**To connect to SQL Server Express:**

1. Install SQL Server Express on your Windows Server
2. Enable TCP/IP in SQL Server Configuration Manager
3. Set your environment variables:

```plaintext
SQL_SERVER=localhost\SQLEXPRESS
SQL_DATABASE=meal_db
SQL_USER=your_username
SQL_PASSWORD=your_password
```


4. Run `scripts/create-schema.sql` in SSMS to create the tables
5. Run `scripts/seed-users.sql` to add demo users
6. Set `DEMO_MODE=false`


The `\SQLEXPRESS` part of the server name is the instance name - adjust if you used a different one during installation.