Cross-vendor SQL on Windows without a GUI

August 29, 2026 · Applies to BroadSQL 5.5.0, reviewed October 17, 2026

A single command-line SQL client that reaches Oracle, SQL Server, Postgres, and more on Windows, with every driver behaving identically and no build step, is surprisingly rare.

The problem: Windows and "just install a CLI" don't always mix

Most command-line SQL clients come from a Unix-first world, and on Windows the friction is usually the drivers. To be specific and fair about it: usql, the main free cross-database CLI, does run on Windows, and its base build already includes pure Go drivers for PostgreSQL, MySQL, SQL Server and Oracle; its ODBC support and its CGO drivers (SQLite3, DuckDB) need specific build tags or install flags (checked against the usql README on 17 October 2026). BroadSQL takes another route: every database goes through its vendor's JDBC driver, a plain JAR file, so adding a database is the same step on every system and needs nothing beyond Java.

The BroadSQL approach: add a driver JAR, then connect

BroadSQL ships with drivers for H2, PostgreSQL, Apache Derby, HSQLDB, and SQLite. Any other JDBC-compatible database (Oracle, SQL Server, MariaDB, DB2, and more) works by adding its driver JAR:

1. Download the vendor's JDBC driver (for SQL Server, Microsoft's mssql-jdbc JAR) and copy it into the drivers folder of your BroadSQL installation.
2. Restart BroadSQL, then type SHOW DRIVERS; to confirm the driver was found.
3. Create the connection with ADD CONNECTION and choose SQL Server as its type.

From then on, the SQL Server connection works like any of the five bundled databases: same commands, same shell, no separate installer. See Technical requirements for the details.

Honest scope

This is about uniform, low-friction driver installation. It isn't a claim that BroadSQL does more than any other client once connected, and it isn't a knock on usql, which covers more database families from a single binary.

Who this is for

Windows-heavy enterprise and ops teams who need to reach several database vendors from the same machine without standing up a build toolchain just to get a driver working.

Get your team set up

I handle the setup for Windows-based teams (drivers, connection types, and the connections vault) so everyone's reaching every database the same way from day one. Get in touch to talk about your environment.

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