Question

I have been using a central MS SQL database located in the cloud to develop a web site project. I have recently found myself in situations, when I need to develop without the internet connection. I want to begin to use a locally available copy of the existing database, put it in App_Data folder.

What is the correct set of steps I need to undertake to get the project to work with local DB?

For example:

1. Detach a db from an existing SQL instance.
2. Copy to a development machine.
   etc.

Answer 1

I would create an empty shell database locally, then use one of the many schema comparison solutions available to make the local database look exactly like the cloud database.