This page provides a list of the switches you can use with the SQL Data Compare command line.

/AbortOnWarnings:<warning level>

Alias: /aow

Specifies that SQL Data Compare won't run a deployment if there are any serious deployment warnings. If you don't specify this switch, SQL Data Compare will ignore warnings and run the deployment.

Arguments

The default is None. If you use this switch and there are deployment warnings, exit code 61 is displayed.

/activateSerial:<serial number>

Attempts to activate SQL Data Compare.

You can specify a SQL Data Compare Professional serial number, or a serial number for bundle such as the SQL Developer Bundle:

sqldatacompare /activateSerial:123-456-789012-ABCD

If you run the switch without specifying a serial number, the Activate SQL Data Compare dialog box is displayed:

If you're using the SQL Data Compare command line on a server, you need a DLM Automation Suite license (previously called SQL Automation Pack).

For information about how to activate the DLM Automation Suite, see Activating.

/AllowIdenticalDatabases

This switch is deprecated. Instead use /Include:Identical

/Include:Identical suppresses the exit code if the two data sources are identical. If /Include:Identical is not set, SQL Data Compare returns the error code 63.

/Argfile:<argfile>

Runs a file containing an XML argument specification:

sqldatacompare /Argfile:XMLFileName.xml

For more information see Using XML to specify command line arguments.

/Backup1:<filename1>;<filename2>;...;<filenameN>

Alias: /b1

Specifies the backup to be used as the first data source (the source). You must add all of the files making up the backup set you want to compare:

sqldatacompare /Backup1:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetStaging.bak /db2:WidgetStaging

To specify more than one backup file, the file names are separated using semicolons:

sqldatacompare /Backup1:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetDev_Full.bak;
     D:\BACKUPS\WidgetDev_Diff.bak /db2:WidgetDev

/Backup2:<filename1>;<filename2>;...;<filenameN>

Alias: /b2

Specifies the backup to be used as the second data source (the target). You must add all of the files making up the backup set you want to compare:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /Backup2:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetStaging.bak

/BackupCompression:<compression level>

Alias: /bc

Compresses a backup using one of three compression levels.

Arguments

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupcompression:3

/BackupEncryption

Alias: /be

Encrypts a backup using 128-bit encryption.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupencryption /backuppassword:P@ssw0rd

/BackupFile:<file name>

Alias: /bf

The file name to use when creating a backup.

For Redgate backups, use the file extension .sqb. For native SQL Server backups, use .bak.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupfile:WidgetProductionBackup.sqb

/BackupFolder:<folder path>

Alias: /bd

The folder to use for storing backups.

If you don't use this switch, backups are stored in the folder specified in the SQL Backup options for the SQL Server instance. If you're not using SQL Backup, or no backup file locations have been set up, backups are stored in the SQL Server instance's default backup folder, for example:

C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\MSSQL11.SQL2012\MSSQL\Backup

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupfolder:C:\Backups

/BackupNumberOfThreads:<number of threads>

Alias: /bth

Uses multiple threads to speed up the backup process. SQL Backup can use up to a maximum of 32 threads.

We recommend you start with one thread fewer than the number of processors. For example, if you are using four processors, start with three threads.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupnumberofthreads:2

/BackupOverwriteExisting

Alias: /boe

Overwrites existing backup files of the same name when creating a backup.

/BackupType:<backup type>

Alias: /bt

The type of backup to perform.

Arguments

The default is Full.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backuptype:differential

/BackupPassword:<password>

Alias: /bp

The password to use when encrypting a backup.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupencryption /backuppassword:P@ssw0rd

/BackupPasswords1:<Password1>,<Password2>,...,<Password1N>

Alias: /bpsw1

Specifies the password for the first backup:

sqldatacompare /Backup1:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetStaging.bak
     /BackupPasswords1:P@ssw0rd /db2:WidgetProduction

/BackupPasswords2:<Password1>,<Password2>,...,<Password1N>

Alias: /bpsw2

Specifies the password for the second backup:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging
     /Backup2:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetProduction.bak /BackupPassword2:P@ssw0rd

/BackupProvider:<backup format>

Alias: /bpr

The format of the backup file to create when backing up the target database.

Arguments

The default is SQB.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup /backupprovider:native

/BackupSet1:<backupset>

Alias: /bks1

If you are comparing a backup set that contains multiple files, use the /BackupSet1 switch to specify the files which make up the first backup set, and use the /BackupSet2 switches to specify the files which make up the second:

sqldatacompare /Backup1:"D:\MSSQL\BACKUP\WidgetDev.bak"
     /BackupSet1:"2008-09-23 Full Backup" /db2:WidgetLive

If the backup set switches are not specified, SQL Data Compare uses the latest backup set.

To specify more than one backup file, the file names are separated using semicolons.

sqldatacompare /Backup1:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetDev_Full.bak;
     "D:\BACKUPS\WidgetDev_Diff.bak" /db2:WidgetDevlopment

For encrypted backups that have been created using SQL Backup, use the /BackupPasswords1 and /BackupPasswords2 switches to specify the passwords; when there's more than one password, the passwords are separated using semicolons.

sqldatacompare /Backup1:D:\BACKUPS\WidgetDev.sqb /BackupPassword1:Pa$$w0rd
     /db2:WidgetLive

/BackupSet2:<backupset>

Alias: /bks2

Specifies which backup set to use for the second backup:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetProduction /BackupSet2:"2008-09-23 Full Backup"

/CaseSensitive

This switch is deprecated. Instead use /Options:CaseSensitiveObjectDefinition

/Columns

This switch is deprecated. Instead use /IncludeColumns and /ExcludeColumns

/ComparisonKeys:<table or view name as regular expression>:<index name>

Alias: /ck

Specifies a unique index to be used to identify rows for comparison.

The name of the table or view is specified using a regular expression - you don't have to specify fully-qualified names. We recommended you use a regular expression which matches only one table or view:

sqldatacompare /Database1:WidgetStaging /Database2:WidgetProduction
     /IncludeColumns:[WidgetPrices]:Price
     /ComparisonKeys:[WidgetPrices]:PK_WidgetPrices

To specify a comparison key that's not an index, use the GUI to set up and save a project with the settings you require. You can then use that project from the command line with the /Project switch.

For more information on using the GUI to set comparison keys, see Selecting the comparison key, under Selecting tables and views.

/Database1:<database1>

Alias: /db1

Specifies a database to use as the source:

sqldatacompare /Database1:WidgetStaging /Database2:WidgetProduction

/Database2:<database2>

Alias: /db2

Specifies a database to use as the source:

sqldatacompare /Database1:WidgetStaging /Database2:WidgetProduction

/empty2

Use this as the target data source to make a script that creates the source database data. You can use this script with SQL Packager 8.

For example, you want to package the schema and data of a database, WidgetStaging, so that when the package is run it will create a copy of the database schema and data. You've already made a script of the schema using SQL Compare, and now you want to make a script of the data.

sqldatacompare /Server1:MyServer\SQL2014 /Database1:WidgetStaging /empty2 /ScriptFile:"C:\Scripts\WidgetStagingData.sql"

/Exclude:<object type>:<regular expression>

Arguments:

To specify the list of objects to exclude, use the /exclude switch:

sqldatacompare /db1:Customers1 /db2:Customers2 /Exclude:table

/Exclude:table specifies that you don't want to compare tables; you only want to compare other objects such as views, stored procedures, etc.

To specify more than one object or object type type for exclusion use multiple /Exclude switches. For example, to exclude only tables and views:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /Exclude:table:WidgetReferences /Exclude:view

For a more detailed example of how to use the /include and /exclude switches, see Example: selecting tables with unrelated names.

/ExcludeColumns:<table or view name>:<regular expression>

Alias: /ec

Specifies which columns within a table or view are excluded from deployment.

Table or view names are matched using a regular expression so you don't have to specify fully-qualified names. However, it doesn't usually make sense to supply a regular expression that matches more than one table or view. Multiple column names should be specified as a comma-separated list.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /ExcludeColumns:WidgetReferences:WidgetName

/Export:<directory>

Alias: /e

Exports the comparison results to the specified directory as a .csv file.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /Export:C:\WidgetResults

Note that the file created is always called Summary.csv

You specify the directory in which the file is created.

/ExportIdenticalTables

This switch is deprecated. Instead use /Include:Identical

/Force

Alias: /f

This forces the overwriting of any output files that already exist. If this switch isn't used and a file of the same name already exists, the program will exit with the exit code indicating an IO error.

/IgnoreParserErrors

If SQL Data Compare encounters any high level errors when parsing a scripts folder, it will exit with an error code of 62.

Use /ignoreParserErrors to force SQL Data Compare to continue without exiting.

/Include:<object type>:<regular expression>

Arguments:

This switch is used to specify the list of objects to include. Use an /Include switch for each object that you want to compare. However, this can be unwieldy if there's a long list. Instead, use the pipe character ( | ) to separate the table names:

sqldatacompare /db1:Customers1 /db2:Customers2 /Include:table
     /Include:table:\[Product\]^|Customer^|Order^|Invoice

/Include:Identical suppresses the exit code if the two data sources are identical. If /Include:Identical is not set, SQL Data Compare returns the error code 63.

For a more detailed example of how to use the /include switch, see: Example: selecting tables with unrelated names

/IncludeAdditional

This switch is deprecated. Instead use /Include:Additional

/IncludeColumns

Alias: /ic

Specifies which columns within a table or view are included in the deployment.

Table or view names are matched using a regular expression so you don't have to specify fully-qualified names. However, it doesn't usually make sense to supply a regular expression that matches more than one table or view. Specify multiple column names as a comma-separated list.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /IncludeColumns:WidgetReferences:WidgetName

/LogLevel:<level>

Alias: /log

Creates a log file with a specified minimum log level.

Log files collect information about the application while you're using it. These files are useful to us if you've encountered a problem. For more information, see Logging and log files.

Arguments

The default is None.

For example:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /makeScripts:"D:\Scripts Folder" /logLevel:Verbose

/MakeBackup

Backs up the target database using Redgate SQL Backup Pro or SQL Server native.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /sync /makebackup

/MakeScripts:<folder>

Alias: /mkscr

Creates a scripts folder from the first (source) data source.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging
     /MakeScripts:"C:\Scripts Folders\Widget staging scripts"

If the folder already exists, an error will occur. To merge scripts into an existing scripts folder, compare them with that folder and use the /synchronize switch:

sqldatacompare /scr1:"C:\Scripts Folders\Widget dev scripts"
     /scr2:"C:\Scripts Folders\Widget staging scripts" /Synchronize

/MaxTransactionSizeMB:<size>

Alias: /mts

The maximum size of transactions/batches in the deployment script in megabytes.

Use this switch to split the deployment script into transactions/batches which are a maximum size. Use the DontUseTransactions option to switch between transactions and batches.

/Options:<option1>,<option2>,<option3>

Alias: /o

Applies the project configuration options used during comparison or deployment:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /Options:Default,IgnoreWhiteSpace

For a detailed list of these options, see Options used in the command line.

/Out:<FileName>

Redirects console output to the specified file:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /Out:C:\output file

/OutputProject:<FileName>

Alias: /outpr

Writes the settings used for the comparison to the specified SQL Data Compare project file:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /Options:Default,IgnoreWhiteSpace /OutputProject:"C:\WidgetProject.scp"

This also generates a SQL Data Compare project file. These files end with a .scp extension. If the file already exists an error will occur, unless you've also used the /force switch.

/OutputWidth:<columns>

Forces the width of console output.

This can be used to ensure that database object names etc are not truncated, and that SQL script lines are not wrapped or broken. This is particularly useful when redirecting output to a file as it allows you to overcome the limitations of the default console width of 80 characters.

/Password1:<password1>

Alias: /p1

The password for the first database (source).

You must also provide a username. If you don't specify a username and password combination, integrated security is used:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /UserName1:User1 /Password1:P@ssw0rd
     /db2:WidgetProduction /UserName2:User2 /Password2:Pa$$w0rd

/Password2:<password2>

Alias: /p2

The password for the second database.

/Project

Alias: /pr

Uses a SQL Data Compare project (.scp) file for the comparison.

To use a project you have saved as "widgets.scp" from the command line:

sqldatacompare /Project:"C:\SQLCompare\Projects\Widgets.scp"

/SyncScriptEncoding

Alias: /senc

Arguments:

Specifies the character encoding used when writing the SQL script file. The default is UTF8.

For example:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /MakeScripts: D:\Scripts Folder
     /SyncScriptEncoding:ASCII

/ScriptFile:<scriptfile>

Alias: /sf

Generates a SQL script to migrate the changes which can be executed at a later time. If the file already exists an error will occur, unless you use the /Force switch:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /ScriptFile: "C:\Scripts Folder\WidgetSyncScript.sql"

/Scriptfile can be used when the target (/db2, /scr2, /sn2) is a database, a snapshot, or a scripts folder.

If the target is a snapshot or a scripts folder, the generated script modifies a database with the schema represented by that snapshot or scripts folder.

/Scripts1:<folder>

Alias: /scr1

Specifies the script folder to use as the first data source:

sqldatacompare /Scripts1:"C:\Scripts Folder\WidgetStagingScript"
     /db2:WidgetProduction

/Scripts2:<folder>

Alias: /scr2

Specifies the script folder to use as the second data source.

/Server1:<server1>

Alias: /s1

Specifies the server on which the first (/db1:) data source is located. If an explicit path is not specified, it defaults to Local.

sqldatacompare /Server1:Widget_Server\SQL2008 /db1:WidgetStaging
     /db2:WidgetProduction

/Server2:<server2>

Alias: /s2

Specifies the server on which the second (/db2:) data source is located. If an explicit path isn't specified, it defaults to Local.

/ShowWarnings

Alias: /warn

Displays any warnings that apply to the deployment.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction /showWarnings

/Synchronize

Alias: /sync

Deploys the data after comparison.

The target (for example, /db2) is modified; the source (for example, /db1) isn't modified:

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /db2:WidgetProduction
     /Synchronize

/UserName1:<username1>

Alias: /u1

The username for the first database.

If no username is specified, integrated security is used.

sqldatacompare /db1:WidgetStaging /UserName1:User1 /Password1:P@ssw0rd
     /db2:WidgetProduction /UserName2:User2 /Password2:Pa$$w0rd

/UserName2:<username2>

Alias: /u2

The username for the second database.

If no username is specified, integrated security is used.