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Azure SQL Database is an intelligent, scalable, relational database service built for the cloud. SQL Database is a fully managed platform as a service (PaaS) database engine that handles most database management functions such as upgrading, patching, backups, and monitoring without user involvement.
Using an Azure free account, you can try Azure SQL Database for
free for 12 months
with the following
monthly limit
:
1 S0 database with 10 database transaction units and 250 GB storage
This article shows you how to create and use an Azure SQL Database for free using an
Azure free account
.
Prerequisites
To try Azure SQL Database for free, you need:
An Azure free account. If you don't have one,
create a free account
before you begin.
Create a database
This article uses the Azure portal to create a SQL Database with public access. Alternatively, you can create a SQL Database using
PowerShell, the Azure CLI
or an
ARM template
.
To create your database, follow these steps:
Sign in to the
Azure portal
with your Azure free account.
Search for and select
SQL databases
. Select
+ Create
.
On the
Basics
tab of the
Create SQL Database
form, under
Project details
, select the free trial Azure Subscription, for example,
Azure subscription 1
.
For
Resource group
, select
Create new
, enter
myResourceGroup
, and select
OK
.
For
Database name
, enter
mySampleDatabase
.
For
Server
, select
Create new
, and fill out the
New server
form to create a new Azure SQL Database logical server. Use the following values:
Server name
: Enter
mysqlserver
, and add some characters for uniqueness, for example, today's date. We can't provide an exact server name to use because server names must be globally unique for all servers in Azure, not just unique within a subscription. So enter something like
mysqlserver12345
, and the Azure portal lets you know if it's available or not.
Choose a desired
Location
for the logical server from the dropdown list.
For
Authentication method
, choose
Use both SQL and Azure AD authentication
to configure both SQL Authentication and Azure Active Directory authentication.
Select
yourself as the admin for
Set Azure AD admin
. You can also choose a group.
Server admin login
: Enter
azureuser
for the SQL authentication server admin login.
Password
: Enter a password that meets complexity requirements, and enter it again in the
Confirm password
field.
Select
OK
.
Leave
Want to use SQL elastic pool?
set to
No
.
Under
Compute + storage
, select
Configure database
.
For the free trial, under
Service Tier
select
Standard
. Set
DTUs
to
10
and
Data max size (GB)
to
250
, and then select
Apply
.
Select
Next: Networking
at the bottom of the page.
On the
Networking
tab, for
Connectivity method
, select
Public endpoint
.
For
Firewall rules
, set
Allow Azure services and resources to access this server
set to
Yes
and set
Add current client IP address
to
Yes
.
Leave
Connection policy
set to
Default
.
For
Encrypted Connections
, leave
Minimum TLS version
set to
TLS 1.2
.
Select
Next: Security
at the bottom of the page.
Select
Next: Additional settings
at the bottom of the page.
On the
Additional settings
tab, in the
Data source
section, for
Use existing data
, select
Sample
. This creates an
AdventureWorksLT
sample database so there are some tables and data to query and experiment with, as opposed to an empty blank database.
Select
Review + create
at the bottom of the page.
Important
While creating the SQL Database from your Azure free account, you will still see an
Estimated cost per month
in the
Compute + Storage : Cost Summary
blade and
Review + Create
tab. But, as long as you are using your Azure free account, and your free service usage is within monthly limits, you won't be charged for the service. To view usage information, review
Monitor and track free services usage
later in this article.
When the deployment is complete, select
Go to resource
.
Query the database
Once your database is created, you can use the
Query editor (preview)
in the Azure portal to connect to the database and query data.
In the portal, search for and select
SQL databases
, and then select your database from the list.
On the page for your database, select
Query editor (preview)
in the navigation menu.
Enter your
SQL server authentication
server admin login information or use
Azure Active Directory authentication
.
Enter the following query in the
Query editor
pane.
SELECT TOP 20 pc.Name as CategoryName, p.name as ProductName
FROM SalesLT.ProductCategory pc
JOIN SalesLT.Product p
ON pc.productcategoryid = p.productcategoryid;
Select Run, and then review the query results in the Results pane.
Monitor and track service usage
You are not charged for the Azure SQL Database included with your Azure free account unless you exceed the free service limit. To remain within the limit, use the Azure portal to track and monitor your free services usage.
To track usage, follow these steps:
In the Azure portal, search for Subscriptions and select the free trial subscription.
On the Overview page, scroll down to see the tile Top free services by usage, and then select View all free services.
Meter
Identifies the unit of measure for the service being consumed. For example, the meter for Azure SQL Database is SQL Database, Single Standard, S0 DTUs, which tracks the number of S0 databases used per day, and has a monthly limit of 1.
Usage/limit
The usage of the meter for the current month, and the limit for the meter.
Status
The current status of your usage of the service defined by the meter. The possible values for status are:
Not in use: You haven't used the meter or the usage for the meter hasn't reached the billing system.
Exceeded on <Date>: You've exceeded the limit for the meter on <Date>.
Unlikely to Exceed: You're unlikely to exceed the limit for the meter.
Exceeds on <Date>: You're likely to exceed the limit for the meter on <Date>.
Important
With an Azure free account, you also get $200 in credit to use in 30 days. During this time, any usage of the service beyond the free monthly amount is deducted from this credit.
At the end of your first 30 days or after you spend your $200 credit (whichever comes first), you'll only pay for what you use beyond the free monthly amount of services. To keep getting free services after 30 days, move to pay-as-you-go pricing. If you don't move to pay as you go, you can't purchase Azure services beyond your $200 credit and eventually your account and services will be disabled.
For more information, see Azure free account FAQ.
Clean up resources
When you're finished using these resources, you can delete the resource group you created, which will also delete the server and single database within it.
To delete myResourceGroup and all its resources using the Azure portal:
In the portal, search for and select Resource groups, and then select myResourceGroup from the list.
On the resource group page, select Delete resource group.
Under Type the resource group name, enter myResourceGroup, and then select Delete.
Next steps
Connect and query your database using different tools and languages:
Connect and query using SQL Server Management Studio
Connect and query using Azure Data Studio
