Monitor SQL Server enabled by Azure Arc 

Simplifying deployment and cost management in multi-cloud environments.

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The traditional method of paying for SQL Server is buying license and software assurance. Now, you can connect your SQL Server to Azure Arc and pay only for the hours when your VM with SQL Server is online and your SQL instance is active. For the pricing information, see SQL Server 2022—Pricing | Microsoft.

While SQL Server 2022 integrates a pay-as-you-go billing option in the setup, the older versions require a product key to install any production edition. This blog provides instructions on how to install a pay-as-you-go image of any SQL Server version starting from SQL Server 2012 without purchasing a license and providing a product key.

NOTE: if you have access to a SQL Server image that does not require a product key, for example from a hosting provider, you should install it, follow the documented Azure Arc onboarding process for SQL Server and then set the License type to pay-as-you-go in SQL Server configuration.

The process in a nutshell

The deployment of a pay-as-you-go image on a virtual or physical machine running in any cloud, edge, or on-premises datacenters consists of three steps:

1. Installing the prerequisites on the target machines
2. Creating a support ticket with Microsoft Azure to request and download a pay-as-you-go image
3. Running the installation script

Prerequisites

Make sure your target machine meets the following requirements.

On target VMs:

• Windows Server instance is running, and you have a local administrator account.
• Azure PowerShell is installed and updated.
• For SQL Server version 2014, you will need to install .NET. For more information on this prerequisite, visit here.
• You have a remote desktop connection to connect to Windows Server as a local administrator.
• You copied the script from here to a local folder. Follow the download instructions in the readme file.
• Important: If your target VM runs Windows Server 2016, you must make sure that your Transport Layer Security (TLS) configuration is compatible with Azure. Follow the instructions in the readme file on how to mitigate the TLS version issue on Windows Server 2016.

On Microsoft Azure:

• You have an Azure account, subscription, and a target resource group.

Opening a support ticket

You can open the support ticket using a Support + Troubleshooting entry from the subscription which the newly installed SQL Server instance will be connected to. The following screenshots illustrate the flow. Make sure to use the answers as highlighted in the screenshots.

After you complete the support ticket creation process, Azure support will email you a private link to a workspace with the zip file you need to download.

Download the file to the VM where you want to install SQL Server, and unzip it to the same folder that contains the installation script.

Note: For SQL Server 2012 and SQL Server 2022 images, the keys are not required, and the .zip file will contain only the ISO file. For other SQL Server versions, the .zip file includes a product key and the ISO file. The script will recognize these differences.

Running the script

Follow the instructions in the readme file on how to launch the script. An Azure sign-in screen will prompt you to enter your Azure credentials or identify the account you’re already signed into. After this, the script proceeds unattended to carry out the following steps:

• Installing Azure PowerShell modules if they’re not already installed
• Logging into Azure with your assistance
• Onboarding the VM to Azure Arc
• Installing SQL Server on the Windows Server from the file you identified in the previous step
• Mounting the ISO file as a volume
• Installing SQL Arc Extension with a pay-as-you-go license type
• Displaying the status of the Azure resource for the connected SQL Server Instance

Disclaimer: The script has been tested on several combinations of VM products available on AWS and Google Cloud Platform with different versions of Windows Server and SQL Server, but it is not specific to these platforms, and you are welcome to try it on other clouds.

Supercharge SQL Server with Azure Arc

You can use this process to streamline the installation of pay-as-you-go images of SQL Server versions and editions of your choice to machines across different clouds, on-premises datacenters, and edge. By doing so, you can maintain control over the SQL Server compliance and optimize the cost based on the resource’s utilization.

The post Save money on Microsoft SQL Server licensing with Microsoft Azure Arc appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

To help answer these questions and much more, we are hosting the Azure SQL digital event: Transform your applications with Azure SQL on October 14 at 10:00 AM Pacific Time. During this hour-long virtual event, I’ll share my advice and guidance on getting the most out of Azure SQL, whether you’re looking to migrate from an on-premises SQL Server deployment or exploring ways to utilize the newest Azure SQL service options. You will also hear firsthand experiences and best practices from customers who have become expert Azure SQL users.

Regardless of your familiarity with Azure SQL, we want to help you learn how to scale in response to rapidly changing needs, boost the resilience of your mission-critical workloads, and make deployments more cost-effective. We’ll present and offer demonstrations on topics including:

• Choosing the best deployment option for SQL Server in Azure, from Virtual Machines to fully managed databases.
• Selecting, setting up, operating, and scaling your database quickly by putting your existing SQL Server experience to work in the cloud.
• Best practices to ensure optimized database performance and scalability.
• Strategies for selecting the right service tier to maximize the resiliency of critical workloads—without breaking the bank.

We’ll also be taking a deeper dive into two of our newest and most exciting service tiers for Azure SQL Database: Serverless and Hyperscale. Through demos and interviews with current customers, we’ll show how to use these capabilities to create groundbreaking deployments that are both cost-effective and highly performant.

Finally, we’ll have a Q&A session where a panel of Azure SQL subject-matter experts and I will be eager to take your questions and point you on the right track in your Azure SQL journey. If you haven’t registered for the Azure SQL Digital Event, sign up now at the Azure SQL digital event page.

The post Azure SQL digital event: Transform your applications with Azure SQL appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

Whether you’re rehosting your SQL Server workloads onto an Azure Virtual Machine, or modernizing them on evergreen, fully managed Azure SQL Database or Azure SQL Managed Instance, you’re shifting your capex to opex by avoiding the cost and complexity of buying and managing physical servers.  On top of that, Azure provides flexible management options that can boost productivity and provide more bandwidth for IT and database administrators alike to focus on more value-added initiatives. Backups, patching, and updates are performed on your behalf, and features like high availability, performance tuning, and more are part of Azure SQL’s managed services.

What more could you do if you could save up to 80 percent or more on your database costs? Read on to discover the top eight ways you can optimize your data spend on Azure.

The post More ways to save when you migrate SQL Server data to Azure SQL appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

This will make PASS Virtual Summit 2020 more accessible than ever, giving attendees from around the world the opportunity to network, speak, and learn from the comfort of their own homes at a fraction of the cost of previous PASS Summit events.  Microsoft and PASS expect this to be the most-attended PASS Summit in history.

This year’s conference will feature more than 200 sessions delivered by Microsoft Engineering, partner organizations, and community thought leaders on topics spanning:

• Analytics
• Architecture
• Data Management
• Edge Computing (with SQL)
• Microservices Design (with SQL)
• Modernization & Migration
• Open Source Platforms
• Performance at Scale
• Professional Development
• Serverless

Microsoft and PASS have enjoyed a close partnership dating back to the early beginnings of PASS, with Microsoft playing a key role at PASS Summit every year. This year will be no different, with Microsoft joining as the Premier Sponsor of the event.

PASS Virtual Summit attendees can expect interactive technical sessions delivered by the Microsoft team at this year’s event, as well as opportunities to connect directly with the engineers working on the latest data platform innovations. We look forward to connecting with the data community and helping you solve your problems—stay tuned for more details!

Register today to join Microsoft and the PASS community at this must-attend virtual conference.

The post Join Microsoft at PASS Virtual Summit 2020 appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

Many businesses see digital transformation to the cloud as a path to developing this kind of agility. From a data perspective, if you’re currently running SQL Server on-premises and the operational and financial benefits of modernizing in the cloud are appealing to you, you have a variety of options to consider.  Whether you want to simply rehost your existing SQL Server workloads onto a virtual machine, modernize them on a fully-managed database service or accelerate modern cloud application development, Azure provides a range of options to help you operate more cost-effectively and agile.

We’re pleased to introduce Azure SQL, a family of managed, secure, and intelligent SQL database services. Azure SQL services, comprised of SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines, Azure SQL Managed Instance, and Azure SQL Database, are built upon the same SQL Server engine so you can migrate applications with ease and continue to use the tools, languages, and resources you’re familiar with. You can also conveniently configure and monitor these services from a single portal.

Read our announcement to learn more about how Azure SQL helps you operate more efficiently with innovative features that help you do more—and save money along the way.

The post Save money and improve agility and scale by modernizing your SQL Server to Azure SQL appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

SQL Bits is the largest gathering of SQL Server professionals in Europe and this year it is returning to London at the massive ExCel exhibition center. We are excited to meet our customers, partners, and community members. With almost 60 breakout sessions, 5 full-day pre-conferences, and a keynote that is packed with great demos and all the new exciting things in Azure data, there is something for everyone.

For those attending this year, we’ve put together a quick guide below on some of the Data and AI sessions you can look forward to. Can’t wait until SQL Bits? Check out the conference sessions to get a taste of all the exciting stuff you don’t want to miss at SQL Bits 2020.

SQL Bits is also running a promotion right now to share their love for data. Save 10 percent on your registration when you use the code: MSDATA10. 

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SQL Bits 2020 sessions not to miss

Keynote: Join Gayle Sheppard, CVP, Azure Data for a keynote presentation on the journey of SQL Server from edge to cloud, packed with exciting demos and customer stories.

SQL Server 2019: The modern data platform: Bob Ward has also authored a new book “SQL Server 2019 revealed.”  In this session, he will give you the highlights, including the most exciting new features in SQL Server 2019 like Data virtualization, Big Data Clusters, Accelerated Database recovery, and more.

Sandboxing SQL Server 2019 Big Data Clusters: Big Data Clusters combine the power of SQL Server, Apache Spark, and HDFS to gain intelligence over all your data. Join James Rowland Jones to learn about the most common use cases for Big Data Clusters.

Modern Database design: Connor Cunningham will talk about improving the performance and scale of the databases in real-world scenarios using technologies including columnstore, in-memory tables, Azure SQL Database Hyperscale, Always On Availability Groups, and readable secondaries.

Azure Data Services on Azure Arc: Come join Vin Yu to learn more about the newly launched hybrid service Azure Arc, which lets your run Azure Data Services anywhere. Vin will be deploying data services in hybrid and multi-cloud environments – including AWS, GCP and on-premises – and he will show you some of the management capabilities of Azure Arc such as elastic scale and automatic patching.

Azure Synapse Analytics:  Ever since the announcement of Azure Synapse Analytics, we have seen tremendous community excitement around this new cloud data warehouse service. Join Michael Rys to learn how Azure Synapse brings together big data and data warehousing through new technology and a unified development experience.

Azure Data Studio features in 20 minutes: If you want a quick refresher on all the cool new features in Azure Data Studio, then don’t miss the session from Vicky Harp, where she will touch on all the features in Azure Data Studio in a fast introduction to what is sure to be one of your favorite new data administration and data development tools.

10 DBA tasks for Azure SQL: If you are a Cloud DBA, or are in the journey of migrating your on-prem databases to cloud, then check out this session from Alain Dormehl and Rie Irish on the 10 most common DBA tasks for Azure SQL and how they differ from on prem DBA tasks.

Azure SQL Hyperscale Deep Dive: Join Alain Dormehl, Davide Mauri, and Denzil Ribeiro to learn how Hyperscale can enable you to innovate with nearly limitless storage in a future-proof, world class, fully managed database.

Microsoft Learn will also be present at SQLBits 2020, showcasing the complete offering of training and certifications available to the Data & AI professionals. Attendees will get the scoop on the newest certifications in Microsoft’s portfolio and will also have the chance to be part of the beta exam experience.

After the roaring success of SQL Bits 2019, we are ready for yet another action packed SQL Bits 2020 In London. We can’t wait to meet you there and celebrate!

The post SQL Bits 2020 is happening in London: join us September 29 to October 4 appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

That’s one reason to get excited about the continued expansion of the PolyBase technology introduced in SQL Server 2016, which has become much more powerful in the release of SQL Server 2019.

Before PolyBase, when trying to use external data sources from SQL Server, you either had to transfer data from one source to another or query both sources and then write custom logic to joining and integrate the data at the client level. PolyBase simplifies the process of reading from external data sources. It does so by enabling your SQL Server instance to process Transact-SQL (T-SQL) queries that access both external data and relational data inside the instance.

Initially, PolyBase targeted Apache Hadoop and Azure Blob Storage. The ability to target big data inside Hadoop nodes expanded the ability to do modern analytics seamlessly from a SQL Server platform. No additional software needs to be installed in the Hadoop environment, and you don’t even need to know Hadoop intimately to query it. PolyBase even pushed some computations to the Hadoop node to optimize queries.

What’s awesome about PolyBase in 2019 is that Microsoft has added connectors that allow you to query a much wider range of external data. PolyBase now works with Oracle, Teradata, MongoDB, and any database that conforms to Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) standards. You can query the data where it lives without having to bring it into SQL Server. Best of all, it provides distributed, scalable query performance.

PolyBase can also simplify things when you do have to move data from one place to another. For example, you can bring data from Hadoop, Azure Blob Storage, or Azure Data Lake Store into relational tables. This allows you to take advantage of the fast analysis and columnstore capabilities of SQL Server without the need for a separate extract, transform, load (ETL) or import tool. On the other hand, it’s also easy to export data from SQL Server to cost-effective online storage. Features like PolyBase make it much easier for database administrators to help organizations get maximum value from all their data, while optimizing the ratio of cost to performance.

To learn more about what you can do with Microsoft SQL Server 2019, check out the free Packt guide Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2019. If you’re ready to jump to a fully managed cloud solution, check out the Essential Guide to Data in the Cloud.

The post Easier management of PolyBase and relational data through SQL Server 2019 appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

As a long-time Linux database administrator (DBA), in this post I’ll share my top five focus areas for the Microsoft data professional to become knowledgeable of as they embark on the brave new world of Linux.

1. Embrace the command line

Yes, there is a graphical user interface, (GUI) for Linux, but the command line rules in Linux. We can’t stress enough how important it is to learn how to navigate directories (cd), change permissions (chmod), and list contents (ls). Your best friend will become the -h argument to any command to get the help menu for whatever you’re attempting.

It will be essential to know how to install and update your server and applications, (apt-get, yum, and zypper) as it may be your responsibility not only to just perform this task for the database tier, but also the server if a Linux administrator isn’t already on staff in your organization.

You will also need to learn how to update your existing PowerShell scripts to work on Linux or learn how to write BASH scripts. This is commonly done from a terminal editor and one of the best is VI/VIM. Knowing how to use VI will give you credibility when working with Linux and deter too many questions when in the middle of critical work or even day-to-day tasks.

2. Understand the operating system

There are many distributions (aka flavors) of Linux, which has grown from the original release. Each distribution, although very similar, may have their own unique requirements and quirks. Understanding what distributions are best for enterprise deployments can ensure what you have deployed into the environment can withstand the demands the business puts on it. It was only two decades ago that Unix DBAs were hesitant to run relational databases on any version of Linux. In that time, every distribution has come a long way, but many distributions have a purpose. If we take a very specific flavor of Debian, called Raspbian, it was specifically designed to run the operating system for Raspberry Pis, which are single Advanced RISC Machine (ARM) processor computers. Understanding the difference in a distribution like Raspbian vs. enterprise Linux distributions like Enterprise Red Hat, Enterprise SUSE, and Ubuntu is important. Just because you can get SQL Server to run on non-supported Linux distributions such as CentOS doesn’t mean you should run the business on them. Stick to the supported versions and the user experience will be more satisfying along with new features available in regular release intervals.

3. Use the tools you already have

Just because SQL Server is running on Linux doesn’t mean that your previous robust tools for management, monitoring, and querying won’t work any longer. As a DBA, you can still use SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) and preferably, use Azure Data Studio to connect to your Linux SQL Server 2019 databases. You can’t install Server Management Studio onto Linux, but you can create a Windows “jump box” with Server Management Studio and configure it as the primary log in point for administration tasks. Developers can still access SQL Server 2019 on Linux with Visual Studio Code with the SQL Server extension and have full use of SQL Server Data Tools (SSDT).

As this is Linux, the command line is still king. Sqlcmd is available to log in from on the Linux server to execute queries, run scripts, and perform management. Sqlcmd doesn’t change in the Linux version and executing a script is as simple as the following example, which logs in as the admin user to the database and password, then runs a script and logs it all in a simple text file:

sqlcmd -U $username -S $servername  -P $spassword -d $database -i $script.sql > $logfile

4. Build on existing knowledge with new tools

PowerShell is taking center stage on Linux with new releases on a regular basis, so keep those skills sharp and with a few changes, many of the scripts you use today can be updated to work on SQL Server 2019 on Linux. Although sqlcmd is available for your querying command line needs, there is a new tool in town called mssql-cli.

This installation is a simple, on-line command:

sudo pip install mssql-cli

If there are any issues with installation, Linux is commonly quite good about telling you what library or tool dependencies that must be installed before the installation needs to be run again for success.

Always remember, if you get stuck, help is always available to offer assistance:

mssql-cli –h

To log into a database, the following is required:

mssql-cli -U $username -S $servername -P $password -d $database

If you notice the command is very similar to the example we used for sqlcmd rest easy, your world hasn’t changed as much as you were concerned about. Once you’re logged into mssql-cli, you’ll be able to use this to access SQL Server 2019 databases inside Linux. Features like auto-complete with IntelliSense, multi-line editing, and a metadata repository makes it easier to work with the command line for those just getting up to speed with SQL Server 2019 on Linux. There are a few limitations in mssql-cli, like the ability to execute scripts or send an output aren’t present, but the same queries that worked on-premises in sqlcmd will work here. Keep in mind that this new tool is in its infancy and still maturing on a regular release schedule.

The third new tool isn’t that new but is the next powerhouse to take on the DBA since SQL Server Management Studio and is called Azure Data Studio. If you haven’t embraced this cross-platform tool specifically designed for data professionals, you’re missing out. No more 32-bit interface, this is a modern interface with IntelliSense, code control integration, and customizable dashboards.

The biggest benefit is that it can be installed on Linux with no local installation or jump box required. All three primary Linux distributions are supported, as well as a Mac OS installation. Database administration tasks that are less likely to be required with cloud implementations, such as on-premises physical management, backups, etc. still will require SQL Server Management Studio, but if you’re part of the next generation of cloud administrators that have automated much of the mundane, then Azure Data Studio is a must.

5. Consider the power of containers

With Linux and SQL Server 2019, the addition of Big Data Clusters with Kubernetes support has been added. The reasons behind using containers are vast including simplified deployment, ease of management, and quicker recovery, but then add Big Data Clusters on top of this and it becomes quite the powerhouse.

Containers with Kubernetes offers DBAs the opportunity to manage the database without the added layer of separate OS for each node, or group of nodes, that is also called a pod. Less resources have to be allocated per database and without the additional layer, it can recover quicker.

Using Kubernetes, or similar sorted container orchestration, Big Data Clusters can be deployed, then manage a cluster of SQL Server, Apache Spark™, and the Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS). Polybase is then used to virtualize data from various data sources with SQL Server, while an HDFS data pool can be used as a data lake for all big data using Apache Spark™. The SQL Server master instance simplifies the management and includes read, write, and processing of all data, no matter the source and is an exciting new frontier in the SQL Server 2019 release for Linux.

The list above includes just a few of the significant opportunities to learn and build your skills in Linux with SQL Server 2019. To help you on the way to mastering SQL Server 2019 on Linux, a number of resources have been made available through Microsoft, including this incredible new Packt e-book Introducing Microsoft SQL Server 2019. Don’t miss out on the next generation of SQL Server. Learn all the things and let Microsoft help you get there. If you’re ready to jump to a fully managed cloud solution, check out the Essential Guide to Data in the Cloud.

The post What’s new with SQL Server 2019 Linux features appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

The truth is, there’s no need to leave all of your skills behind as you embark on your new Azure adventure. You just need to enhance the skills you already have with new and exciting ones. Much of our value around automation, understanding mission critical systems and development, and optimization is just as needed in the new world of the cloud as it was in the world of on-premises data centers. Those Powershell and other scripting skills can make you an asset when it comes to performing tasks and deploying fast into the cloud.

To help you on your way to mastering the cloud, we’re offering a free eBook from Packt, Professional Azure SQL Administration, second edition, which will get you up to speed on the Azure cloud quicker than you ever could on your own. This eBook is chock full of all of the technical knowledge you’ll need, no matter if you are a novice or have been working in Azure extensively and just want a reference containing valuable tips and best practices.

One of the focuses I really appreciate in this edition is the fine detail on Azure security, which is a common hot topic for the business when it’s considering the cloud. The book also goes over all of those cool new features that are available first in the cloud, so you won’t have to wait to learn about data synchronization between Azure databases, machine learning in Azure Database, or sharing data from the sidelines.

There are over 500 pages in this eBook that will educate you on the service and pricing tiers in Azure, offer guidance on how to build out a successful migration project, and once you’ve migrated to Azure, how to get the most out of your cloud investment.

The post DBAs: It’s time to get up to speed with Azure appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.

Hybrid connects all your data

Now more than ever, we are architecting for hybrid, because we are hearing from customers that they will be running data workloads on-premises and in the cloud – rarely just one or the other. We believe that the value Microsoft can add is to provide a great and consistent experience wherever they deploy.  One example of this commitment is Azure SQL Database Managed Instance, which was recently made generally available.  Managed Instance enables organizations to migrate their SQL Server workloads to Azure with zero code changes and offers an easy path to the cloud at an incredible value – and with security, intelligent performance and management tools that are unique to our cloud database services.  The end of extended support for SQL Server 2008 and 2008 R2 next year is a great opportunity for customers to rehost to Azure SQL Database Managed Instance, a fully-managed solution that eliminates the need for future upgrades. It’s easy to get there using comprehensive, yet easy-to use migration tools like Azure Database Migration Service.

Microsoft is excited to announce the general availability of Azure SQL Database Managed Instance Business Critical tier on December 1. Designed for mission-critical business apps with high I/O requirements, the business critical tier supports high availability with the highest level of storage and compute redundancy.  This new tier provides support for in-memory processing, a range of sizes up to 80 cores on Gen5, and zone-redundant HA using several isolated replicas to provide the highest resilience to failure.  We offer all this performance at an incredibly compelling price point—up to 85% less expensive than AWS.  Programs such as the Azure Hybrid Benefit, which allows customers to re-use their on-premises SQL Server licenses for discounts in Azure, and upcoming Reserved capacity pricing for Managed Instance Business Critical which allows you to prepay for a 1 or 3-year term commitment, further help you manage costs in the cloud.

In addition, we’re announcing a limited preview of Machine Learning services in Azure SQL Database. You can now use the Azure SQL Database support for Microsoft Machine Learning Services with R language to complete data processing, model training, and scoring all inside your SQL Database. This means you no longer need to move data out of the database to train and operationalize machine learning models. The R code can be deployed in production by embedding it in T-SQL stored procedures.

Azure is also a great destination for open source database migration. We recently announced an expansion to our relational OSS database managed service offerings with a preview of Azure Database for MariaDB. With MariaDB joining MySQL and PostgreSQL, Azure now offers the community versions of all the most popular OSS relational databases as managed services in the cloud, with advantages like built-in high availability, dynamic scaling and world-class security features.  When looking to migrate NoSQL databases like MongoDB and Cassandra to the cloud, Cosmos DB provides an excellent destination.  Customers gain access to managed NoSQL at a lower total cost of ownership (TCO) vs. on-premises and cloud competitors not to mention the industry leading SLA, global distribution, and features that take all the work out of DevOps. You can get started today by using the Azure Cosmos DB API of your choice to migrate NoSQL data and apps from MongoDB, Cassandra, Hbase, and more, using a free trial of Azure Cosmos DB.

With SQL Server 2019, organizations can now seamlessly manage their structured and unstructured data in a single, integrated solution. It comes with big data capabilities built-in, including support for Apache Spark^TM and Hadoop Distributed File System (HDFS)—everything you need to build a data lake with your SQL Server skills. Today we announce SQL Server 2019 community technology preview (CTP) 2.1 which has a number of new features for the database engine and big data clusters:

• Ability to deploy R and Python apps inside a SQL Server big data cluster
• Scalar UDF inlining feature in Intelligent query processing, optimizing a common performance problem scenario for User Defined Functions
• Derived table or view aliases in graph match queries
• Improved diagnostic data for long-running queries, helping to pinpoint when a query is blocked by stats background processing
• Ability to put buffer pool in persistent memory, dramatically speeding up I/O operations

And we have more planned for upcoming previews of SQL Server 2019, including Accelerated Data Recovery to speed up recovery processing, transaction rollback, readable secondaries, and adding availability groups for system databases which enables users to replicate linked server definitions, logins, and SQL Agent jobs to the secondary replicas.

Hybrid enables comprehensive AI and analytics

Having the most consistent data platform across on-premises and cloud enables us to offer AI and analytics over all your data. Azure SQL Data Warehouse is a cloud data warehouse that combines lightning fast query performance with advanced security features to turn all your data into actionable insights. Azure SQL Data Warehouse has been recognized as the fastest cloud data warehouse by third party benchmarks. Building upon its industry leading performance, today we announced significant security and usability updates. Customers can now take advantage of a new workload importance feature to influence query execution by priority, making sure high business value work gets first access to system resources. In addition, SQL Data Warehouse now offers native row level security, enabling customers to implement the most stringent security policies for fine-grained access control. Other new capabilities include support for SQL Server Data Tool, enhanced performance monitoring, advanced tuning and accelerated database recovery to significantly improve service usability. Learn more about this and other new features in today’s Azure SQL Data Warehouse blog. Experience the performance of Azure SQL Data Warehouse by creating your first data warehouse.

Azure SQL Data Warehouse also offers efficient and scalable structured streaming write support through native Azure Databricks connector. Azure Databricks is an Apache^® Spark™-based analytics platform that enables you to accelerate and simplify the process of building big data and AI solutions to drive the business forward, all backed by industry leading SLAs. We recently announced the preview of Azure Databricks Delta, a powerful transactional storage layer built on Apache Spark to provide better consistency of data and faster read access. Organizations also benefit from Azure Databricks’ native integration with other services like Azure Blob Storage, Azure Data Factory, and Azure Cosmos DB. This enables new analytics solutions that support modern data warehousing, advanced analytics, and real-time analytics scenarios.

Announced at Ignite, the Azure Data Explorer preview is a fast, highly scalable data exploration service for log and telemetry data. It helps you handle many data streams, so you can collect, store, and analyze data. Azure Data Explorer is ideal for analyzing large volumes of diverse data from any data source, such as websites, applications, IoT devices, and more. Azure Data Explorer makes it simple to ingest this data and enables you to perform complex ad-hoc queries on the data in seconds.  Today at PASS, we’re excited to host one of our customers, Taboola, to demonstrate how their organization is using Azure Data Explorer to analyze web data in near real time, crunching large amounts of web data in order to provide the best content recommendations to webpage readers – all in real time.

Customers who want to stream data or analyze in real-time to get valuable insights faster need a massively scalable, distributed, event-driven messaging platform with multiple producers and consumers. Apache Kafka and Azure Event Hubs provide such distributed platforms.  Azure Event Hubs for Apache Kafka, now generally available, provides a Kafka endpoint that can be used by your existing Kafka-based applications as an alternative to running your own Kafka cluster. With Event Hubs for Kafka, you get the best of both worlds—the ecosystem and tools of Kafka, along with Azure’s security and global scale—in a fully managed solution.

Experience your data

Microsoft’s Business Intelligence (BI) tools are evolving as well. Power BI already includes robust self-service data preparation capabilities in Power BI Desktop through the familiar Power Query based experiences that are used by millions of users worldwide. With the new public preview of dataflows in Power BI, we’re taking self-service data preparation to the next level, enabling business analysts to create data preparation logic that can be reused across multiple Power BI reports and dashboards and linked together to create sophisticated data transformation pipelines. Dataflows can be configured to store the data in the customer’s Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 instance, and dataflows support the Microsoft Common Data Model, giving organizations the ability to leverage a standardized and extensible collection of data schemas (entities, attributes, and relationships).

For our long-time BI customers with investments in SQL Server Reporting Services, with the public preview today, you can include pixel-perfect paginated reports alongside to Power BI’s existing interactive reports. This provides a unified, secure, enterprise-wide reporting platform accessible to any user across devices. You can read more about these innovations in a blog from Arun Ulagaratchagan, General Manager, Power BI Engineering.

Getting started

In conclusion, I’m excited to share with you that hybrid is here:  Microsoft’s consistent data platform across on-premises and cloud connects all your data and makes intelligence over all your data possible. We are proud to provide customers with the widest range of options to run SQL on Azure at the best price.  And our best-of-breed data analytics options bring AI to all your data.

•  If you’d like to watch my talk at PASS, you can sign in on the PASS website.  Registration is free and sessions the keynote content starts at 8:15 AM Pacific.
•  If you’re ready to get started, here are a few great places to get going:
  • Learn more about SQL Server 2019
  • Get started on your migration with a free trial of Azure Services, including Azure SQL Database

The post Harness the future with the ultimate hybrid platform for data and AI appeared first on Microsoft SQL Server Blog.