Connect to LocalDB in Visual Studio Server Explorer

Steps to connect LocalDB to Visual Studio Server Explorer

1 Open command prompt
2 Run SqlLocalDB.exe start v11.0
3 Run SqlLocalDB.exe info v11.0
4 Copy the Instance pipe name that starts with np:…
5 In Visual Studio select TOOLS > Connect to Database…
6 For Server Name enter (localdb)\v11.0. If it didn’t work, use the Instance pipe name that you copied earlier. You can also use this to connect with SQL Management Studio.
7 Select the database on next dropdown list
8 Click OK

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1 Data Source: Microsoft SQL Server (SqlClient)
2 Server name: (localdb)\MSSQLLocalDB
3 Log on to the server: Use Windows Authentication