Mapping drive to MSSQL table

January 30, 2007 7:08 AM

Is there a way of mapping a Virtual Drive letter or a share to an MSSQL database?

In windows, Is it possible to create a mapped drive or a shared folder, where the files are actually held in an MSSQL (or equivalant) database? i.e. If I save a file called "new file.txt" on Z:\, it actually saves the file as a new row in an SQL table.

posted by seanyboy to computers & internet (6 comments total)

WinFS?
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 7:11 AM on January 30, 2007

Yeah, too bad WinFS got shelved or rather "moved into SQL Server Katmai" (the next SQL Server version), since that would have done what you wanted and more. One thing I can tell you for sure is that there is no built in way to do this.

IIRC, there was a command line tool in the SQL Server 2000 resource kit which allows you to import files into image (i.e. binary data) columns which you could probably use as a workaround.
posted by Herr Fahrstuhl at 8:04 AM on January 30, 2007

FWIW, under Linux, one would use or write a plug-in for FUSE.
posted by cmiller at 8:16 AM on January 30, 2007

FUSE has been ported to Mac OS X too.

I've written a few FUSE modules for work. They were surprisingly easy to develop and very solid.
posted by stungeye at 9:36 AM on January 30, 2007

nth WinFS. Apart from Monad it was truly one of the most exciting features in Vista but it was pushed off to unknown future date.

Supposedly, WinFS coupled with MSSQL will replace the typical file server/client role we've all come to know and love. I'm skeptical, but without actual product to work with it it's anyone's guess at this point.

(Although, and take it anyway you'd like, Gartner seems pretty optimistic that we'll see it either late this year, or very early in 2008.)
posted by purephase at 12:55 PM on January 30, 2007

You might look into whether there are any WebDAV options to SQL server.
posted by Good Brain at 7:23 PM on January 30, 2007