Connecting to Sql Server 2008r2 running on a Win 2008r2 via VB.Net 2012. I'm using Server explorer in VS2012 to make a connection to a Sql Database. It says it makes the connection, but then the connection is forcibly closed by the host. I have checked the firewall (turned 'em all off) etc. Is there a good way to determine what is killing the connection?

Turn on debugging and watch the console. It should give you an idea of what is happening.