We are testing various installation modules that alter the schema of our SQL Server database. They can change the number of columns (add, delete) and change the size of others. They can also add and drop tables.
Of course we try this out on a dev instance of the database. The actual database is very simple at this stage, just a single database file and its transaction log. It may well get considerably more complicated later on but at present it's a pretty basic database. Sometimes the installation goes pair shaped and I was asked if there was a better way that restoring a backup quickly. I suggested detaching the database and then using copies of the mdb and ldf files and storing them elsewhere. After testing an installation that modifies the database schema that goes pair shaped, use the copied files and restore by attaching them. One can then repeat the installations and skip the problematic install module. The files copies appear at this stage to go faster than a backup and restore. I would not use this approach without doing a verified backup first. The exercise is to actually test these installation modules some of which are released as alpha so there is a risk of them failing. Once we have them right, we can apply them to test then prod. Is this a reasonable approach for testing installation modules against a development database? Regards Peter Maddin
