title: can I use SSDT/BIDS/SSIS using SQL Server 2012 express?
body: <p>Ideally, I want to make SSDT/SSIS packages on my desktop PC that I can test and deploy to a production server environment.
  On my PC I have:
  Windows 7
  Visual Studio 2008
  Visual Studio 2010 (shell)
  SQL Server Express 2012 (local dev copy of prod)
  [supposedly] BIDS (Business Intelligence Development Studio) and SSDT (SQL SErver Data Tools) etc.</p>
  
  <p>On my production server I have:
  Windows Server 2008
  SQL Server 2012
  Visual Studio 2010 (shell)</p>
  
  <p>I cannot load/run SSIS (SQL Server Integration Services) onto my machine because SQL Server express doesn't allow for it, as suggested by these articles:</p>
  
  <p><a href="http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?id=963070" rel="nofollow">http://support.microsoft.com/Default.aspx?id=963070</a></p>
  
  <p><a href="http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc645993.aspx#SSIS" rel="nofollow">http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc645993.aspx#SSIS</a></p>
  
  <p>And I am getting this error when trying to look at a "package.dtsx" file in VS:</p>
  
  <blockquote>
    <p>Microsoft Visual Studio is unable to load this document: To design
    Integration Services packages in SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT). SSDT
    has to be installed by one of these editions of SQL Server 2012:
    Standard. Enterprise. Developer, or Evaluation. To install SSDT, run
    SQL Server Setup and select SQL Server Data Tools.</p>
  </blockquote>
  
  <p>When I run the SQL2012Express installer, it says SSDT is installed already.</p>
  
  <p>Question #1: But why can't I just point a local VS2010/SSDT/SQL2012Express at my production SQL2012 environment? (Microsoft is getting their money legitimately!)</p>
  
  <p>Question #2: I can get it to work on the production server, but isn't it bad form to develop on a production server? (and it complicates source control etc.)</p>