I've inherited an app that is written in Access 2007 (?) and has linked tables to SQL Server Express .
I'm used to using ODBC drivers to link to Oracle tables on a Windows server running Oracle, but not SQL Server.
I would like to mimic the environment on my desktop that the client has on theirs. I've copied the data using export and that should work, but for my own gratification, I would like to get up to speed on SQL Server Express. This might be the perfect opportunity.
What steps to I need to take to load SQL Server Express?
Is there a way I can export or backup the clients data and import it to my Access mdb?
What's the best way to accomplish this?
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=29062
The link above is for 2012, but of course there are other versions. Be sure to use the one that is most relevant for you.
Once you do that, the easiest way to move a database is to Backup the database on the Source, and then Restore the database at your machine. You can do that with TSQL, or you can use SQL Server Management Studio. You can install SSMS from here:
http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=7593
One the source machine, you'd need to create a Backup database, which will create a single file (usually with the .bak extension). Grab that file, and move it over to your machine, and then Restore it to your local SSE install. This article has some further information on the Backup/Restore method:
http://www.experts-exchange.com/Microsoft/Development/MS-SQL-Server/A_10138-How-to-upgrade-a-MSSQL-database-from-one-version-to-another.html
Once you do that, you'll have an exact copy of the database from your source.