Migrating to Amazon RDS for SQL Server: A Practical Guide to Cloud Database Success

Migrating to Amazon RDS for SQL Server: A Practical Guide to Cloud Database Success
Migrating your on-premises SQL Server to Amazon RDS for SQL Server is a strategic step toward scalability, cost efficiency, and operational simplicity. But how do you plan, provision, and execute this migration without disruption? This presentation provides a step-by-step roadmap for DBAs and IT leaders to successfully move SQL Server workloads to AWS.
Presented by Suyog Pagare, Senior Technical Specialist at Datavail, this session covers everything from AWS fundamentals to advanced migration techniques, ensuring you have the knowledge to make informed decisions and avoid common pitfalls.

Key Highlights:


What is Amazon RDS for SQL Server?
Understand Amazon RDS as a managed Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) offering that automates patching, backups, and scaling—without OS-level access.


AWS Fundamentals
Learn the basics of AWS Regions, Availability Zones (AZs), Amazon S3, and IAM roles—critical components for secure and efficient deployments.


Planning Your RDS Instance
Explore considerations for instance class types (Standard, Memory-Optimized, Burst), storage options (General Purpose SSD, Provisioned IOPS), and Multi-AZ deployments for high availability.


Creating and Configuring RDS
Step through the checklist for provisioning your RDS instance, including security groups, parameter groups, and option groups for features like native backup/restore, TDE, and auditing.


Connecting to Your RDS Instance
Learn how to configure inbound rules, retrieve connection endpoints, and connect via SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).


Migration Strategies

Backup and Restore: Fastest method for off-hours migrations; supports native restores up to 16 TB.
AWS Database Migration Service (DMS): Ideal for minimal downtime migrations.



Real-World Demo
See a live example using AdventureWorksLT2019, including S3 bucket setup, IAM role creation, and database restoration.



Why This Matters
Amazon RDS simplifies SQL Server management, but successful migration requires planning and understanding AWS services. This session equips you with practical insights to:

Reduce migration risk.
Optimize performance and cost.
Maintain security and compliance.

Whether you’re considering a lift-and-shift migration or planning for cloud-native modernization, this guide provides the foundation for success.

👉 Download the full presentation and learn more here:
https://www.datavail.com/resources/migrating-amazon-rds-sql-server/

1. Migrating to Amazon RDS for
SQL Server
SuyogPagare
He/him
Senior Technical Specialist, SQL Server
Datavail

2. Suyog
Senior Technical
Specialist, SQL Server,
/suyog-pagare-5a226918
www.datavail.com
Datavail
13 Years in Database Administration
Specialties: Database Maintenance,
Security, Backup & Recovery
Microsoft Certified in Azure
Fundamentals
AWS Certified Solutions Architect
He/Him
Pagare

3. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
About Datavail
Databases
•Windows Workloads
•Open Source
Workloads
•Oracle Workloads
100+ Cloud SAs
and Engineers
16+ Years
Database Services
700+
Customers
8+ Years
Cloud Experience
200,000+
Databases Managed
100+
Cloud Migrations
Expertise Experience Outcome
Data Integration
& Analytics

4. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•What is Amazon Relational Database Service (RDS) for SQL Server?
•Brief Overview of AWS Regions, Availability Zones (AZs),
Amazon S3, and Amazon IAM
•Planning Your Amazon RDS for SQL Server Instance
•Creating Your Amazon RDS for SQL Server Instance
•Connecting to Your Amazon RDS for SQL Server Instance
•Migrating a Sample Database Over to Amazon RDS for SQL Server
What We’ll Cover

5. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Amazon RDS is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) offered by
Amazon Web Services (AWS).
•It is a Database as a Service (DBaaS). Not to be confused
with Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).
•Amazon RDS is a managed cloud service with no
sysadmin or Operating System (OS) access.
What is Amazon RDS for SQL Server?

6. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Why use it?
•Speed of provisioning
•Automation of HA/DR
and many other
maintenance tasks
•Increase efficiency of
resources and most
importantly -human
resources
What is Amazon RDS for SQL Server?
On-Premise
Servers
Storage
Networking
Virtualization
OS
Middleware
Runtime
Apps
Data
IaaS
Servers
Storage
Networking
Virtualization
OS
Middleware
Runtime
Apps
Data
PaaS
Servers
Storage
Networking
Virtualization
OS
Middleware
Runtime
Apps
Data

7. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Amazon RDS is a web service, easy to setup, operate and scale a
Relational Database in cloud.
•Capabilities of a Familiar SQL, MYSQL, ORACLE Database.
•Auto Patching and Backup
•Scaling resources or storage capacity associated with DB engine.
•Pay as you go
•On-Demand and Reserved DB instances
Amazon Relational Database Service
(Amazon RDS)

8. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Choose Instance Class Type
•Standard: M Class
•Memory Optimized: R Class;
Now with X and Z
•Burst Capable: T Class
•See more details for
DB instance class support
for MS SQL
Setup your Amazon RDS instance
Choose Instance Storage
•General Purpose SSD
•Provisioned IOPS. Good for
production database
workloads.
•Magnetic
•See more details for
DB instance storage

9. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Deployment
Multi-AZ Deployment
•Increase availability and fault
tolerance for production
instances.
•Using Database Mirroring or
Always On Availability Groups.
•Read replicas are supported;
In-Region; On Enterprise
Edition SQL Server 2016 SP2+
Amazon Virtual Private Cloud
(VPC)
•Virtual networks in the AWS Cloud.
•DB Instance accessed by EC2
instances in the same, different,
or not in a VPC? Apps through the
internet?
•See more details: Working with a
DB instance in a VPC.

10. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Deployment
Security Groups
•“Firewall”
•By default, all inbound is
blocked and all
outbound is authorized.
•See more details:
Controlling access with
security groups.
Parameter groups
•Containers for DB engine configuration
values
•Applied to one or more DB instances
•Trace Flags and SQL Server instance
configurations (sp_configure)
•See more details: Viewing parameter
values for a DB parameter group

11. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Option Groups
•Additional features make it easier to manage data and
databases
•Options for SQL Server: Native backup and restore, TDE, Audit,
SSAS, SSIS, SSRS.
•See more details: Options for the Microsoft SQL Server
database engine
Deployment

12. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
Creating Amazon RDS checklist
•SQL Server Edition
•SQL Server Version
•Templates
•DB Instance Identifier
•Master UserName
•Master Password
•DB Instance Class
•Storage
•Multi-AZ Deployment
•VPC
•Public Access
•Security Group
•Additional Configurations

13. Demo

14. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Determine your instance class, storage,
multi-AZ Deployment, VPC, public access, and
security group ahead of time.
•Work with your AWS Solution Architect.
•Remember: This is a demo for testing purposes.
Creating Amazon RDS for SQL Server
Instance

15. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Create the Amazon S3 Bucket to store the backups
•Upload Backup to the Amazon S3 Bucket
•Create the Option Group “rds-for-sql-backup-and-
restore” for “SQLSERVER_BACKUP_RESTORE” and
•Create a new IAM role and grant write access to the
Amazon S3 bucket
Creating S3 Bucket and Upload
Database Backup

16. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Modify the Security Group to add inbound rules to allow MSSQL
port 1433
•Finding the connection information:
•Endpoint
•Port number
•Opening a Connection in SSMS
•Copy and paste the endpoint in the server name
•Put comma(,) and then the port number
Connecting your Amazon RDS for
SQL server instance

17. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Fastest way to migrate is to backup and restore databases
•Amazon RDS supports native restores of databases up to
16 TB.
•In case of off business hours, use native backup and
restore to migrate it to Amazon RDS. Else for minimal
downtime, use AWS Database Migration Services (DMS).
Migrating Amazon for SQL Server
Using Backup and Restore

18. #PASSDataCommunitySummit
•Sample Database:
AdventureWorksLT2019
•Run Backup:
AdventureWorksLT2019.bak
•Amazon S3 Bucket to store
the backups: rds-for-sql-demo
•Upload Backup to the
Amazon S3 Bucket
Migration Checklist –Backup and
Restore
•Create the Option Group for
“SQLSERVER_BACKUP_RESTORE” and
create a new IAM role
•Associate the “rds-for-sql-backup-and-
restore”option group with the Amazon
RDS for SQL Instance.
•Find your backup file’s Amazon resource
name (ARN): arn:aws:s3:::rds-for-sql-
demo/AdventureWorksLT2019.bak
•Restore Your Database

19. Thank you
SuyogPagare
/suyog-pagare-5a226918
www.datavail.com

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