While I can’t say I have to do it all that often, there are occasional times when I need to test connectivity from a machine back to SQL. The question then comes up, how to easily get that done? Installing SQL tools is the most obvious, but not always handy and I really don’t want to be installing SQL tools on every machine I do this from. The easy answer is to use a UDL file.

1. Download Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer Tool
2. Connectivity Tool Microsoft Download
3. Exchange Test Connectivity Tool
4. Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer

How do I use a UDL file?

While you can use a UDL file to test various connectivity scenarios, as an System Center Configuration Manager admin I’m mostly concerned with connections back to the SQL database so I set it up on the provider tab to use the “Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL.”

Here are 20 of the best free tools for monitoring devices, services, ports or protocols and analyzing traffic on your network. This list is intended to supplement 101 Free SysAdmin Tools. Even if you may have heard of some of these tools before, I’m confident that you’ll find a gem or two. If you’re running Windows Vista, this tool can verify whether your existing Internet router supports advanced features, such as improved download speeds. Microsoft Internet Connectivity. The Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer tool is available at https://testconnectivity.microsoft.com.

The next step is to fill out the necessary information on the connection tab.

Test the connection, and troubleshoot as necessary if it fails to connect.

Nuance pdf converter 8.2. I’m sure you can do all kinds of fancy other things with the tool. heck, we only used two of the four tabs, but I’m an SCCM guy and not a SQL guru so I leave that for other folks to blog about.

Where do I get this cool UDL file?

I saved the best for last. This cool tool… you already have it. It is part of every windows OS that I have used. Create a simple text file, rename the extension from TXT to UDL, and TADA… you got yourself a handy utility. Delete the file when you are done to clean-up after yourself.

Credit goes to Faruk Celik for clueing me into this from his blog post: http://blogs.msdn.com/b/farukcelik/archive/2007/12/31/basics-first-udl-test.aspx

The Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer (MCA) is a diagnostics tool for troubleshooting and testing connectivity to several Microsoft messaging products from a client machine on an organization's network.

Download Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer Tool

MCA checks common connectivity symptoms from a local Windows machine behind an organization's firewall by replicating different logon and mail flow processes. MCA stores results in a Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) file that team members in an IT department can share to troubleshoot an issue. MCA supports connection tests for Outlook, Office 365 and Skype for Business.

Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer tests and features

MCA runs diagnostic tests for several scenarios:

• 'I can't log on with Office Outlook.'
• 'I can't send or receive email on my mobile device.'
• 'I can't log on to Lync on my mobile device or the Lync Windows Store App.'
• 'I can't send or receive email from Outlook (Office 365 only).'
• 'I can't view free/busy information of another user.'
• 'I am experiencing other problems with Outlook (English Only).'
• 'I can't set up Federation with Office 365, Azure or other services that use Azure Active Directory.'

For example, an enterprise that uses Exchange Online as its messaging platform would run the 'I can't send or receive email from Outlook (Office 365 only)' test for users with email problems in Outlook. For this issue, MCA checks both inbound and outbound Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP) mail flow and tests connectivity to the domain and Office 365 servers.

Microsoft released version 1.0 of MCA in February 2013 with tests for the first five scenarios, adding two additional tests in subsequent versions. Microsoft released the latest version, 2.6, in October 2014.

Connectivity Tool Microsoft Download

Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer vs. Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyzer

Exchange Test Connectivity Tool

Microsoft provides a similar diagnostic tool called Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyzer.

Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer

Microsoft Remote Connectivity Analyzer -- originally released as Exchange Server Remote Connectivity Analyzer -- is a more comprehensive collection of connectivity testing tools. The main difference is the Remote Connectivity Analyzer runs outside the organization's firewall from a Microsoft web-based application. The Remote Connectivity Analyzer also presents its troubleshooting options in a tabbed menu layout rather than a wizard interface.

The Remote Connectivity Analyzer tests various functions unavailable in the Microsoft Connectivity Analyzer, such as checking that the correct server ports respond to outside queries and remote access authorization works as expected.