DOC: Add comprehensive BUILDGUIDE.md with cross-platform build instructions and VS Code setup

BUILDGUIDE.md

@@ -0,0 +1,191 @@
+# Build Guide for Contributors
+
+Welcome to the development build guide for the **mssql-python** project!  
+This guide will help you set up your environment, build the native bindings, and package the project as a Python wheel.
+
+---
+
+## Table of Contents
+
+- [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
+- [Platform-Specific Setup](#platform-specific-setup)
+  - [Windows](#windows)
+  - [macOS](#macos)
+  - [Linux](#linux)
+- [Building Native Bindings](#building-native-bindings)
+- [Building the Python Wheel (.whl)](#building-the-python-wheel-whl)
+- [Running Tests](#running-tests)
+- [Directory Structure](#directory-structure)
+- [Troubleshooting](#troubleshooting)
+
+---
+
+## Prerequisites
+
+- **Python:** Minimum supported version is 3.10.  
+  Ensure `python` and `pip` commands refer to your Python 3.10+ installation.
+- **pybind11:** Used for C++/Python bindings.
+- **CMake:** For Unix and macOS builds.
+- **Microsoft ODBC Driver:** For packaging driver dependencies and header files such as `sql.h`, `sqlext.h` etc.
+- **setuptools, wheel, pytest:** For building and testing (`pip install setuptools wheel pytest`).
+
+---
+
+## Platform-Specific Setup
+
+### Windows
+
+1. **Install Python** (3.10+ from [python.org](https://www.python.org/downloads/)).
+2. **Install Visual Studio Build Tools**
+   - Include the “Desktop development with C++” workload.
+   - CMake is included by default.
+3. **Install Microsoft ODBC Driver for SQL Server:**  
+   [Download here](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/connect/odbc/download-odbc-driver-for-sql-server).
+4. **Install required Python packages:**
+   ```bash
+   # Will install pybind11, setuptools etc.
+   pip install -r requirements.txt
+   ```
+
+### macOS
+
+1. **Install Python** (3.10+ from [python.org](https://www.python.org/downloads/)).
+2. **Install CMake:**
+   ```bash
+   brew install cmake
+   ```
+3. **Install Microsoft ODBC Driver for SQL Server:**
+   - Follow [official instructions](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/connect/odbc/linux-mac/install-microsoft-odbc-driver-sql-server-macos).
+5. **Install Python requirements:**
+   ```bash
+   # Will install pybind11, setuptools etc.
+   pip install -r requirements.txt
+   ```
+
+### Linux
+
+1. **Install Python and development tools:**
+   ```bash
+   sudo apt-get update
+   sudo apt-get install python3 python3-dev python3-pip build-essential cmake
+   ```
+   Ensure `python` and `pip` refer to Python 3.10+.
+2. **Install Microsoft ODBC Driver for SQL Server:**  
+   - Follow [official instructions](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/sql/connect/odbc/linux-mac/installing-the-microsoft-odbc-driver-for-sql-server).
+3. **Install Python packages:**
+   ```bash
+   # Will install pybind11, setuptools etc.
+   pip install -r requirements.txt
+   ```
+
+---
+
+## Building Native Bindings
+
+The native bindings are in the `pybind` directory.
+
+### Windows
+
+Open a **Developer Command Prompt for VS** and run:
+
+```bash
+cd pybind
+build.bat
+```
+
+This will:
+- Clean previous builds
+- Configure with CMake
+- Build the extension
+- Copy the generated `.pyd` file to the correct location
+
+### macOS & Linux
+
+```bash
+cd pybind
+./build.sh
+```
+
+This will:
+- Clean previous builds
+- Configure with CMake
+- Build the extension
+- Copy the generated `.so` file to the correct location
+
+---
+
+## Running Tests
+
+Tests require a database connection string.
+Set the `DB_CONNECTION_STRING` environment variable before running tests:
+
+### Windows (Command Prompt)
+```cmd
+set DB_CONNECTION_STRING=your-connection-string-here
+python -m pytest -v
+```
+
+### macOS & Linux (bash/zsh)
+```bash
+export DB_CONNECTION_STRING=your-connection-string-here
+python -m pytest -v
+```
+
+---
+
+## Building the Python Wheel (.whl)
+
+The wheel includes the native bindings.  
+**You must build the native bindings first** (see above).
+
+### Windows
+
+From the project root:
+
+```bash
+python setup.py bdist_wheel
+```
+
+The wheel file will be created in the `dist/` directory.
+
+### macOS & Linux
+
+From the project root:
+
+```bash
+# Build the bindings first!
+cd pybind
+./build.sh
+cd ..
+
+# Then build the wheel:
+python setup.py bdist_wheel
+```
+
+The wheel file will be created in the `dist/` directory.
+
+---
+
+## Directory Structure
+
+- `pybind/` — Native C++/pybind11 bindings and platform build scripts
+- `mssql_python/` — Python package source
+- `tests/` — Test suite
+- `dist/` — Built wheel packages
+
+---
+
+## Troubleshooting
+
+- Ensure all prerequisites are installed and on your PATH.
+- If a build fails, clean up old artifacts and try again (`pybind/build.bat clean` or `./build.sh clean`).
+- For wheel issues, ensure the native binding (`.pyd` or `.so`) is present in the expected location before building the wheel.
+- For test failures, double-check your `DB_CONNECTION_STRING`.
+
+---
+
+For more details on the native bindings, see [`pybind/README.md`](pybind/README.md).
+
+---
+
+Happy coding!