: While it still requires a one-time installation on the host machine, it allows you to connect directly to .mdf database files, making the data itself highly portable across different systems.
Despite these caveats, for developers who need a "portable-like" experience. ms sql server express portable
, which allows a non-administrator user to "attach" a database file dynamically via a connection string. Portability: : While it still requires a one-time installation