A deployment model in which SQL Server workloads run across a combination of on-premises infrastructure and cloud platforms (Azure, AWS, Google Cloud), enabling flexibility, scalability, and gradual cloud adoption.
- Hybrid cloud SQL Server architectures allow organizations to keep sensitive workloads on-premises: They can simultaneously leverage cloud resources for read replicas, disaster recovery, backups, and burst capacity.
- Azure Arc-enabled SQL Server extends Azure management capabilities to on-premises and multi-cloud environments: This includes security policies and Defender for SQL features for SQL Server instances running outside Azure.
- Common hybrid deployment patterns include: An on-premises primary database with an Azure SQL Managed Instance disaster recovery replica, cloud-based backups using Azure Blob Storage or Amazon S3, and cloud read replicas for offloading reporting workloads.
- DBAs managing hybrid environments must monitor performance, latency, and replication lag: Unified visibility tools are essential for tracking the health of both on-premises and cloud-based SQL Server instances.
- Licensing in hybrid environments can reduce cloud costs: Azure Hybrid Benefit allows organizations to apply existing SQL Server licenses with Software Assurance to Azure SQL services.
- Relevant Idera tools: SQL Diagnostic Manager monitors SQL Server instances across on-premises, cloud (Azure and AWS RDS), and hybrid environments from a single console.
- Related terms: Azure SQL, Amazon RDS, Always On Availability Groups, Cloud Migration, Azure Arc.
