Amazon Relational Database Service (Amazon RDS) for SQL Server is an easy to manage relational database optimized for total cost of ownership. The IDC Business Value of Amazon RDS whitepaper showcases the value that Amazon RDS customers have achieved with the service. Also, the IDC Running SQL Server Workloads in the Cloud infobrief demonstrates why customers are choosing AWS as their primary cloud to run their SQL Server workloads. This page will allow you to learn more about how you can get started with Amazon RDS for SQL Server, including getting started guides, information on how to migrate, educational videos, database blogs, and more.

Getting started with Amazon RDS for SQL Server

If you're ready to start with Amazon RDS for SQL Server, utilize the following essential user guides, tutorials, and technical documentation to quickly set up your instance. 

DOCUMENTATION


This comprehensive technical documentation and guide covers RDS for SQL Server concepts and provides instructions for using its features via the console and command line interfaces.

USER GUIDES


Prescriptive Guidance provides proven strategies, guides, and patterns to accelerate cloud migration, modernization, and optimization, developed by AWS technology specialists and AWS Partners community collaboration.

HANDS-ON TUTORIAL


Learn to create, connect, and delete a SQL Server database instance with RDS for SQL Server in this Free Tier eligible tutorial.

DOCUMENTATION


This guide outlines best practices for working with Multi-AZ on RDS for SQL Server, including monitoring failovers, setting DNS TTL under 30 seconds, avoiding certain recovery modes, and testing failover times. 

AWS WORKSHOP STUDIO


With this self-paced workshop, you will learn to create and configure an RDS for SQL Server instance, explore various backup methods, and how to secure, scale, and monitor the performance of your instance.

DOCUMENTATION


This documentation outlines how to monitor RDS for SQL Server metrics, performance, and  instance status via the console, Enhanced Monitoring, and Performance Insights. 

DOCUMENTATION


This documentation details Amazon RDS-specific DBA tasks for SQL Server, such as restricting shell access and limited advanced privileges for a managed service experience.

DOCUMENTATION


This documentation shows you how to import and export data SQL Server databases in Amazon RDS using native backup and restore, including set up, compressing backup files, and troubleshooting issues. 

Sign in to the Amazon RDS console

Ready to start building with Amazon RDS for SQL Server? Sign in or create your own AWS account, go to the Amazon RDS Console, and create an RDS for SQL Server database in just a few clicks. Sign in to the AWS Management Console »

Migration resources

Discover resources to help you migrate from on-premises or self-managed databases to Amazon RDS for SQL Server. Choose from multiple licensing and deployment options to provide you multiple ways to quickly get started.

DOCUMENTATION


These documentation guides offer an introduction to AWS DMS concepts, explaining data migration and continuous change replication from diverse data stores within the AWS Cloud.

DOCUMENTATION


This guide details migrating an on-premises SQL Server database to Amazon RDS using DMS or native tools, covering prerequisites, architecture, and step-by-step instructions.

DOCUMENTATION


This guide shows methods for migrating SQL Server databases to Amazon RDS: native backup and restore, DMS, and a hybrid approach emphasizing data validation, filtering, and transformation.

DOCUMENTATION


To migrate to RDS for SQL Server, make sure to follow best practices in this guide, like right-sizing instances, enabling monitoring, optimizing for high availability, and more.

DOCUMENTATION


Migrate an on-premises SQL Server database to Amazon RDS using native backup and restore, SSMS, and S3 for storage and transfer. 

HANDS-ON TUTORIAL


In this lesson, learn to migrate a self-managed SQL Server database to Amazon RDS and about key RDS for SQL Server benefits. 

Developer tools and sample code

Quickly begin building with Amazon RDS for SQL Server using the AWS command line interface (CLI) and the Amazon RDS Application Programming Interface (API).

AWS CLI


This interface reference provides documentation for programming or CLI tools for managing Amazon RDS for SQL Server, including CLI commands, syntax, and common command examples.

DOCUMENTATION


RDS for SQL Server offers straightforward web service APIs for creating, deleting, and modifying instances. You can manage access, security, backups, and snapshots.

DOCUMENTATION


This reference offers an in-depth overview of Amazon RDS Performance Insights, covering essential details on data types, parameters, and error handling.

Blogs and What's New

Explore the latest launches through AWS Databases blog posts and recent What's New posts from Amazon RDS for SQL Server below.

Blog posts

No blog posts have been found at this time. Please see the AWS Blog for other resources.

What's New

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Please see What's New at AWS for other resources. 

Videos

Tune in as Amazon RDS for SQL Server experts discuss the latest enhancements and innovations in re:Invent breakout sessions, 15-minute developer videos, and more.

RE:INVENT SESSION


Join this session to simplify SQL Server database management with Amazon RDS. Learn about new innovations, including RDS Custom for added flexibility and control.

AWS DATABASES IN 15


This video uses self-managed Active Directory with RDS for SQL Server for simplified authentication, covering key benefits, a demo, and best practices.