Updating the database structure

  • We have a large website of around 100,000 users. The site is in english.

    We are trying to 1 more language to the site, ie: users can browse the website either in English or Arabic.

    So, in our development enviroment (Our local mirror of the database which we work on), we added

    extra fields in each table carrying the arabic data.

    The problem now is how to export this new database structure to the host so that it can be available online

    with no data loss keeping in mind that the 2 databases (Our local development database & the other online one) are inconsistent.

    Do we have to re-do all those changes manually once again @ the online database, or is there a way to preserve the

    online data & @ the same time have the new tables structure.

  • What version of SQL Server are you using? Also, you say you are changing the structure, so are you just adding new columns to a table?

  • I am using SQL Server 2000.

    By "Changing the structure", I mean that we are adding new columns to each table. These new columns will carry the arabic data.

  • You can add new columns to a replicated table by using the sp_repladdcolumn system stored procedure (see BOL for details). You could then update the production server with the info from your test server via a query. You would need to add a Linked server, also.

  • Hello Zizo!

    If I have understood it correct you have already filled the new column with arabic data on your Development server and you watn to add these columns as well as the data into production?

    In that case you could copy your development DB into production (With another name of course), maybe using Backup/Restore? You can add the columns (NULLABLE) to your Production DB (the original one) and the you could do an UPDATE statement in your original DB with a join to the same table in the DB you copied from Development.

    If you do not want to copy your Dev. DB into production you could probably solve it with directly UPDATE your Prod. DB with joining the corresponding tables on Dev. server using Linked servers...

    Regards, Hans!

    Replication in this case seems to be abit excessive.

  • I think you have to change your Collation DB to use Arabic .. so use ..

    SQL_Latin1_General_Cp1256_CI_AS

    and make fields nvarchar (unicode) ...

    and you can use DTS to transer table to another new table .. and then update the old table with the value in the new table..

    note nake this first in a local copy of your DB and if it works ... then go ahead..

    I hope this helps you.

    Alamir Mohamed

    Alamir_mohamed@yahoo.com


    Alamir Mohamed
    Alamir_mohamed@yahoo.com

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