Quick Note — Recommend a Solution for Storing Relational Data
AZ-305 › Unit 2 › Design data storage for relational data › Recommend a solution for storing relational data
Quick Note — Recommend a Solution for Storing Relational Data
Azure gives you four fundamentally different ways to run a relational database in the cloud, and the wrong choice will cost you either money, time, or both. This lesson teaches you how to pick among Azure SQL Database, Azure SQL Managed Instance, SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines, and the open-source Azure Database for PostgreSQL / MySQL Flexible Server. We focus on the deployment-model decision only — tier sizing, horizontal scaling, and backup/DR belong to sibling LOs in this topic.
Retrieval target
- Recommend a Solution for Storing Relational Data
- Closed-book recall
- 5 minutes
- Open the full lesson after a miss
Decision anchors
| Prompt | Compact answer |
|---|---|
Azure SQL Database (PaaS) | A fully managed PaaS database engine — Microsoft owns OS, SQL patches, backups, HA. Up to 4 TB on the DTU / vCore tiers, up to 100 TB on Hyperscale. Supports relational data plus JSON, graph, spatial, XML. Pick when you want a single-database surface with the least operational burden and don't need SQL-Server-instance features (no Agent, no cross-DB queries, no SSRS/SSIS/SSAS). |
Azure SQL Managed Instance (SQL MI) | A PaaS deployment that's nearly 100% compatible with SQL Server Enterprise — exposes a full instance (SQL Agent, cross-DB queries, linked servers, CLR, Service Broker, mail). Deployed into your VNet on a dedicated subnet. vCore purchasing only, 4–80 cores, up to 8 TB. Pick when migrating an on-prem SQL Server workload that uses instance-level features but you want PaaS-managed patching and HA. |
SQL Server on Azure VM (IaaS) | SQL Server installed on a Windows or Linux Azure VM — you own the OS, patching, SQL version, backups, and HA configuration. Full SQL Server surface area: SSRS, SSIS, SSAS, Always-On AGs, log shipping, database mirroring. Pick only when you need a SQL feature not yet in MI or when on-prem licensing economics demand it via Azure Hybrid Benefit. |
Azure Database for PostgreSQL — Flexible Server | The current-gen managed Postgres deployment option — runs in your VNet, supports zone-redundant HA, configurable maintenance windows, server parameters, stop/start for cost control, and major-version upgrades in-place. Single Server is the legacy alternative (no VNet, no zone HA) — always pick Flexible Server for new workloads. |
Read the answers once, then cover the right-hand column and reconstruct each one from the prompt. A useful answer names the requirement, the recommended control or service boundary, and the nearest alternative it rejects. If you can only recognize the answer after seeing it, retrieval is not yet secure.
Ninety-second explanation
Without notes, explain:
- What requirement signals this learning objective rather than a neighbouring one?
- Which two solution families are most likely to be compared?
- Which hard constraint eliminates the strongest distractor?
- What identity, network, data, or failure boundary must appear in the design?
- Which operational test would prove the recommendation works?
Then compare your explanation with the full lesson. Record the missing decision rule—not merely the missed product name—in your error log.
When to open the full lesson
Open the curriculum-linked lesson when you cannot explain a comparison, when a scenario depends on a numeric limit or SKU feature, or when the service is on a retirement path. Use current Microsoft Learn documentation for availability, limits, pricing, naming, and migration milestones; the quick note is intentionally compact.
Source and freshness
Derived from the linked AZ-305 lesson and retrieval deck, grounded in both attached course sources. Reviewed 2026-08-02. Current Microsoft documentation controls changing product contracts.