the Compact Edition of SQL Server – basically your whole database in a single file (the .sdf file) and the code to access it in a set of DLLs – no server installation needed.

      It works fine for most cases, but has limitations (no stored procedures etc.) – ErikEJ has a great comparison page comparing SQL Server CE to Express

    • the |DataDirectory| part of your connection string refers to the App_Data directory that’s been created in your web site

      So in the end, the database connection goes to a file in

      (your web site root)\App_Data\Library.sdf
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