SO i have a server running windows server 2008 r2 and i just installed Microsoft sql server 2008. I used the manager thing to create the database and the tables, etc and now i want to connect to it via my visual studio which is on a different machine. so how do i do that? do i need to "turn on" the sql server, do i need to do port forwarding? do i have to modify the iis or change those settings? is there a good article someone can me point me to? just to further help you help me, i understand how to connect to a datasource in visual studio my problem is more with the sql server and understanding how to properly set it up once installed.

Sorry for the noob question, i got it all installed and i know how to use it once its all going i just don't know the in-between.

thanks in advance dave