How to re-create database for Entity Framework?

Follow below steps:

1) First go to Server Explorer in Visual Studio, check if the ".mdf" Data Connections for this project are connected, if so, right click and delete.

2 )Go to Solution Explorer, click show All Files icon.

3) Go to App_Data, right click and delete all ".mdf" files for this project.

4) Delete Migrations folder by right click and delete.

5) Go to SQL Server Management Studio, make sure the DB for this project is not there, otherwise delete it.

6) Go to Package Manager Console in Visual Studio and type:

1. Enable-Migrations -Force
2. Add-Migration init
3. Update-Database

7) Run your application

Note: In step 6 part 3, if you get an error "Cannot attach the file...", it is possibly because you didn't delete the database files completely in SQL Server.

I would like to add that Lin's answer is correct.

If you improperly delete the MDF you will have to fix it. To fix the screwed up connections in the project to the MDF. Short answer; recreate and delete it properly.

1. Create a new MDF and name it the same as the old MDF, put it in the same folder location. You can create a new project and create a new mdf. The mdf does not have to match your old tables, because were going to delete it. So create or copy an old one to the correct folder.
2. Open it in server explorer [double click the mdf from solution explorer]
3. Delete it in server explorer
4. Delete it from solution explorer
5. run update-database -force [Use force if necessary]

Done, enjoy your new db

UPDATE 11/12/14 - I use this all the time when I make a breaking db change.I found this is a great way to roll back your migrations to the original db:

• Puts the db back to original

• Run the normal migration to put it back to current

  1. Update-Database -TargetMigration:0 -force [This will destroy all tables and all data.]
  2. Update-Database -force [use force if necessary]

This worked for me:

1. Delete database from SQL Server Object Explorer in Visual Studio.Right-click and select delete.
2. Delete mdf and ldf files from file system - if they are still there.
3. Rebuild Solution.
4. Start Application - database will be re-created.