Oracle Database Support for Visual Studio 2010
One of the common questions I get asked when I show the database change management features that Visual Studio 2008 Database Edition (now part of VS 2008 Developer Edition) and will be part of Visual Studio 2010 Premium and Ultimate Editions is: can we use these tools against my Oracle databases.
Prior to Visual Studio 2010, the answer was no. Going forward,this is no longer the case. We build a connection layer called a Database Schema Provider (DSP) into VS 2010. This of a DSP like you with an ADO.NET provider where as long as you have the provider for the target database, you can use ADO.NET to work with the database. We’re relying on partners to come up with DSPs for non-Microsoft databases.
The first DSP that will be ready when VS 2010 ships on April 12, 2010, will be one for Oracle. Quest Software has written the DSP for Oracle and it’s called Toad Extension for Visual Studio.
If you’re not familiar with the database change management features in Visual Studio, these tools allow database developers and DBAs with offline database design, development and change management features ensure that all of their database changes are managed and tracked—in sync with their application code—making life as a Visual Studio developer much simpler for both Visual Studio developers and Oracle DBAs.
Schema design is keep in Source Code Control in Team Foundation Server and database management is made much easier with PL SQL syntax colorization, refactoring, schema compare and schema deployment tools. What's more, Toad Extension for Visual Studio will unify users' Oracle processes with your organization’s application lifecycle management (ALM) methodology–ensuring consistency, efficiency and the delivery of high-quality applications.
If you’d like to see a video of Toad Extensions work, check out the following video.
If you'll be attending Visual Studio Launch Event at DevConnections in Las Vegas next week (April 12-14), visit the Quest Software booth for more information. If you’re not attending the event, you can watch the launch live via Webcast here.
Excelsior!