May 21, 2012 at 9:15 am
Hi folks,
I am considering migrating some of my existing smaller databases to SQL Azure/ Amazon RDS/ EC2. Has anybody successfully done this? I would like to understand the pros and cons. Also did you use any tools in the process? How are you managing your databases once they are in the cloud?
regards,
Dharshan.
May 21, 2012 at 9:49 am
SSMS works against Azure databases, so you can use that.
As far as migration, you connect with TDS and then move the data. Red Gate's Data Compare will work, as will SSIS, or most SQL tools.
Why move the databases to Azure? There are ongoing costs involved with keeping things there, and you might need to rethink your app. I think Azure works well when you architect something new, but if you have the hardware and space, why move?
Disclosure: I work for Red Gate Software
May 21, 2012 at 12:40 pm
Thanks for the reply Steve. Is there a good whitepaper on the costs associated with running databases on SQL Azure? The way I see it I have three choices to run databases in the cloud
1. SQL Azure
2. Amazon RDS
3. Amazon EC2 where I can setup my own SQL Server.
I was hoping to understand from this forum the choices other DBA's have made and the pro's/con's of each solution. What is your preference?
May 21, 2012 at 1:23 pm
It sooooo depends on what you're doing.
SQL Azure is different than SQL Server. However they offer some better backups/replicas in ways. No idea about pricing. I spoke with a few companies a week ago and they chose Azure of EC2 because it worked out cheaper for them, but they also use a bunch of table storage (key-value stuff) in Azure, so their db is small.
EC2 - nice idea, but seems better for startups. Over time, not sure if you save on power/cooling/hardware here, but you'd have to do the math. Zero admin savings here, which is often a big deal.
RDS - no admin stuff, and it's almost the same as SQL Server 2008 R2 in your data center. No windows auth, and pricing can be complex.
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