SSAS Tabular on Azure? - sql

I'm attempting to deploy an ssas tabular model (I don't know what I'm doing )
I have made multidimensional on SQL Server 2008 R2 with VS2013. I wanted to try Tabular in conjunction with power BI.
So I set up a SQL Azure DB, I have Azure SQL database and Visual Studio 2013 Pro
I can get the connection to the Azure DB in VS2013 and write T-SQL against it but when I try and create a tabular model and select the Azure database as the SQL Server workspace it fails to make a connection.
Is it something to do with the compatibility module or do I need to create a Azure VM? Thank you for your help ... p.s. this is my fist question ever I'm excited

Azure SQL DB is a relational SQL database. It is not Analysis Services. You can't deploy an Analysis Services database to Azure SQL DB. You will need to create a virtual machine in Azure from a SQL Server Enterprise Edition image and install a Tabular instance and open ports and deploy your tabular model to that VM.
Update as of October 2016: They just announced Azure Analysis Services. While it is completely separate from Azure SQL Database, it does provide a PaaS offering for Analysis Services tabular models which means you don't have to deploy a VM for this functionality. Currently it supports 1200 and above compatibility level tabular models, not multidimensional models.

Analysis Services is now available as a service that can be provisioned directly inside the Azure Portal (no VM needed):
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-gb/documentation/articles/analysis-services-overview/

Related

SQL server to Azure process workflow migration

We are supporting a legacy system for our organisation. In the current scenario, we receive a SQL Server backup (.bak files) from the application vendor on an FTP location. For every weekend on Sunday it is a Full backup and for every other day its the differential one.
On our side, we have a SQL server instance running which has custom stored procedures written and scheduled to check the location every morning and then restore the backups every day. These restored backups are then used by the organisation for internal reporting purposes. There are 100s of other stored procedures written for different reports in different DBs on the same instance.
Since SQL Server 2008 is now out of support and for cost-saving purposes of running on-premise system, my team has been given a task to look into migrating this whole system to Azure SQL database.
My question is what is the most effective way in which we can move this workflow to the cloud? I have an azure trial account set up for me to try but haven't been successful in restoring the .bak files on Azure SQL instance.
Thanks.
You essentially have two options for Azure, either perform a fairly linear Lift and Shift to SQL Server on an Azure VM or go with a more advanced Azure PaaS offering in Azure SQL Database Managed Instance. The specific deployment Azure SQL Database (Single Instance) will not support your current solution requires with regard to the .bak file support, and I have detailed that below. For further details between the difference between Azure SQL Database Single Instance versus Managed Instance, please see: Features comparison: Azure SQL Database and Azure SQL Managed Instance
The second option, is to leverage the Azure Enterprise Ready Analytics Architecture (AERAA) (link) of Azure (PaaS) Analytics services. With Azure SQL Database (PaaS) services, as opposed to on-premise SQL Server or SQL Server on an Azure VM, there is no Integration Runtime or Analysis Services as a bundled service component. These services are separate PaaS offerings and with the help of the linked AERAA blog, you can gain a better understanding of the Azure Analytics services.
The .bak versus .bacpac support dilemma:
Since the main requirement for your solution is support of .bak files, you need to understand where .bak and where .bacpac files are supported. The term Azure SQL Database applies to both a specific deployment option for an Azure SQL database (PaaS) service and as a general term for Azure SQL cloud databases. As for the specific deployment option, Azure SQL Database (Single Instance nor Elastic Pools) will support your scenario with .bak files. This deployment option will support export/import functionality via .bacpac file format. It will not support full/partial restore functionality. The backup/restore functionality although configurable, is only in scope for the specific database hosted by an Azure SQL (logical) Server instance. Basically, you can not restore an external file. You can import, which is always a full copy. So, for that reason, for an Azure PaaS database service you will need Azure SQL Database Managed Instance for .bak file support or deploy an SQL Server VM image to an Azure VM, and migrate your objects via Azure Database Migration Service.
Regards,
Mike

Does SSRS in an Azure Virtual VM support Report Server Databases as Azure SQL Database and/or Azure SQL MAnaged Instance?

I installed SSRS into an Azure VM (IaaS). In the ssrs configuration manager, I tried the report server databases point to an Azure SQL Managed Instance database, but the connection didn't work. I would like to know if SSRS in an Azure VM support Report Server Databases as Azure SQL Database and/or Azure SQL MAnaged Instance. If it is supported, can you please share any documentation about that?
Thanks!
To my knowledge Report Server databases cannot be hosted on Azure SQL Database as I mentioned on this MSDN forum thread.
As long as I know, the Report Server database can be hosted on a Managed Instance and is mentioned by a Microsoft Data Platform MVP on this article. You won't find any official documentation on how to do this. This scenario makes little sense to me, because you will be paying money for a SQL VM and a Managed Instance. You will be paying SQL licenses for both. You save money if you have SSRS and its databases on the VM,

Is it possible to restore a SQL Server database in Azure?

I have a backup of a SQL Server 2008 database. I'd like to restore it as an Azure SQL Server database. Is this possible?
P.S. I've seen a couple of questions to this effect from 2014. Is it possible today?
AFAIK, no it's not possible.
The Unsupported in SQL Azure doco https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/articles/sql-database-transact-sql-information/ directs you to BOL and RESTORE shows it's not available in SQL Azure.
https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms186858.aspx
Are you able to restore the backup to an instance of SQL 2008 on-premises/locally first? If so you can then use management studio to Export the data and schema as a BACPAC or DACPAC file (export data tier application), which can then be imported into an Azure database using the Import data tier application. You can also use the Taks -> Generate Scripts option from the database node in the management studio, ensure you check on include schema and data - then the SQL files can be executed against your SQL Azure instance as well.
There are some features which aren't available in SQL Azure that are on the server product, but the import will tell you about those if there are any - things like FILESTREAM aren't supported in Azure. Here is the link to take you through steps to migrate from SQL server to SQL Azure - and here are the differences in supported features between the two.
I have some production databases in Azure and frequently download them as data tier apps, import them into a local instance of SQL Server to do some debugging or testing, its a painless process.

SQL Azure via Visual Studio

Does anyone know when a tool will be available to manage a SQL Azure database from within Visual Studio or SQL Enterprise Manager?
At present one can only cannect via:
1) SQL Management Studio (SSMS)
(The cancel and connect via new query method)
2) Azure Storage Manager: http://azurestoragemanager.codeplex.com/
3) SQL Azure Migration Wizard: http://sqlazuremw.codeplex.com/
4) Custom Application
I have gone down the custom route, an application that basically runs scripts within different folders to Update Tables and Stored Procesures etc.
Plus:
SQL Azure Explorer on Codeplex - free and with source code (addin for VS2010 Beta1)
Cerebrata Cloud Storage Studio - Winforms app to browse SQL Azure
Cerebrata Omega.MSSQL browser-based admin of SQL Server including SQL Azure (see announcement in blog post here)
Marc
Few corrections below:
Cloud Storage Studio is for managing Windows Azure Storage (Tables, Blobs & Queues) and not SQL Azure.
Omega.MSSQL is for managing SQL Server (2008/2005/2000) via a browser based interface (IE only). We customized Omega.MSSQL to work against SQL Azure. That customized version is available online only. To read more about it and access the application please visit this link: http://cerebrata.com/Blog/post/Browser-based-SQL-Azure-Explorer.aspx
Haven't tried personally, but according to the SQL Azure team the November CTP of SQL Server 2008 R2 has a version of Management Studio that will allow direct connections to SQL Azure without having to do the cancel/connect workaround:
http://blogs.msdn.com/ssds/archive/2009/11/10/9920168.aspx

Restore a SQL Server database from single instance to cluster

I need to transfer a database from a SQL Server instance test server to a production environment that is clustered. But SQL Server doesn't allow you to use backup/restore to do it from single instance to cluster. I'm talking about a Microsoft CRM complex database here.
Your help is greatly appreciated.
Have a look at the Microsoft SQL Server Database Publishing Wizard:
SQL Server Database Publishing Wizard
enables the deployment of SQL Server
databases into a hosted environment on
either a SQL Server 2000 or 2005
server. It generates a single SQL
script file which can be used to
recreate a database (both schema and
data) in a shared hosting environment
where the only connectivity to a
server is through a web-based control
panel with a script execution window.
If supported by the hosting service
provider, the Database Publishing
Wizard can also directly upload
databases to servers located at the
shared hosting provider.
Optionally, SQL Server Database
Publishing Wizard can integrate
directly into Visual Studio 2005
and/or Visual Web Developer 2005
allowing easy publishing of databases
from within the development
environment.
You don't have to use the server-side piece; the client-side 'create a script' piece is generally enough.