Visual Schema Compare for SDK Style SQL Database Projects in Visual Studio and SSMS

Visual Schema Compare is a new feature in the SQL Database Project Power Tools extension for Visual Studio 2022 and SSMS 22. It leverages the Microsoft DacFx engine to provide a visual, side-by-side T-SQL diff between an SDK-style SQL Database Project and a live database. Users can right-click their project to compare in either direction (project-to-database or database-to-project), browse per-object differences in a grid, and copy a generated T-SQL deployment script. The feature addresses schema drift — the common problem where hotfixes or untracked changes cause the live database to diverge from source-controlled scripts. The extension also includes other tools like Import Database, Static Code Analysis, E/R Diagrams, and .dacpac Explorer.