Why Azure Arc Matters for Your Organization Azure Arc transforms how organizations manage their hybrid and multicloud infrastructure by extending Azure management capabilities to resources running anywhere, whether on premises, in AWS, or other cloud providers. For enterprises with SQL Server deployments outside of Azure, this means gaining centralized visibility, consistent governance, and enterprise grade security without migrating workloads. The core value proposition centers on three pillars. First, unified management provides a single pane of glass to view and manage all SQL Server instances regardless of where they run. Second, consistent security and governance applies Azure Policy, Microsoft Defender for Cloud, and compliance controls across your entire data estate. Third, operational efficiency reduces the burden on database administrators through automated monitoring, best practices assessment, and proactive alerting. Organizations typically see immediate benefits in reduced risk of incidents and unplanned downtime, increased efficiency of DBA maintenance and troubleshooting tasks, better capacity planning leading to infrastructure cost optimization, and enhanced security posture across all SQL Server environments.
Key Considerations Before Implementation
Licensing and Software Assurance Benefits
Understanding your licensing options is critical before deploying Azure Arc. If your SQL Server licenses include active Software Assurance, you unlock significant benefits through Azure Arc including Extended Security Updates at no additional cost for end of support versions, Azure Hybrid Benefit for potential cost savings, and eligibility for Azure Arc enabled SQL Managed Instance features.
When configuring license type in Azure Arc, you will choose between License Only for servers licensed through Volume Licensing without Software Assurance, Paid for licenses with active Software Assurance which enables all premium benefits, or Pay As You Go for consumption based billing through Azure.
Infrastructure and Network Requirements
Your AWS EC2 instances or on premises servers must have outbound HTTPS connectivity on port 443 to Azure Arc endpoints. This is a pull based connection meaning Azure Arc does not require any inbound firewall rules. The servers need access to management.azure.com, login.microsoftonline.com, and several Azure Arc specific endpoints for guest configuration and telemetry.
Azure Prerequisites
Your Azure environment requires an active subscription with Owner or Contributor access to the target resource group. The following resource providers must be registered: Microsoft.HybridCompute, Microsoft.GuestConfiguration, Microsoft.HybridConnectivity, and Microsoft.AzureArcData. You will also need a Service Principal with Azure Connected Machine Onboarding role for automated deployments.
Implementation Steps Overview
The deployment follows four sequential phases that build upon each other.
Phase One: Network Validation
Before installing any agents, validate that your target servers can reach Azure endpoints. Test outbound connectivity to Azure management URLs on port 443. This validation prevents deployment failures and ensures reliable agent communication once installed.
Phase Two: Arc Agent Deployment
The Azure Connected Machine Agent is the foundation of Azure Arc. This lightweight agent runs on your Windows or Linux server and establishes the secure connection to Azure. Installation can be performed interactively for single servers or automated at scale using scripts, Group Policy, or configuration management tools. Once connected, your server appears as a resource in Azure Portal with full RBAC, tagging, and policy support.
Phase Three: SQL Server Extension Installation
After the base Arc agent is running and showing Connected status, deploy the SQL Server extension called WindowsAgent.SqlServer. This extension automatically discovers SQL Server instances on the machine and creates corresponding Azure Arc SQL Server resources. The extension enables SQL specific features including database inventory, availability group monitoring, and performance telemetry collection.
Phase Four: Monitoring and Assessment Setup
With the SQL Server extension active, configure monitoring capabilities. The Performance Dashboard provides near real time metrics directly in Azure Portal with zero additional setup required. Best Practices Assessment evaluates your SQL Server configuration against 450 plus rules and provides prioritized recommendations with step by step remediation guidance. For comprehensive monitoring, deploy Azure Monitor Agent and configure Data Collection Rules to capture SQL performance counters and Windows event logs.
Ongoing Value and Capabilities
Once deployed, Azure Arc continuously delivers value through several key capabilities.
Performance Monitoring gives you visibility into buffer cache hit ratio, page life expectancy, user connections, batch requests per second, and storage IO metrics. All telemetry flows securely to Azure for historical analysis and alerting.
Best Practices Assessment runs on a configurable schedule to identify opportunities for performance optimization, security posture improvements, disaster recovery planning, and capacity management. Each finding includes severity rating and actionable remediation steps.
Security Integration with Microsoft Defender for Cloud provides threat detection, vulnerability assessments, and security recommendations specific to SQL Server workloads. This protection extends to your AWS hosted databases just as it would for Azure native resources.
Automated Backups now available in public preview can perform scheduled backups of user and system databases with configurable retention periods and recovery point objectives.
Recommended Next Steps
Begin with a pilot deployment on a non production SQL Server to validate network connectivity and familiarize your team with the Azure Arc experience. Document your current SQL Server licensing to determine Software Assurance eligibility and appropriate license type configuration. Establish a Log Analytics Workspace for centralized monitoring data before scaling the deployment. Finally, define Azure Policy assignments and Defender for Cloud configurations that will automatically apply to new Arc enabled resources.
Azure Arc represents a strategic capability for organizations committed to hybrid and multicloud operations. The investment in deployment pays dividends through improved operational visibility, consistent governance, and reduced security risk across your entire SQL Server estate.
Microsoft