Use Azure SQL Single Database

TimeXtender began supporting Azure SQL Database with the release of version 17.5. Azure SQL Single Database is a fully managed, database-as-a-service in the Microsoft Azure Cloud. This service is always running the latest SQL Engine, never require patches or updating and can be deployed in minutes. When configured using the "Serverless" Compute Tier, the database can even scale and pause automatically based on workload. It is an ideal solution for most cloud-based data warehouses utilizing fewer than billion row tables and requiring less than several terabytes of storage. 

Important: Azure SQL Database does not support cross-database queries, so the typical architecture of having separate Staging and Data Warehouse databases is not ideal. In this case, we need to configure TimeXtender to setup Staging & the Data Warehouse to use a shared Azure SQL Database, and prevent table naming collisions using separate schemas. 

In this article you will learn how to:

1. Configure an Azure SQL Database
2. Configure SQL Users & Permissions
3. Setup Staging & Data Warehouses in a shared Azure SQL Database
4. Configure Schemas to prevent table naming collisions

1. Configure an Azure SQL Database

Create an Azure SQL Database. You will need two, one for the project repository and one for your ODX / DSA / MDW. Using the "Serverless" Compute Tier, the database can even scale and pause automatically based on workload.

Note: There are two common issues when using "Serverless" tier with TimeXtender:

1.  Initial Execution may fail when serverless is paused - to fix this issue, enable retires in your execution package with a 2-3 minute delay.

2.  Repeat executions may fail when serverless is scaling.  This is because the processing speed at lower vCores is still too slow.  To fix it, ensure the Min vCores is raised to a reasonable limit, or very close to the Max vCores.

2. Configure SQL users & Permissions

You will need to create users in Azure SQL Database with the necessary permissions. Alternatively, you can use Azure Active Directory. 

3. Setup Staging & Data Warehouses in a shared Azure SQL Database

Create a new project, make sure SSIS is not selected, add a Business Unit and a STAGE/DSA database. Alternatively, you can use the ODX Server instead. 

Add the server name, use SQL Server authentication and add the same user configured above. Type in the name of your Azure SQL Database create in previous steps.

Add a Data warehouse. It is set up so it points to the same database that created earlier. Use the same server and user account. In all Data Warehouse databases, be sure to set Direct Read to 'Matching Server and Database'.  This will enable TimeXtender to perform a "Select Into" operation to move the data rather than attempting to use ADO.Net. 

4. Configure Schemas to prevent table naming collisions

In the Staging Database, create a DSA schema. This is to split up the two parts of the database in DSA and DWH. It needs to be set up as the "Main default schema".

In the Data Warehouse Database, create a DWH Schema and set it as "Main default schema". This will prevent table naming collisions with the DSA database.

Deploy/Execute. 

Alternative ways of using Azure Databases

Perhaps you want only the Data Warehouse database to be located on Azure. This is possible, as long as you do not use Direct Read and SSIS. 

You can also set up multiple environments where a Dev environment locally and a Prod environment fully on Azure.