Learn how to Migrate a SQL Server database to SQL Azure

server
Problem

This tip intends to help those Microsoft data professionals that are moving to SQL Azure for the first time. You should use this article as a
tutorial and follow it step-by-step. I will also try to share my experiences on the differences that I have found when I was moving from SQL
Server to SQL Azure for the first time.

In my first article of this SQL Azure series, I wrote about how to create a SQL Azure database. In this article I am writing about how to migrate
regular SQL Server databases to a SQL Azure server.

Solution

SQL Azure does not support BACKUP and RESTORE commands and neither CREATE DATABASE FOR ATTACH, so we cannot use these
methods to import a SQL Server database into Microsoft Azure. The Copy Database Wizard also does not work for migrating databases from
SQL Server to SQL Azure.

There are some possible methods, but the simpler options use bacpac files. A bacpac file is a compressed file that contains the database schema
and the respective data.

There are alternative methods that use migration tools or other SQL Server features such as Replication. If you want to know those methods, I
added a link to the respective MSDN article at the end of this article as I will not explain them in this article.

Before continuing with this article, note that for a successful migration it is expected that everything is working properly after the migration, so
be sure that the database that you are migrating is 100% compatible with SQL Azure. If you are not sure, before starting the migration, check in
this MSDN article: T-SQL differences between SQL Server and SQL Azure. Also check the supported features in SQL Azure. And do not forget
to perform as many tests as you can to assure a clean and error free migration process.

The migration process is basically an export and import of bacpac file. Let us see how to achieve those tasks.

Export to bacpac file in SQL Server Management Studio

To export a database to a bacpac file in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), connect to the desired SQL Server instance and in the Object
Explorer pane, right-click on the name of the desired database. In the context-menu select Tasks > Export Data-tier Application:

The above option will open the respective wizard:

Click Next > in the Introduction page to go to the Export Settings:
In the Export Settings you are requested to provide the location to save the bacpac file. You can save it to the local disk or to an Azure storage
account. Since I do not have an Azure storage account I will save the bacpac file to my local disk.

In the Advanced tab you can select which objects will be exported. By default, all objects are selected. Since this is what I want (migrate full
database), I will go with the default and have all objects selected.

After providing the location and the bacpac file name, the Next > button will be enabled and then you can click on it to proceed. This will
present the Summary page, where you can verify and confirm the provided settings:
After confirming that all provided information is correct, click on the Finish button to start the Export.

Errors will be shown if the export is unsuccessful and you will need to click on the respective error to find out what went wrong (usually errors
occurs when unsupported elements or external references try to be exported). The following screen shows what a successful export looks like:
Click on the Close button to exit the BACPAC export wizard.

Import a bacpac file to SQL Azure

To create a SQL Azure database from a bacpac file in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), connect to the desired SQL Azure server and in
the Object Explorer pane, right-click on the Databases folder. In the context-menu select Import Data-tier Application:

The above option will call the Import bacpac wizard and it will start by presenting the Introduction page:
Click on the Next > button to provide the Import Settings:
In the Import Settings you are requested to provide the location of the bacpac file to import from. You can import from an existing bacpac file
from the local disk or from an Azure storage account. Since I have exported the bacpac file to my local disk, I will import it from there.

After providing the location and the bacpac file name, the Next > button will be enabled and then you can click on it to proceed. This will move
to the Database settings screen:
In the Database Settings page, you are requested to configure the new SQL Azure database by providing the new database name (by default it
will present the source database name) and the maximum database size (by default it will be configured with the maximum allowed size for the
selected edition).

For this case I will keep the original database name, but will change to the Basic edition since the database is very small and I do not need to go
for a more expensive edition.

Click on the Next > button to proceed to the Summary page:

In the Summary page, confirm that you provided the correct information. As you can see by the above screenshot, I have changed the edition to
Basic. After confirming, click on the Finish button to start the Import.

An error will be shown if there is an unsuccessful import and you will need to click on the respective error to find out what went wrong. The
following screen shot shows how a successful import should look:
Click on the Close button to exit the BACPAC import wizard.

Validate SQL Azure Import

You can confirm that the new database has been created in the SQL Azure server.

In SSMS navigate to the instance:

And in the Microsoft Azure Portal by checking in the respective SQL Azure server:
Deploy database to Azure
I have showed you how to migrate a SQL Server database to SQL Azure server by exporting and importing a bacpac file.

I want to show you each option isolated so you can understand them better and depending on what your needs are you can choose to go for a
step-by-step process (for example for later import or to provide the bacpac file to another entity) or go for an immediate migration.

Now I will show you how to do the same but in a single run, i.e. the export and import will happen immediately one after another without human
intervention.

Deploying a SQL Server database to a Microsoft Azure SQL database, can be achieved in SSMS by right-clicking in the database name that we
want to migrate and then choose the following options from the context-menu: Tasks > Deploy Database to Microsoft Azure SQL Database.

This will start the Deployment wizard by presenting the Introduction page:
Click on the Next > button to provide the Deployment Settings:
Click on the Connect button to provide the credentials to connect to your SQL Azure server. Then provide the new database name. I will use the
same test database, but need to provide a new name since test was been used before during the previous import. I will call this new
database testDB as I cannot use an existing database name.

You can use the suggested temporary file name and path or provide a new path and/or file name. In my case I will just accept the suggested one.

Click on the Next > button when you have provided all the necessary information for the deployment. Then confirm on the Summary page if the
provided information is correct:
If it is all correct, click the Finish button to start the deployment of the database.

The deployment will show first the Export and then the Import processes. It will stop if any errors occur during these processes. When
completed successfully, a screen similar to the following will be shown:
Click on the Close button to exit the Deploy database wizard.

Validate the New SQL Azure Database is Online

You can confirm now that the new database has been created in the SQL Azure server. In SSMS navigate to the SQL Azure instance:

And in the Microsoft Azure Portal validate by checking in the respective SQL Azure server:
W hen talking about the topic of cloud computing services, you must have heard of these
concepts, Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS),
and Software as a Service (SaaS). They are the three major service categories provided by
cloud providers. It is important to understand what they are and what the difference between them
is because they will appear on various occasions where cloud computing services are discussed.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
As you can see in the image above, IaaS is the most flexible
category of cloud services. Instead of buying hardware, with IaaS,
you rent IT infrastructure servers and virtual machines (VMs),
storage, networks, and operating systems from Microsoft on
a pay-as-you-go basis, and you are responsible for managing the
operating systems, data, and applications.

Therefore, Azure virtual machines are Infrastructure as a

Service (IaaS) and Azure page blobs are the backbone of the
virtual disks platform for Azure IaaS.

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

As you can see in the image above, a PaaS solution requires less
user management and does not provide access to the operating
system. That means that the PaaS is a complete development and
deployment environment in the cloud and provides a framework
that developers can build upon to develop or customize cloud-
based applications.

For example, the Azure Web Apps service provides an

environment for you to host your web applications but you don't
have to access the virtual machine and the operating system.
And Azure SQL Database is a fully managed platform as a
service (PaaS) database engine that handles most of the database
management functions such as upgrading, patching, backups, and
monitoring without user involvement.

Software as a Service (SaaS)

A SaaS solution requires the least management. Microsoft is
responsible for managing everything, and you just use the
software. SaaS allows you to connect to and use cloud-based apps
over the Internet. When you are implementing a SaaS solution,
you are responsible for configuring the SaaS solution. Common
examples are Outlook email, calendar, and office tools (such as
Microsoft Office 365).

Summary
And as a summary, here is a table that shows several examples of
Azure services belonging to these three categories.
what is BLOB storage in Azure
Blob storage is service which storing the large amounts
of unstructured data object like Text, Binary data, image,
video, audio and also it store data backup, restoring, and
disaster recovery. Blob storage is exposing the data
publically and privately. For public usage there is no need
of additional configuration. But for private usage we
must configure the shared key or shared access signature
(SAS)

How a shared access signature works

A shared access signature is a signed URI that points to
one or more storage resources. The URI includes a token
that contains a special set of query parameters.
When to use shared access signature
Use a SAS to give secure access to resources in your
storage account to any client who does not otherwise
have permissions to those resources. A common scenario
where a SAS is useful is a service where users read and
write their own data to your storage account.
What is Azure data lake
Microsoft Azure Data Lake is part of the Microsoft Azure
public cloud platform, which includes more than 200
products and cloud services. Azure Data Lake is a cloud
platform designed to support big data analytics and it
provides unlimited storage for structured, semi-
jhjhjhru8 l data. It can be used to store any type of data
of any size. Azure Data Lake is built on Azure Blob
storage, which is the Microsoft object storage solution
for the cloud. The solution Mati features low-cost, tiered
storage and high-availability/disaster recovery
capabilities.
WHAT IS DEFFRENCE BT SQL AZURE VM AND SQL AZURE
DATABASE
In SQL Server Azure VM we need a specific version of sql
server or windows but in Azure sql database we don’t
need a specific version of server or windows.
In sql server Azure VM we need instance level features
like Agent jobs, linked servers but in Azure database we
don’t need instance level features.
In sql Azure VM requires configuration but in Azure
database we don’t need configuration and manage
server or windows.
Great for migrating existing apps but it great for new
apps in Azure database.
Deployment models for on perm to Azure
Azure sql server database provides three deployment
options:
1. Single database: is a fully managed and isolated
database
2. Elastic Pool: is a collection of single database with a
shared set of resource
3. Managed instance: is a fully managed instance of the
sql server