Understanding database service tiers

Usage patterns and requirements for any type of database vary greatly depending on the application that uses them. In an on-premises scenario, you would need to calculate the optimum amount of RAM, CPU cores, and disk configurations to best optimize a database or set of databases for any given solution.

In Azure, unless you opt for running SQL on a VM, many of these configuration details are abstracted away, and instead you must choose a pricing model and a service tier.

Because Cosmos DB and Azure SQL Database are different platforms, the configuration options are also different. Therefore, the options for each must be considered separately. We will start by understanding Azure SQL pricing tiers.

SQL Database tiers

Azure SQL has the most options available; you must decide between a pricing model, a service tier, and even different SQL products.

You essentially have two options when it comes to choosing a Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) SQL...