title: Application using SQL Server Database among a LAN
body: <p>This has been one annoying piece of needle in a haystack.</p>
  
  <p>The C# application is practically complete and I need to test the cooperation of two or more different machines on the same network, to see if they display the same data from the database.</p>
  
  <p>When I run SQL Server + Visual Studio together during development, there's no problem, I use this connection string and everything works OK:</p>
  
  <pre><code>'@"Data Source=PCNAME\SQLEXPRESS;Initial Catalog=POS;";'
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>I have now published the app and installed it on another machine that happens to be on the same network. Obviously the connection string will not work on that machine because its name is not PCNAME, it's 2NDPC.</p>
  
  <p>But I doubt the answer is to open the solution, edit the cnx string and re-publish for each machine. Even then, how will they be using the same database?</p>
  
  <p>TL;DR
  **What I need **
  I want to use the machine I developed the application on initially to be hosting the database, to which the local machines can connect.</p>
  
  <p>I've tried forwarding 1434 port and making rules, I've tried starting tcp/ip process in Server Configuration and making sure SQL Browser Agent Service or what not is running.</p>
  
  <p>But no, I either get and error#25 or nothing happens.</p>
  
  <p>Please help and tell me in explicit steps how I can achieve this goal.</p>