Microsoft Azure Options for SQL Server Relational Databases

Azure is Microsoft’s collection of cloud services for developers and IT professionals. Microsoft Azure provides both IaaS and PaaS options for building, deploying and managing SQL Server database applications in the cloud. This paper will examine the various Azure options available for SQL Server database applications including: Azure SQL DB single database, elastic pools, the new Azure Managed Instances and SQL Server on an Azure VM. We will describe the details of how each option is managed internally, and the differences between the assorted options. With this information, we’ll be able to provide recommendations for using each of the options and discuss how to choose between the options based on your requirements.