Building a Node.js Server with Microsoft SQL Database Integration

In this blog, we will explore the process of building a Node.js server with SQL database integration. We will start from the basics of setting up a Node.js project and gradually progress towards writing code that connects to an SQL database and retrieves data. We will also cover how to run the server using nodemon for a smoother development experience.

Step 1: Setting up the Project

To begin, make sure you have Node.js and npm installed on your machine. Create a new project folder and open the terminal or command prompt inside it.

Initialize a new Node.js project by running this command in project folder.

npm init

Fill in the required information prompted by npm init to generate a package.json file, which holds project metadata and dependencies. "You can skip the filling information part by just click Enter in all fields so that it takes default values"

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Step 2: Installing Dependencies

To create a Node.js server and connect to an SQL database, we need to install the required dependencies.

Run the following command to install the necessary dependencies:

npm install express mssql

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Step 3: Writing the Code

In your code editor, create a new file (e.g., server.js) and add the following code:

const express = require('express');
const sql = require('mssql');

const config = {
  // SQL Server configuration details
};

const app = express();

app.get('/', function (req, res) {
  sql.connect(config, function (err) {
    // Connection error handling

    const request = new sql.Request();
    request.query('SELECT * FROM YourTableName', function (err, result) {
      // Query execution and error handling

      const tableData = result.recordset;
      res.json(tableData); // Send the data as a JSON response

      sql.close(); // Close the connection when done
    });
  });
});

app.listen(5000, function () {
  console.log('Server is running on http://localhost:5000');
});

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Step 4: Running the Server with Nodemon
Nodemon is a utility that automatically restarts the server whenever a file is modified. It helps streamline the development process.

Install nodemon globally by running the following command:

npm install -g nodemon

Start the server using nodemon with the following command:

nodemon server.js

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Conclusion:
In this blog, we covered the process of building a Node.js server with SQL database integration. We started by setting up a Node.js project and installing the necessary dependencies. Then, we wrote code to connect to an SQL database, execute queries, and retrieve data. Finally, we used nodemon to automatically restart the server during development. Now, you can expand on this foundation and create more sophisticated server applications with database interactions.

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