Opening a SQL Server .bak file (Not restoring!)

Question

I have been reading a LOT of google posts and StackOverflow questions about how to restore a database in SQL Server from a .bak file.

But none of them states how to just

Answer 1

There is no standard way to do this. You need to use 3rd party tools such as ApexSQL Restore or SQL Virtual Restore. These tools don’t really read the backup file directly. They get SQL Server to “think” of backup files as if these were live databases.