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Here is my dilemma,

I am working on some SaaS using ASP.net MVC3 and SQL Server.

there will be multiple companies that user the software, each company will have multiple users. to make sure the data doesn't accidentally become visible from one company to another I have setup the databases as individual databases for each company and then the web-servers handle everything else: UI, logic etc.

I can foresee an issue already and I need to decide how best to deal with it before it becomes a real issue. Having these multiple databases, if everything goes good this year knock on wood we could potentially get 500 clients by the end of the year. Manually syncing schemas is out of the question for obvious reasons. VS2010 has a nice SQL compare script tool that will be helpful but how should I go about making sure that all the databases are of the latest version?

Problem 2

the way the system is designed it is very modular, so the clients will be able to add little widgets and things for their particular needs which will add new tables to there specific database. so in theory each database will be a little bit different. I figure the best way to handle this is to chuck all change scripts so that you have 

Core.sql 
Widget-Map.sql 
Widget-HR.sql  
etc..

am I correct in this line of thinking or is there perhaps a more practical way to attack this situation?

I have looked into Red-Gate SQL compare and I like it but, it still doesn't help in the multiple database situation.

so that being the case should I just create my own tools for updating the schemas?

if so any advice, tips, links. to make this task a little less daunting would be very appreciated.

Thank you very much for any and all assistance,

A Few Source I have already read, Migrations for Java

http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2010/07/16/code-first-development-with-entity-framework-4.aspx

ChaseAucoin
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  • From the suggestion of Mitch I am looking into database projects, so i will read http://blogs.msdn.com/b/jenss/archive/2010/08/21/alm-visual-studio-database-projects-guidance-is-out-in-the-wild.aspx and update on my progress – ChaseAucoin Feb 07 '11 at 01:43
  • Gert Drapers blog has alot of GDR R2 info: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/gertd/ – Mitch Wheat Feb 07 '11 at 02:48
  • @MitchWheat Thank you for the great links. I just setup Team Foundation server and am currently converting my database schemas to database projects, and I think it will make this extremely easy. Thanks again – ChaseAucoin Feb 07 '11 at 05:11

2 Answers2

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Outside of an ORM that does structure upgrades, the methods break down as:

  1. Compare to some DB that is considered correct. Personally I consider this risky, as I would much rather have the upgrade tied to the deploy of code, and have the db spec included somehow in the code. This is personal preference of mine.

  2. Upgrade scripts. Used to be the most popular, seems to be passing out with ORM's taking more hold. Basically for any particular release you've got an "install" script that builds from scratch, and a second set of scripts that handle all incrementals "From_x.y.z_to_a.b.c" kind of thing. Pro: Simple to understand. Con: doubled code, extremely major PITA when the 7th script of 17 fails.

  3. Dictionary or schema based upgrades. Probably the least popular in that outside of myself, I know nobody that does it :( OK, maybe that's an exaggeration. PHP Doctrine has something like this. The idea is some tool compares the schema to the existing database and brings the schema current. Pro: single schema file (or files), no doubling of code, best way to guarantee the upgrade will produce the database you expect in the shortest time. Con: (almost) nobody does it, dearth of tools.

I have a tool that does this, and ought to work on MS SQL, but I'm only testing on Postgres right now, so I won't post a link cuz I don't want to waste your time.

Ken Downs
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  • Visula Studio GDR Database projects are similiar to (3) but superior in that the schema is under source control. GDR projects can be fiddly but work well. – Mitch Wheat Feb 07 '11 at 01:34
  • @Mitch I guess I should have pointed out that your dictionary/schema would ahem, of course be under source control :) – Ken Downs Feb 07 '11 at 02:46
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In theory you could create a separate branch for each different schema version in source control, and when you need to update them, do so using the SQL Compare Pro command line direction from source control. This would require you to use SQL Source Control to save the schema in a source-controllable format that SQL Compare Pro can recognise.

Please contact support@red-gate.com if you need any help trying this out or setting this up.

David Atkinson
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  • Thank you for the response, I plan on using some of the tools from RedGate but, looking into the new 2010 database project it allows me to have a source controlled database schema inside of visual studio without a lot of fuss. – ChaseAucoin Feb 13 '11 at 19:11