Question

When trying to connect to a .mdf databse in ASP.NET (using c#) I am given this error:

A network-related or instance-specific
error occurred while establishing a
connection to SQL Server.The server
was not found or was not accessible.
Verify that the instance name is
correct and that SQL Server is
configured to allow remote
connections. (provider: SQL Network
Interfaces, error: 26 – Error Locating
Server/Instance Specified)

Does this mean my connection string is wrong? What should it be?

Aside from that, I am very new to ASP.NET. I am trying to connect to this database in the same way I would in c# normally (using data adapters and SqlCommands). Is this the right way to go about it, or is there a different way? When I started a new website adding user accounts worked (there was a wizard or something?) but I couldn’t work out how to add more user information. What is the best way to connect to an SQL database and add user accounts with login and personal details in ASP.NET?

EDIT: My Connection String is data source=.\SQLEXPRESS;Integrated Security=SSPI;AttachDBFilename=|DataDirectory|\Users.mdf;User Instance=true

Answer 1

OK, I’ve fixed it. For reference for anyone else:

The correct connection string was given in the Web.config file.
The connection string I needed was Data Source=.\SQLEXPRESS;AttachDbFilename=|DataDirectory|\Users.mdf;Integrated Security=True;User Instance=True