SysTools MDF Viewer

The popular Microsoft SQL Server database management system stores all the information in MDF files (Master Database Files).

If you need to view the information stored in these files on a system where you can’t install and use the SQL Server, then this little freeware is what will help you out.

The MDF file viewer comes with a very simple interface. There are no customization settings or database editing options. All it does is load and display the content of an MDF file, without letting you change that file in any way. On the left side of the interface there’s a tree-like navigation panel that lets you select what kind of data you want to view. It lets you view tables, stored procedures, views, rules, triggers and functions. As you can see, there’s nothing complicated about this MS SQL Server database reader. It was meant from the start to do one single simple job, and that’s exactly what it does.

Besides being very simple and lightweight, this application comes with another important advantage: it can open and display the content of corrupted MDF files. Therefore, it can be used to solve two needs: view MDF files on a system where SQL Server is not available and view corrupted MDF files that can no longer be used within SQL Server.

It’s hard to make a personal opinion about such a simple tool. All it does is opening and displaying MDF files. But when this is all you need to do and you can’t do it in any other way, this MDF viewer can be a true life savior.