Playing with SQL Server 2014 (and VS2013) the Azure VM way

Home Of The Scary DBA - Getting Started With SQL Server 2014 the Easy Way

You know you want to at least take a look at the new Client Technology Preview (CTP) of SQL Server 2014. I don’t blame you either. I want to spend hours swimming through it too. But, you’re thinking to yourself, “Heck, I’d have to download the silly thing, provision a new VM, walk through the install… Nah. Too much work.” I don’t blame you. I found myself on the road the day the software was released, so I was going to attempt to do all that work on a hotel wireless system. In short, I was going to have to wait, no options. Or were there? Actually, there is a much easier option. Azure Virtual Machines.

And no, it’s not that I can simply get a Windows Azure VM ready to go faster than I can a local one (and, depending on just how I set up and maintain my local servers, that might be true). No, it’s that I can immediately get a copy of SQL Server 2014, no download required. It’s that I can, within about five (5) minutes have a server up and running with SQL Server 2014 installed and ready to go. How? Microsoft maintains a gallery of images for quick setups of Azure Virtual Machines. A couple of those images include SQL Server 2014.

To get started on this, and not pay a penny, you need to make sure that you pass the MSDN permissions listed at that link. I know that some people won’t, and I’m sorry. However, get your MSDN subscription set up and link it to an Azure account, then you’re ready to go. Throughout this post, I’ll refer to paying for Azure, if you’re running through MSDN, just insert, “using up my credits” for “paying” and it should all make sense.

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There's also a Win Server 2012 R2/VS2013 image too. I've whined about not having this for years and years. Man, I am glad to finally see happening...

So if you have a MSDN Subscription, you can start playing with these right now, very likely MUCH faster than you can locally. And you don't even need a Credit Card!