My love of data isn’t contained to just SQL Server. That was the data platform that I used heavily at work. However, I also have worked with MySQL and PostgreSQL. One of my first coding projects for an employer outside of the internship role was an inventory system for an IT department using PHP + MySQL. Early in my career, there were many nights trying things out and seeing how they worked with data, commonly stored in MySQL or PostgreSQL on Linux VMs. Many years later, I still am DBA for a MySQL database that is used with sensor readings in an IoT realm. I’ve always had one foot in the Linux realm and another in the Windows realm. So hearing some of my favorite Linux databases available in Azure made me excited.
If you’re working with MySQL or PostgreSQL, there are plenty of options for working with those in Azure. Microsoft Docs and Microsoft Learn have a lot of resources to get you going!
MySQL in Azure
There are multiple options for using MySQL in Azure. These options follow the same pattern:
- Platform-as-a-service (PaaS) – Azure Database for MySQL Single Server, Azure Database for MySQL Flexible Server
- Infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS): MySQL on VMs
Azure Database for MySQL is built for scale and high availability in both the Single Server and Flexible Server offerings. You can do the same in VMs. Azure Stack Hub can assist with that. Check out this article on creating highly available MySQL databases with Azure Stack Hub.
How do you know which of these MySQL options to choose? There’s a great comparison matrix in the document on choosing the right MySQL Server option. What I like most about this comparison matrix is that it gets in depth with what is covered. These are the topics they compare:
These are some resources to help you get started with MySQL and Azure Database for MySQL:
- Microsoft Learn – Shows – MySQL Developer Essentials series
- Microsoft Learn – Shows – Azure Database for MySQL
- Microsoft Learn – Work with MySQL Databases on Azure
PostgreSQL in Azure
These are some of the options for PostgreSQL in Azure:
- IaaS: Postgres on Azure VMs
- PaaS: Azure DB for PostgreSQL Single Server, Flexible Server, and Hyperscale (Citus)
There is a comparison matrix between VMs and PaaS offerings in this article on choosing the right PostgreSQL server option in Azure.
Each of the PaaS offerings has sets of tutorials to show you how to work with the PostgreSQL offerings.
These are additional resources to help you get started with PostgreSQL and Azure Database for PostgreSQL:
- Microsoft Learn – Events – Citus Con: An Event for Postgres 2022
- Data Exposed – How to Use Citus to Shard Postgres, for Performance & Scale
- Microsoft Learn – Azure Database for PostgreSQL (learning path)
- Microsoft Learn – Work with Azure Database for PostgreSQL (learning path)
Bonus: MariaDB in Azure
MariaDB is a fork of MySQL, meant to keep the database free and open-source under GNU General Public License. There were concerns once MySQL was acquired by Sun Microsystems, only to be acquired by Oracle, shence why MariaDB was created. Azure DB for MariaDB is the offering for Azure.
Much like the other databases mentioned here, MariaDB is available in IaaS and PaaS offerings. The docs team has an article to assist in selecting the right MariaDB Server option in Azure.
Here are some resources for working with MariaDB and the others mentioned in this post:
- Azure CLI samples for Azure Database for MariaDB
- Microsoft Learn – Introduction to Azure Database for MariaDB
- Microsoft Learn – Deploy MariaDB, MySQL, and PostgreSQL on Azure
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