shanescott.sql-exporter 1.0.3

SqlExporter – Build Guide

This document explains how the SqlExporter tool was designed and built so future maintainers can understand and extend it.

🎯 Goal

We wanted a reusable command-line tool to:

• Script tables, views, and stored procedures from SQL Server
• Export them as .sql files into a project’s SQL folder
• Work across multiple repos without duplicating code
• Integrate smoothly into VS Code and CI/CD workflows

🛠️ Technology Choices

• .NET 9 Console App
  Modern C# features, easy to distribute as a .NET tool.

• SMO (SQL Server Management Objects)
  Provides reliable scripting of SQL Server objects, including indexes, constraints, and triggers.

• Configuration System
  Supports JSON files (sqlexporter.json), environment variables, and CLI overrides.

• .NET Tool Packaging
  Packaged as a NuGet .nupkg with <PackAsTool> for local or global installation.

⚙️ Core Components

Program.cs

• Parses CLI options (--server, --database, --auth, etc.).
• Loads configuration (JSON + env vars + CLI overrides).
• Validates required fields.
• Connects to SQL Server with Microsoft.Data.SqlClient.
• Uses Scripter from SMO to export:
  • Tables → SQL/Tables
  • Views → SQL/Views
  • Stored Procedures → SQL/StoredProcedures
• Writes UTF-8 .sql files with GO terminators.

ExportSettings.cs

A simple settings class:

class ExportSettings
{
    public string Server { get; set; }
    public string Database { get; set; }
    public string Auth { get; set; }
    public string User { get; set; }
    public string Password { get; set; }
    public bool Encrypt { get; set; } = true;
    public bool TrustServerCertificate { get; set; } = true;
    public string OutputRoot { get; set; } = "./SQL";
}