How to Download SQL Express 2018
SQL Express 2018 is a free edition of SQL Server that is ideal for learning and building desktop and small server data-driven applications. It is also a good choice for independent software vendors, developers, and hobbyists who need a lightweight and reliable database engine. In this article, we will show you how to download and install SQL Express 2018 on your Windows machine.
What is SQL Express 2018?
SQL Express 2018 is a version of SQL Server that was released in October 2017 along with other editions of SQL Server 2017. It is based on the same core database engine as the other editions, but it has some features and limitations that make it suitable for certain scenarios.
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Features of SQL Express 2018
Some of the features that SQL Express 2018 offers are:
Support for Windows and Linux operating systems
Support for up to 10 GB of database size per instance
Support for up to four cores and one socket of compute capacity per instance
Support for up to 1.4 GB of memory per instance
Support for basic availability groups with two nodes
Support for database snapshots, change tracking, merge replication, and transactional replication as a subscriber
Support for full-text search, CLR integration, import/export wizard, database mail, UTF-8 encoding, Java runtime integration, Polybase compute node, and accelerated database recovery
Support for some intelligent database features such as row mode memory grant feedback and approximate count distinct
Limitations of SQL Express 2018
Some of the limitations that SQL Express 2018 has are:
No support for high availability and disaster recovery configurations such as always on availability groups, failover cluster instances, log shipping, and mirroring
No support for encryption and compression features such as transparent data encryption, backup compression, columnstore compression, and data compression
No support for performance tuning and management tools such as resource governor, in-memory OLTP, in-memory columnstore, auditing, fine-grained auditing, dynamic data masking, always encrypted with secure enclaves, and automatic tuning
No support for advanced data integration and analysis features such as integration services, master data services, data warehouse, analysis services, reporting services, business intelligence clients, spatial and location services, and additional database services
No support for SQL Server agent, dedicated admin connection, PowerShell SMO support, or contained databases
Comparison of SQL Express 2018 with other editions
The following table summarizes the main differences between SQL Express 2018 and other editions of SQL Server:
EditionMaximum compute capacity (per instance)Maximum memory (per instance)Maximum database size (per instance)In-memory OLTPIn-memory columnstorePolybase compute nodeTransparent data encryption
EnterpriseOS max.OS max.524 PBYesYesYesYes
StandardLesser of 4 sockets or 24 cores128 GB524 PBNoNoNoNo
WebLesser of 4 sockets or 16 cores64 GB524 PBNoNoNoNo
ExpressLesser of 1 socket or 4 cores1.4 GB10 GBNoNoYes (limited)No
DeveloperOS max.OS max.524 PBYes (limited)<
[assistant](#message) Yes (limited)
Yes (limited)
No
How to get the installation media for SQL Express 2018
To install SQL Express 2018, you need to download the installation media from the Microsoft website. There are two ways to do this:
Download link for SQL Express 2018
The easiest way to download SQL Express 2018 is to use the direct download link provided by Microsoft. You can find the link here: . This will download a file named SQLEXPR_x64_ENU.exe, which is about 300 MB in size. This file contains the SQL Server Database Engine and the SQL Server Management Studio, which is a graphical tool for managing and querying SQL Server databases.
Alternative ways to download SQL Express 2018
If you want to download other components of SQL Server, such as the command-line tools, the local database runtime, or the advanced services, you can use the following alternative ways to download SQL Express 2018:
You can use the , which is a graphical interface that allows you to choose which features and components you want to install. You can launch the installation center by running the SQLEXPR_x64_ENU.exe file and choosing the New SQL Server stand-alone installation or add features to an existing installation option. This will download the required files from the internet and install them on your machine.
You can use the . This will download a file named SQLEXPRADV_x64_ENU.exe, which is about 1.5 GB in size. You can run this file to start the installation process.
You can use the . This will download a file named SQLEXPRESSADV_x64_ENU.iso, which is about 2.5 GB in size. You can mount this file as a virtual drive or burn it to a DVD and run the setup.exe file to start the installation process.
How to install SQL Express 2018 using the graphical user interface
In this section, we will show you how to install SQL Express 2018 using the graphical user interface of the installation center. We assume that you have downloaded the SQLEXPR_x64_ENU.exe file and have an internet connection.
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how to install and configure SQL Server Express Edition on Windows
Prerequisites for installation
Before you install SQL Express 2018, you need to make sure that your machine meets the following requirements:
You have a 64-bit processor with a minimum speed of 1.4 GHz
You have at least 4 GB of RAM and 6 GB of free disk space
You have Windows 10, Windows 8.1, Windows 8, Windows 7 Service Pack 1, or Windows Server 2016, 2012 R2, 2012, or 2008 R2 Service Pack 1 as your operating system
You have the .NET Framework 4.6 or higher installed on your machine
You have administrator privileges on your machine
Step-by-step installation procedure
Follow these steps to install SQL Express 2018 using the graphical user interface:
Double-click the SQLEXPR_x64_ENU.exe file to launch the installation center.
On the SQL Server Installation Center window, click on the New SQL Server stand-alone installation or add features to an existing installation option.
On the Product Key window, select the Specify a free edition option and choose Express from the drop-down list. Click Next.
On the License Terms window, check the I accept the license terms box and click Next.
On the Microsoft Update window, check the Use Microsoft Update to check for updates (recommended) box and click Next.
On the Install Rules window, wait for the rules to be checked and click Next.
On the Feature Selection window, check the boxes for Database Engine Services and SQL Server Management Studio. You can also choose other features if you want. Click Next.
On the Instance Configuration window, choose whether you want to install a default instance or a named instance. A default instance is named MSSQLSERVER and can be accessed without specifying an instance name. A named instance is identified by a custom name that you provide and can be accessed by specifying the instance name. For this example, we will choose a default instance. Click Next.
On the Server Configuration window, specify the service accounts and startup types for the SQL Server services. You can use the default values or change them according to your preferences. Click Next.
On the Database Engine Configuration window, choose the authentication mode for accessing the SQL Server database engine. You can choose between Windows authentication mode, which uses your Windows credentials, or Mixed Mode (SQL Server authentication and Windows authentication), which allows you to create SQL Server logins with passwords. For this example, we will choose mixed mode and provide a password for the system administrator (sa) account. You can also specify other Windows users or groups that you want to grant administrative privileges to. Click Add Current User to add yourself as an administrator. Click Data Directories to specify the locations for the system, user, tempdb, and backup databases. You can use the default values or change them according to your preferences. Click Next.
On the Ready to Install window, review the summary of the features and components that will be installed and click Install.
On the Installation Progress window, wait for the installation to complete and click Close.
On the Complete window, click Close.
Congratulations! You have successfully installed SQL Express 2018 on your machine. You can now use the SQL Server Management Studio to connect to your SQL Server instance and start creating and managing databases.
Conclusion
In this article, we have shown you how to download and install SQL Express 2018 on your Windows machine. SQL Express 2018 is a free edition of SQL Server that is ideal for learning and building desktop and small server data-driven applications. It has some features and limitations that make it suitable for certain scenarios. We have also compared SQL Express 2018 with other editions of SQL Server and explained the differences in terms of compute capacity, memory, database size, and supported features. We hope you have found this article helpful and informative.
FAQs
Here are some frequently asked questions about SQL Express 2018:
Q: How can I update SQL Express 2018 to the latest version?
A: You can use the to download and install the latest cumulative updates and service packs for SQL Express 2018. You can also use the Windows Update service to automatically receive updates for SQL Express 2018.
Q: How can I uninstall SQL Express 2018 from my machine?
A: You can use the Control Panel to uninstall SQL Express 2018 from your machine. Go to Programs and Features, select Microsoft SQL Server 2017 (64-bit), and click Uninstall/Change. Follow the instructions on the screen to remove SQL Express 2018 and its components from your machine.
Q: How can I connect to SQL Express 2018 from another machine?
A: You can use the SQL Server Management Studio or any other client tool that supports SQL Server to connect to SQL Express 2018 from another machine. You need to know the name of your SQL Server instance, which is either MSSQLSERVER for a default instance or a custom name for a named instance. You also need to know the authentication mode and credentials that you have configured for your SQL Server instance. You can use the following format to specify the server name: <computer_name>\<instance_name>. For example, if your computer name is LAPTOP-123 and your instance name is SQLEXPRESS, you can use LAPTOP-123\SQLEXPRESS as the server name.
Q: How can I backup and restore databases in SQL Express 2018?
A: You can use the SQL Server Management Studio or any other client tool that supports SQL Server to backup and restore databases in SQL Express 2018. You can use the Backup Database and Restore Database dialogs or commands to perform these operations. You can also use Transact-SQL statements such as BACKUP DATABASE and RESTORE DATABASE to backup and restore databases in SQL Express 2018.
Q: How can I migrate databases from other editions of SQL Server to SQL Express 2018?
A: You can use the , which is a tool that helps you copy data from one data source to another using various formats such as flat files, Excel files, or ODBC sources.
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