Azure Database for PostgreSQL

Azure Database for PostgreSQL is an enterprise-ready, fully managed database service provided by Microsoft Azure. It’s based on the popular open-source PostgreSQL database, designed to handle a broad range of applications from small single-machine applications to large internet-facing applications with numerous concurrent users.

PostgreSQL is widely respected for its robustness, functionality, and performance capabili-ties. It supports a wide range of built-in and user-defined data types, out-of-the-box full-text search, and numerous extensions, including the popular PostGIS for geospatial analysis.
■■ Managed services: When you use Azure Database for PostgreSQL, you’re offloading your database administration tasks to Azure. Microsoft takes care of patching, updates, backups, and failure detection/recovery, allowing you to focus on your application and

60 CHAPTER 2 Identify considerations for relational data on Azure

business logic. This SLA offers high availability and guarantees no data loss if a failure occurs.

■■ Performance and scalability: The service provides built-in high performance and scalability, supporting up to 64 TB of storage and 20,000 IOPS. You can easily scale your compute resources up or down in response to changes in workload demands.

■■ Security and compliance: Azure Database for PostgreSQL provides advanced security and compliance, with features such as Azure Active Directory integration for identity and access management, firewall rules to restrict network access to your database, SSL connections for secure data transfer, and compliance with various standards such as ISO/IEC 27001 and HIPAA.

■■ Development productivity: As part of the Azure ecosystem, Azure Database for PostgreSQL provides integration with various Azure services and developer tools. These include Azure DevOps for continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD), Visual Studio Code extension for PostgreSQL, and Azure Data Studio for a rich query editing experience.

With these features, Azure Database for PostgreSQL is equipped to serve as the backbone for a variety of applications, whether it’s for a small project or a large enterprise-level applica-tion. However, knowing the capabilities and features is only part of the story. Let’s now delve into the business benefits and use cases that this service offers.