Documentation

Smart Export for SSMS is a productivity suite for Microsoft SQL Server. Tagline: Beautiful Excel exports from SSMS in one click.

SQLToExcel includes three complementary tools that share the same installer and license:

Smart Export — common use cases

• Daily report exports
• Sending formatted Excel files to business stakeholders
• Post-query workflows — copy as SQL, send email, generate scripts
• Import existing Excel, CSV, or HTML files and re-export without a database connection

Smart Update — common use cases

• Quick data fixes without writing manual UPDATE statements
• Bulk-inserting rows from a query result
• Reviewing and editing lookup tables inline
• Generating WHERE / IN / MERGE scripts from selected rows

Smart Bulk SQL — common use cases

• Running migration or seed scripts across many .sql files
• Deploying schema changes to staging before production
• Scheduled off-peak batch execution
• Reviewing which scripts succeeded or failed with per-file error details

Supported environments

• SSMS extension — SSMS 18 and later (installer requires SSMS 18 minimum)
• Windows desktop edition — standalone app with manual connection strings; Smart Update has its own tab

• Windows 10 or Windows 11 (64-bit)
• SQL Server Management Studio 18 or later
• .NET Framework 4.7.2 or later

SSMS extension

1. 1

   Run the installer

   Download SQLToExcelSetup.exe and run it with administrator privileges.

2. 2

   Restart SSMS

   Close and reopen SQL Server Management Studio after installation.

3. 3

   Open from the menu

   Smart Export appears under Extensions: Smart Export..., Activate License..., and About.... Smart Update appears under Tools: Smart Update.... Smart Bulk SQL appears under Tools: Smart Bulk SQL....

Object Explorer shortcut

Right-click any table in Object Explorer and choose Smart Update... to open Smart Update with a SELECT statement pre-filled, the connection selected, and the query executed automatically.

1. 1

   Write SQL in a query window

   Compose or select the SQL statement you want to export.

2. 2

   Open Smart Export

   Choose Smart Export → Smart Export... from the SSMS menu.

3. 3

   SQL auto-fills

   The tool reads the current query editor text automatically.

4. 4

   Execute

   Select a database connection and click Execute (or press F5).

5. 5

   Export

   Preview results, then click Export to save as Excel or another format.

Smart Update is the visual query + grid editing + write-back module in SQLToExcel. It is built around the SmartUpdateControl component and lets you edit query results like a spreadsheet, then persist changes to SQL Server.

How to open Smart Update

Connection & query

• Select a database connection from the dropdown — a status badge shows connected / disconnected
• Left panel: Schema browser — double-click a table to generate SQL and execute
• Right panel: SQL editor with syntax highlighting
• Only SELECT statements are supported — press F5 or click Execute
• Editable mode loads up to 10,000 rows; larger result sets are truncated with a warning

Smart Update vs Smart Export

Quick start

1. 1

   Open Smart Update

   Tools → Smart Update... or right-click a table in Object Explorer.

2. 2

   Select connection & run SQL

   Choose a connection, write or accept the SELECT, and press F5.

3. 3

   Edit the grid

   Change cells, add rows, or delete rows when editing is enabled.

4. 4

   Save changes

   Use Auto save (save on row leave) or click Save for manual batch commit.

When all editable conditions are met, the result grid supports full CRUD write-back. Without a valid license, the grid is read-only.

Editable conditions

• Valid license activated (unlicensed = view only)
• Query resolves to a single updatable table
• Views are read-only
• Primary key columns must appear in the result set
• Result set has 10,000 rows or fewer

Visual feedback

Column protection rules

Data validation

• Input validated against column type and schema (length, nullability, etc.)
• Required fields checked before save
• UPDATE or DELETE affecting multiple rows triggers a warning
• UPDATE affecting 0 rows rolls back that row's changes
• Refreshing the query with unsaved changes prompts for confirmation
• Auto save preference is persisted in user settings

The status bar at the bottom shows success, warning, and error messages plus the last executed SQL script. A loading indicator appears during query execution.

Basic operations

• Copy
• Paste
• Delete
• Undo
• Save

Generate values

• Generate GUID
• Generate Today (current date)

SQL Scripts submenu

• Generate WHERE
• Copy as IN / NOT IN / VALUES
• Script INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, MERGE

Generated SQL is copied to the clipboard. The status bar shows the last executed script.

Smart Bulk SQL batch executes multiple .sql script files against a SQL Server connection. Queue files or folders, run them sequentially or concurrently, schedule one-time jobs, and review execution history — without opening each script manually in SSMS.

How to open Smart Bulk SQL

Smart Bulk SQL vs other modules

Building a queue

• Add Files — select one or more .sql files
• Add Folder — import every .sql file from a directory
• Remove — delete selected files from the queue
• Up / Down — reorder execution sequence
• Clear — remove all files from the queue

Execution settings

Running and monitoring

• Execute Now — start batch execution immediately
• Stop — halt the current run
• Save Session — persist the file queue and settings for later
• Per-file Status column shows Success or Failed with progress percentage
• Summary bar reports total succeeded and failed counts

Schedule & history

Switch to the Schedule tab to create a one-time scheduled run with a name, date, and time. Use Save Schedule to persist it.

History details

• Top grid — past sessions with start time, connection, success/failed counts
• Bottom grid — per-file results for the selected session: rows affected, duration, errors
• Failed scripts show the SQL Server error message (e.g. constraint violations)

SSMS mode

• Lists database connections already open in SSMS
• Reuses the connection from the current query window
• Shows a connection status badge (connected / disconnected)

Desktop mode

• Save and manage multiple connections
• Choose Enter connection string... to type a connection string manually
• Local servers default to Windows authentication; remote servers can use SQL Server authentication

File upload mode

• Select Upload Excel/Csv/Html... from the connection dropdown
• Load local files into the preview grid without a database
• Export directly after import — Execute is disabled in file mode

• Click Execute to run SQL and load results into the preview grid
• Preview supports up to 500,000 rows (warning shown if exceeded)
• After column filters, up to 100,000 matching rows are shown
• Large result sets load incrementally with a loading indicator
• Non-SELECT statements show a confirmation prompt before running
• Column header filters, drag-to-reorder columns, and drag-down on a header to remove a column from export

Current export settings and style template are applied before every export.

Seven built-in presets plus None and Custom:

• Modern Teal (default)
• Classic Blue
• Professional Gray
• Corporate Navy
• Forest Green
• Warm Orange
• Minimal Dark
• None — plain data, no styling
• Custom — automatically selected after manual changes

Customizable options

• Header font size, color, background, bold
• Zebra striping and alternating row colors
• Freeze header row
• Excel header filter
• Column width: AutoFit / MaxWidth
• Row height: AutoFit / MaxHeight

Column types are formatted consistently on export:

All types support a Custom Excel format string.

• Built-in Default template — cannot be deleted
• Save As... saves all current export settings (style, formats, masking rules, etc.)
• Option to include the SQL statement in the saved template
• Rename or delete user-created templates
• Remembers the last used template automatically
• Ideal for recurring reports — configure once, reuse every time

• Map query result column names to export and script column names
• Spaces are removed from column names by default
• Mapped names are used for INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, and MERGE script generation
• Mapping rules can be saved in export templates

• Toggle Enable Data Masking to apply rules on preview and export
• Configure masking per column
• Built-in formats: Keep First/Last, Full, Phone, IdCard, Email, Name
• Custom rules supported (e.g. 3;4;* meaning keep 3 chars, mask 4, show rest)
• Preview grid shows masked values in real time

Supported formats: .xlsx, .xlsm, .csv, .html, .htm

How to import

• Select Upload Excel/Csv/Html... from the connection dropdown, or
• Paste an HTML table into the SQL editor and click Execute

Append hyperlink — when importing Excel or HTML, optionally preserve or append hyperlink columns.

After import, the tool enters file mode: Execute is disabled; use Export directly.

Select & copy

• Select All, Copy cell, Copy Column Names
• Copy as Markdown, JSON, Excel, or CSV

SQL scripts

• Generate WHERE
• Copy as IN / NOT IN / VALUES
• Script INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, MERGE

Export & email

• Export Excel, CSV, HTML, or Image for selected cells only
• Email to — send selected content
• Email table to — send the full table as HTML email

Hyperlinks & email shortcuts

• Automatically records executed SQL (up to 300 entries)
• Search and filter by favorites
• Right-click: Run Again, Load to Editor, favorite/unfavorite, delete
• Double-click an entry to load it quickly
• Stored in your user profile — survives reinstall if files are preserved

• Email to — sends selected cell content
• Email table to — sends the full result table as an HTML email body
• Opens a .eml draft or uses Outlook if already running

See pricing for plan details.

Settings are stored in your user AppData folder under SQLToExcel:

The installer can preserve these files on uninstall/reinstall.

The standalone Smart Export desktop app provides the same main interface as the SSMS extension. Smart Update is available as a separate tab with the same SmartUpdateControl. The menu includes Activate License and About. Connection management and manual connection strings are available in desktop mode.

Questions or issues? Email 344028991@qq.com.

New to Smart Export? Download the installer to get started.