Beginning LightSwitch: Getting Started

UPDATE 8/12/2012: This post was updated to include the latest LightSwitch version in Visual Studio 2012.

There’s a ton of information out there on building LightSwitch applications, especially on the LightSwitch section of the Visual Studio Developer Center but here I want to pull together a cohesive set of entry-level articles that focus on the most important concepts you need to learn in order to build any LightSwitch application. By the way, if you aren’t familiar with what LightSwitch is and what it can do I encourage you to download the What is LightSwitch? white paper.

Depending on the version of Visual Studio you have, select the appropriate article series to get started:

LightSwitch in Visual Studio 2012

• Part 1: What’s in a Table? Describing Your Data
• Part 2: Feel the Love. Defining Data Relationships
• Part 3: Screen Templates, Which One Do I Choose?
• Part 4: Too much information! Sorting and Filtering Data with Queries
• Part 5: May I? Controlling Access with User Permissions
• Part 6: Go beyond the box. Customizing LightSwitch Apps with Extensions
• Download the Completed Sample App

Visual Studio LightSwitch 2011 (or LightSwitch in Visual Studio 2010)

• Part 1: What's in a Table? Describing your Data
• Part 2: Feel the Love. Defining Data Relationships
• Part 3: Screen Templates - Which One Do I Choose?
• Part 4: Too much information! Sorting and Filtering Data with Queries
• Part 5: May I? Controlling Access with User Permissions 
• Part 6: I Feel Pretty! Customizing the "Look and Feel" with Themes
• Download the Completed Sample App

More Getting Started Resources

Create Your First LightSwitch Application

Watch the LightSwitch How Do I Videos

Get Started with the LightSwitch Starter Kits

The first link is to a step-by-step walkthrough that shows you how to quickly build a simple contact manager. It should take you 5 to 10 minutes to complete the application so it’s a great place to start. Then you can move onto the “How Do I” videos for more step-by-step video lessons to build a simple order entry application. If you want a super-quick way to get an application started, check out the starter kits. There’s currently six available for you to choose from and are full working applications you can use.

Enjoy!