Amy Burrows

22 July 2015

The key to avoiding database version control problems

It’s a familiar story. Two developers are working on a database, they’re using version control, and there’s a problem. The bigger problem is, they don’t even know they have a problem.

As far as they’re concerned, they’re doing everything right. They’ve been using version control, so they can deploy the database changes they’ve been working on, confident everything is fine. Only it’s not. Because they’ve been working on the same object at the same time. And Chris has just overwritten all of Stephen’s changes.

Now if Chris and Stephen were on the ball, they would have chosen SQL Source Control. That’s because SQL Source Control 4 now includes a brand new – and remarkably useful – object locking feature.

“Object locking is straightforward to use and simple to turn on,
but it delivers big advantages.”

All you need to do is right-click the object you want to work on in the Object Explorer and select ‘Lock this object’. That’s it. If someone else works on the same object and tries to save changes to it, they’ll see a message saying that it’s locked by you.

”It’s not about enforcing rules. It’s about not treading on each other’s toes.”

Perhaps one of the biggest advantages of object locking in SQL Source Control is that anyone can unlock objects, even if they didn’t lock it themselves. So if someone goes on holiday, or is stuck in a meeting, or on a train, no problem. The team can continue working on the object without any delays.

“The locking is done on the server, so it works
independently of your source control system.”

You can try object locking out by installing the latest version of SQL Source Control, which has just been released. Download the free 28 day trial here.