Are you trying to import a bacpac file in SQL server management studio? We can help you.

A bacpac file is a ZIP file with an extension of bacpac which contains the metadata and data from an SQL Server database.

At Bobcares, we often receive requests for import bacpac file as part of our Server Management Services and remote server monitoring.

Today, let’s see how our Support Engineers import bacpac file in the SQL server management studio.

How to import bacpac file in SQL server management studio?

A bacpac file is a ZIP file with an extension of bacpac containing the metadata and data from an SQL Server database. A bacpac file which is stored in Azure Blob storage or in local storage. We cannot directly restore this type of file, and we follow a few steps to import it into our database.

1. Firstly we create a new database to import the Azure database.

2. Then we open SSMS and connect to the local instance of MSSQL.

3. Right-click on the Databases and click Import Data-tier Application.

4. Click Next on the welcome screen of the import wizard.

5. Then we select the path to the downloaded bacpac file. We select the option Import from local disk and click Browse. Then we navigate to the location to locate the.bacpac file. Then click Next.

6. After that, we enter the name of the database and define a location for the data and log files. Then click Next.

7. Then we review the Summary and ensure all the details are correct.

8. The time taken for the import process depends on the size of the file. Once the process finished, we click Close.

Error in Importing the Bacpac File

Recently one of our customers had approached us telling that he was not able to import the bacpac file and received the below error.

Could not load schema from packge (Microsoft.SqlServer.Dac)
Additional Information: Internal Error. The database platform service with type Microsoft.Data.Tools.Schema.SqlAzureDatabaseSchemaProvider is not valid. You must make sure the service is loaded, or you must provide the full type name of a valid database platform service (Microsoft.Data.Tools.Schema.Sql)

The error shows when SSMS was not at the current version. We make sure that SSMS  in the latest version. Our Support Engineers fixed the problem by updating the current version to the latest version.

[Need any assistance importing SQL backups? We’ll help you]

Conclusion

In short, a bacpac file is a ZIP file that contains the metadata and data from an SQL Server database. Today, we saw how our Support Engineers import bacpac file in SSMS and fix the errors.