In preparation for the launch of my project on the Azure platform I created a new Azure Database Server Instance and a database to host the data for my application. The whole process went smoothly and within 5 minutes I had a functioning database with test data. Hats off to Microsoft for this, SQLAzure is really slick.
The process is pretty simple, I’ve putlined the steps below:
Creating A Database Server Instance on Azure
1) Log into the Windows Azure Managment Portal
2) Click the ‘Database’ icon (bottom of the left hand panel)
4) Select your Azure subscription from the drop down and click OK.
5) Select a Region for your database server to reside in. Click OK.
6) Create a Username and password for your database server.
7) You need to specify firewall rules in this step. I opted to let other Azure Services have access and also the IP of my own internet connection. Click Finish.
You should now have a database server listed under the subscription you selected in step 4.
When expanding the newly created server instance you’ll notice that a database has already been created for you called ‘master’. This is a database used by the sytem for its own administrative processes. It is NOT billable and casual users should probably leave it alone. In order to use the newly created server instance you need to create a new database.
Creating A New Database On A Server Instance
1) Select the blue ‘Create’ icon from the task bar at the top of the screen
2) Enter a name for your database.
3) Databases come in a range of sizes. The Azure free tier currently allows you to have 1 free web edition 1GB database free for three months. I selected these options and clicked OK.
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Tags: #phpazurecontest, PHP, SQLAZURE