By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
SmartData CollectiveSmartData CollectiveSmartData Collective
  • Analytics
    AnalyticsShow More
    data-driven white label SEO
    Does Data Mining Really Help with White Label SEO?
    7 Min Read
    marketing analytics for hardware vendors
    IT Hardware Startups Turn to Data Analytics for Market Research
    9 Min Read
    big data and digital signage
    The Power of Big Data and Analytics in Digital Signage
    5 Min Read
    data analytics investing
    Data Analytics Boosts ROI of Investment Trusts
    9 Min Read
    football data collection and analytics
    Unleashing Victory: How Data Collection Is Revolutionizing Football Performance Analysis!
    4 Min Read
  • Big Data
  • BI
  • Exclusive
  • IT
  • Marketing
  • Software
Search
© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Creating DDL For An Entire Database In SQL Server 2008
Share
Notification Show More
Aa
SmartData CollectiveSmartData Collective
Aa
Search
  • About
  • Help
  • Privacy
Follow US
© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.
SmartData Collective > Big Data > Data Visualization > Creating DDL For An Entire Database In SQL Server 2008
Data Visualization

Creating DDL For An Entire Database In SQL Server 2008

Editor SDC
Last updated: 2010/04/13 at 1:00 PM
Editor SDC
5 Min Read
SHARE

Recently, I started a new project which has a database component. I looked around for some visual data modeling tools, and I settled on just using the diagrams capability of SQL Server. Since the client is using SQL Server, it was simple to download SQL Server Express and get started using their diagramming tool.

After creating a bunch of tables, I learned that SQL Server Database Diagrams do not produce the Data Definition Language (DDL) to create the database. Instead, the tables are created in sync with the diagram. Furthermore, SQL Server does not have a command that creates the DDL for an entire database. Right clicking on two dozen tables is cumbersome. But even worse, it would not provide complete DDL, since the table DDL does not include index definitions.

I have seen some debate on the web about the merits of graphical tools versus text DDL. Each has their advantages, and, personally, I believe that a decent database tool should allow users to switch between the two. The graphical environment lets me see the tables and their relationships. The text allows me to make global changes, such as…


Recently, I started a new project which has a database component. I looked around for some visual data modeling tools, and I settled on just using the diagrams capability of SQL Server. Since the client is using SQL Server, it was simple to download SQL Server Express and get started using their diagramming tool.

More Read

use drop tables for your sql server

Big Data Strategies Hinge on Using Drop Tables in SQL Servers

Data Driven Companies Must Understand Differences Between Fact Tables & Dimension Tables
How to Put Together an Effective SQL Server Monitoring Strategy
Top 10 Powerful Data Modeling Tools For 2021
6 Amazing Cloud Based Data Modeling Tools to Try in 2017

After creating a bunch of tables, I learned that SQL Server Database Diagrams do not produce the Data Definition Language (DDL) to create the database. Instead, the tables are created in sync with the diagram. Furthermore, SQL Server does not have a command that creates the DDL for an entire database. Right clicking on two dozen tables is cumbersome. But even worse, it would not provide complete DDL, since the table DDL does not include index definitions.

I have seen some debate on the web about the merits of graphical tools versus text DDL. Each has their advantages, and, personally, I believe that a decent database tool should allow users to switch between the two. The graphical environment lets me see the tables and their relationships. The text allows me to make global changes, such as:

  • Changing all the SMALLDATETIME data types to DATE when I go to a commercial version of SQL Server. The Expression version does not support DATE, alas.
  • Adding auditing columns — such as user, creation date, and update date — to almost all tables.
  • Adding table-specific comments.

Doing these types of actions in a point-and-click environment is cumbersome, inefficient, and prone to error. At the same time, the GUI environment is great for designing the tables and visualizing their relationships.

So, I searched on the web for a DDL program that would allow me to create the DDL for an entire SQL Server database. Because I did not find any, I decided that I had to write something myself. The attached file contains script-all-tables.sql contains my script.

This script uses SQL to generate SQL code — a trick that I talk about in my book Data Analysis Using SQL and Excel. The script generates code for the following:

  1. Dropping all tables in the database, if they exist.
  2. Creating new versions of the tables, taking into account primary keys, data types, and identity columns.
  3. Creating foreign key constraints on the table.
  4. Creating indexes on the table.

This is a very common subset of DDL used for databases. And, importantly, it seems to cover almost all that you can do using Database Diagrams. However, the list of what it is missing from fully re-creating any database is very, very long, ranging from user defined types, functions, and procedures, to the storage architecture, replication, and triggers.

The script uses the view in the sys schema rather than in Information_Schema simply because I found it easier to find the information that I needed to put the SQL together.

Link to original post

TAGGED: data modeling, sql server
Editor SDC April 13, 2010
Share This Article
Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn
Share

Follow us on Facebook

Latest News

sobm for ai-driven cybersecurity
Software Bill of Materials is Crucial for AI-Driven Cybersecurity
Security
IT budgeting for data-driven companies
IT Budgeting Practices for Data-Driven Companies
IT
machine,translation
Translating Artificial Intelligence: Learning to Speak Global Languages
Artificial Intelligence
data science upskilling
Upskilling for Emerging Industries Affected by Data Science
Big Data

Stay Connected

1.2k Followers Like
33.7k Followers Follow
222 Followers Pin

You Might also Like

use drop tables for your sql server
SQL

Big Data Strategies Hinge on Using Drop Tables in SQL Servers

15 Min Read
understand the difference between fact tables and dimension tables
Big Data

Data Driven Companies Must Understand Differences Between Fact Tables & Dimension Tables

5 Min Read
SQL server monitoring
SQL

How to Put Together an Effective SQL Server Monitoring Strategy

6 Min Read
data modeling tools to analyze
Modeling

Top 10 Powerful Data Modeling Tools For 2021

8 Min Read

SmartData Collective is one of the largest & trusted community covering technical content about Big Data, BI, Cloud, Analytics, Artificial Intelligence, IoT & more.

data-driven web design
5 Great Tips for Using Data Analytics for Website UX
Big Data
AI chatbots
AI Chatbots Can Help Retailers Convert Live Broadcast Viewers into Sales!
Chatbots

Quick Link

  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Follow US
© 2008-23 SmartData Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Go to mobile version
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Lost your password?