One of my uncountable blind spots is sql server client and connections, but this seems to be a resilient one. :)

If I get this right, in .net express 2010 you have limited access, i.e. you can only connect to a "local" sql server, i.e. one that is not located on another server in the network.

Now in net express 2012 I can see all the sql servers that are running on the company's LAN. So (1) is that a change in policy by Microsoft, or is this me having installed my .net 2010 wrongly, and (2) can I still connect to non "local sqlserver" via odbc or oledb ?

Thank you so much for any light you could shed on this ...