Find us on social media

Client area
SQL ServerDatabaseWindows6 min read

Install SQL Server Express

Install SQL Server Express, enable remote connections, and create databases for your applications.

SQL Server Express is a free edition of Microsoft SQL Server suitable for small databases (up to 10 GB) and development workloads.

Step 1 — Download SQL Server Express

Open PowerShell and download the installer:

powershell
# Download SQL Server Express installer
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/p/?linkid=2216019" -OutFile "C:\temp\SQLServerExpress.exe"

Or download manually from the Microsoft website.

Step 2 — Run the installer

powershell
C:\temp\SQLServerExpress.exe /ACTION=Install /FEATURES=SQLEngine /INSTANCENAME=SQLEXPRESS /SQLSYSADMINACCOUNTS="BUILTIN\Administrators" /SECURITYMODE=SQL /SAPWD="YourStr0ngP@ssword!" /IACCEPTSQLSERVERLICENSETERMS /QUIET

Step 3 — Verify the installation

powershell
Get-Service MSSQL*

You should see MSSQL$SQLEXPRESS running.

Step 4 — Enable TCP/IP connections

powershell
# Import SQL Server module
Import-Module SQLPS -DisableNameChecking

# Enable TCP/IP
$smo = 'Microsoft.SqlServer.Management.Smo.'
$wmi = New-Object ($smo + 'Wmi.ManagedComputer')
$tcp = $wmi.GetSmoObject("ManagedComputer[@Name='$env:COMPUTERNAME']/ServerInstance[@Name='SQLEXPRESS']/ServerProtocol[@Name='Tcp']")
$tcp.IsEnabled = $true
$tcp.Alter()

# Restart the service
Restart-Service 'MSSQL$SQLEXPRESS'

Step 5 — Allow through firewall

powershell
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SQL Server" -Direction Inbound -Protocol TCP -LocalPort 1433 -Action Allow
New-NetFirewallRule -DisplayName "SQL Server Browser" -Direction Inbound -Protocol UDP -LocalPort 1434 -Action Allow

Step 6 — Connect with sqlcmd

powershell
sqlcmd -S .\SQLEXPRESS -U sa -P "YourStr0ngP@ssword!"

Create a test database:

sql
CREATE DATABASE MyAppDB;
GO
USE MyAppDB;
GO
CREATE TABLE Test (Id INT PRIMARY KEY, Name NVARCHAR(50));
GO

Install SSMS (optional)

SQL Server Management Studio provides a GUI:

powershell
Invoke-WebRequest -Uri "https://aka.ms/ssmsfullsetup" -OutFile "C:\temp\SSMS-Setup.exe"
C:\temp\SSMS-Setup.exe /install /quiet /norestart

Tip

For production workloads exceeding 10 GB or needing advanced features, consider SQL Server Standard or use PostgreSQL/MySQL as alternatives on your Baires Host VPS.

Was this guide helpful?
← Back to Windows Server