A quick guide for connecting to our free copy of AdventureWorks on the Azure platform.  Read more...

It is increasingly likely that DBAs are now given responsibility for maintaining Azure SQL databases as well as conventional SQL Server databases. What is likely to be required by way of maintenence? What are the differences? Grant Fritchey covers what you need to know.  Read more...

We’re putting together a free eBook of 50 tips for Azure Storage, if you’ve got tips that you’d like to share we’d love to hear from you.  Read more...

While backup to the Cloud may be useful in terms of optimizing storage across the enterprise, for DBAs it remains essential that they retain fast, easy, access to the backup files. Azure Explorer is a free tool that might help.  Read more...

Is there a sound technical reason why SQL Azure can't support extended properties?   Read more...

SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) can be used effectively as a tool for moving data to and from Windows Azure SQL Database, as part of the total extract, transform, and load (ETL) solution and as part of the data movement solution. SSIS can be used effectively to move data between sources and destinations in the cloud, and in a hybrid scenario between the cloud and on-premise. This paper outlines best practices for using SSIS for cloud sources and destinations and for project planning for SSIS projects to be used with Azure or hybrid data moves, and gives an example of maximizing performance on a hybrid move by scaling out the data movement.  Read more...

Amazon RDS SQL Server is the new kid on the block. Is it better than SQL Azure?  Read more...

An attempt to use Ordanance Survey OS Open Data, SQL Server and SharePoint in the construction of a system for supermarkets to supply expiring food to nearby homeless shelters.   Read more...

Before creating a data application in Windows Azure, it is important to make choices based on the type of data you have, as well as the security and the business requirements. There are a wide range of options, because Windows Azure has intrinsic data storage, completely separate from SQL Azure, that is highly available and replicated. Your data requirements are likely to dictate the type of data storage options you choose.  Read more...

Developers targeting the SQL Azure platform should make sure their applications are secure. This article walks through the considerations developers need to keep in mind when designing SQL Azure applications.  Read more...

We asked Buck Woody to come up with his favourite 'Cloud' Howlers. After 'Howler' monkeys, we are faced with Howler letters. Buck dreams of sending Howler letters to the folks who dreamed up the marketing hype around 'cloud' services, who misunderstand services, who don't prepares applications for distributed environments and so on.  Read more...

We are conducting new product research and are keen to speak to people who have any experience (good or bad!) using Microsoft's SQL or Windows Azure. If you're interested and would like to get involved--tell us your frustrations, shape a new product, test-drive betas etc  Read more...

We have been doing some more work with SQL Azure lately, so I have put together a small collection of...  Read more...

As a DBA you always followed a practice to back up your database (or take a snapshot of your database) before making any changes so that you can revert to your old database state if something goes wrong. Also to setup a development or test environment you use a backup of your database and restore it in the respective environment. If you are moving to SQL Azure, what would you do in these cases as backup / restore and database snapshots are not supported as of now?  Read more...

Learn how you can connect to a SQL Azure database.  Read more...

SQL Azure provides features similar to a relational database for your cloud apps. We’ll show you how to start developing for SQL Azure today.  Read more...

Most business applications you write probably utilize some kind of relational database. And, as a .NET developer, the chances are that database is Microsoft SQL Server. This article walks you through migrating your SQL Server database applications to the cloud with SQL Azure.  Read more...

SQL Azure Data Sync provides data synchronization between the cloud and local SQL Server databases. Learn how SQL Azure Data Sync allows you to keep the most concurrent information in the cloud while allowing mobile users, businesses, and enterprise data sources all to have access to this data.  Read more...

After years of using PHP content management systems and a variety of custom-built PHP content management solutions, PHP Guru Jason Gilmore concluded that no solution effectively offered both the fundamental features of a content management system (CMS) and the flexibility of a web framework.   Read more...

This article demonstrates how to build a simple Azure app using Visual Studio  Read more...