/azure-sql-virtual-machines

name: azure-sql-virtual-machines
description: Expert knowledge for SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines development including troubleshooting, best practices, decision making, architecture & design patterns, limits & quotas, security, configuration, integrations & coding patterns, and deployment. Use when planning SQL VM vs Managed Instance, Always On/FCI HADR, DTU/capacity, AHB licensing, or Blob backups, and other SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines related development tasks. Not for Azure SQL Database (use azure-sql-database), Azure SQL Managed Instance (use azure-sql-managed-instance), Azure Virtual Machines (use azure-virtual-machines), SAP HANA on Azure Large Instances (use azure-sap).
compatibility: Requires network access. Uses mcp_microsoftdocs:microsoft_docs_fetch or fetch_webpage to retrieve documentation.
metadata:
  generated_at: "2026-08-02"
  generator: "docs2skills/1.0.0"

SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines Skill

This skill provides expert guidance for SQL Server on Azure Virtual Machines. Covers troubleshooting, best practices, decision making, architecture & design patterns, limits & quotas, security, configuration, integrations & coding patterns, and deployment. It combines local quick-reference content with remote documentation fetching capabilities.

How to Use This Skill

> **IMPORTANT for Agent**: Use the **Category Index** below to locate relevant sections. For categories with line ranges (e.g., `L35-L120`), use `read_file` with the specified lines. For categories with file links (e.g., `[security.md](security.md)`), use `read_file` on the linked reference file

> **IMPORTANT for Agent**: If `metadata.generated_at` is more than 3 months old, suggest the user pull the latest version from the repository. If `mcp_microsoftdocs` tools are not available, suggest the user install it: [Installation Guide](https://github.com/MicrosoftDocs/mcp/blob/main/README.md)

This skill requires **network access** to fetch documentation content:

• **Preferred**: Use `mcp_microsoftdocs:microsoft_docs_fetch` with query string `from=learn-agent-skill`. Returns Markdown.
• **Fallback**: Use `fetch_webpage` with query string `from=learn-agent-skill&accept=text/markdown`. Returns Markdown.

Category Index

| Category | Lines | Description | |----------|-------|-------------| | Troubleshooting | L37-L51 | Diagnosing and fixing performance, connectivity, capacity, memory, log, replication, and I/O issues for Azure SQL Database, Managed Instance, and SQL Server on Azure VMs | | Best Practices | L52-L65 | Best practices for SQL Server on Azure VMs: HA/DR clustering, DNN listeners, backup/restore, performance tuning, storage and VM sizing, baselines, and best practices assessments. | | Decision Making | L66-L77 | Guidance for choosing Azure SQL options and pricing, comparing SQL VMs vs Managed Instance, planning migrations (including Db2), HADR choices, regional feature support, and SQL VM licensing/AHB. | | Architecture & Design Patterns | L78-L86 | High-level designs and patterns for SQL Server on Azure VMs: connectivity, Always On availability groups, failover cluster instances, and Windows Server Failover Clustering setup. | | Limits & Quotas | L87-L91 | Info on Azure SQL capacity limits, DTU benchmark behavior, regional feature availability, and how to request quota increases for databases and managed instances | | Security | L92-L101 | Securing SQL Server on Azure VMs: policies, TLS cert rotation, Key Vault/EKM, managed identities, Entra auth, Extended Security Updates, hardening guidance, and confidential VM deployment. | | Configuration | L102-L145 | Configuring SQL Server on Azure VMs: HA/DR (AGs, FCIs, listeners, load balancers), storage and tempdb layout, editions/versions, IaaS Agent, and connectivity options. | | Integrations & Coding Patterns | L146-L151 | Backing up SQL Server on Azure VMs directly to Azure Blob Storage, including configurations that use managed identities instead of stored credentials. | | Deployment | L152-L169 | Deploying and configuring SQL Server Always On/FCI on Azure VMs, including single/multi-subnet AGs, cross-region setups, migrations (regions, disks, FCI), and confidential VM deployments. |

Troubleshooting

| Topic | URL | |-------|-----| | Resolve capacity errors when deploying Azure SQL resources | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/capacity-errors-troubleshoot?view=azuresql | | Fix slow database import and export in Azure SQL | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/database-import-export-hang?view=azuresql | | Troubleshoot and mitigate transient connectivity errors in Azure SQL | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/troubleshoot-common-connectivity-issues?view=azuresql | | Troubleshoot Azure SQL and Fabric SQL connectivity errors | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/troubleshoot-common-errors-issues?view=azuresql | | Troubleshoot geo-replication and redo lag in Azure SQL Database | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/troubleshoot-geo-replication-redo?view=azuresql | | Investigate and fix memory issues in Azure SQL Database | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/troubleshoot-memory-errors-issues?view=azuresql | | Diagnose and fix Azure SQL DB transaction log full errors | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/database/troubleshoot-transaction-log-errors-issues?view=azuresql-db | | Resolve known issues in Azure SQL Managed Instance | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/managed-instance/doc-changes-updates-known-issues?view=azuresql | | Resolve transaction log full errors in Azure SQL Managed Instance | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/managed-instance/troubleshoot-transaction-log-errors-issues?view=azuresql-mi | | Troubleshoot SQL Server IaaS Agent extension issues on Azure VMs | https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/azure-sql/virtual-machines/windows/sql-agen