Microsoft has made available many free downloadable apps for SQL Server, Azure SQL Database, and/or Azure Synapse Analytics (formerly Azure SQL Data Warehouse), including:
- SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)
- Azure Data Studio (formerly SQL Operations Studio)
- SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT)
- SQL Server ODBC Driver
- Transaction Log Architecture and Management
- SQL Server Troubleshooting documentation
- SQL Server PowerShell cmdlets such as Invoke-Sqlcmd
- SQL Server Configuration Manager
- Data Migration Assistant (DMA)
- SQL Server documentation at GitHub
- Database Engine Tuning Advisor and dta utility – analyzes a workload or SQL script and recommends data server structures to improve performance
- mssql-cli – a command-line tool for querying SQL Server on Windows, macOS, or Linux
- SqlCmd utility and Microsoft Command Line Utilities
- Database Console Commands (DBCC)
- DBCC TRACEON Trace Flags
- Extended Events – replacement for deprecated SQL Server Profiler and SQL Trace
- SQL Server Diagnostic Connection for Database Administrators (DAC)
- mssql-scripter – multi-platform command line tools for SQL Server scripting
- TableDiff utility – a row by row data comparison of two tables
- Diagnostic Connection or Dedicated Administrator Connection (DAC)
- SqlLogShip – a command line tool for log shipping operations
- SqlLocalDB – a command line tool for SQL Server Express LocalDB
- SqlPackage – a command-line tool for importing and exporting databases and snapshots from SQL Server or Azure SQL databases
- mssql-conf – configure SQL Server on Linux
- RML Utilities for SQL Server – a set of tools and processes to run load tests
- Database Experimentation Assistant (DEA) – an A/B testing solution for SQL Server upgrades
- Distributed Replay – replay a workload like SQL Server Profiler but from multiple computers for SQL Server or Azure SQL databases.
A list of most of these SQL tools and utilities can be found at the SQL tools overview and command prompt utilities pages.