Practical Snippets¶

SQL Server on macOS (Apple Silicon)¶

Install: Recommend OrbStack for better Docker performance

Set a local password in your shell first — don't hardcode one in commands you might share:

export MSSQL_SA_PASSWORD='Test@12345'

docker run -e "ACCEPT_EULA=Y" \
           -e "MSSQL_SA_PASSWORD=${MSSQL_SA_PASSWORD}" \
           -p 127.0.0.1:1433:1433 \
           --name mssql_server \
           --platform linux/amd64 \
           -d mcr.microsoft.com/mssql/server:2022-latest

Binding to 127.0.0.1 keeps the sa login reachable only from localhost — without it, port 1433 is open to any client that can reach your machine's network interface.

Use:

Option A: GUI Tools Download a database client like DBeaver, Azure Data Studio, or TablePlus. Open the tool, create a new Microsoft SQL Server connection, and enter these credentials:
- Host: localhost (or 127.0.0.1)
- Port: 1433
- Username: sa
- Password: the value of $MSSQL_SA_PASSWORD set above
- Note: For SQL Server 2022, ensure you check the box for "Trust Server Certificate" (or set encrypt=false) in your driver settings if the connection fails.

Option B: Terminal (CLI)

docker exec -it mssql_server /opt/mssql-tools18/bin/sqlcmd -S localhost -U sa -P "$MSSQL_SA_PASSWORD" -C

This command will start and run sqlcmd.

Practical Snippets¶

SQL Server on macOS (Apple Silicon)¶

References¶