title: SQL Server "." Alias Not Working
body: <p>I've added an alias of "." which should point to my local (named) instance, ".\SQL2008". But when I try to connect to ".", it times out.</p>
  
  <p>Am I missing something or is this not allowed?</p>
  
  <p><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/mwDqY.png" alt="&quot;.&quot; Alias Not Working"></p>
  
  <p><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/gkJrf.png" alt="Timeout"></p>
  
  <p><strong>Aliases I've tried which do not work:</strong></p>
  
  <p>(Set for both 32 and 64-bit, I've also tried leaving the port blank.)</p>
  
  <p><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/EtRrh.png" alt="Aliases which do not work."></p>