Introduction

The STACKIT SQLServer Flex service provides fully managed instances of the Microsoft SQLServer Flex object-relational database management system (DBMS). With the SQLServer Flex service, you can provision instances in various sizes and use them with your application.

STACKIT SQLServer Flex instances run on dedicated virtual machines to ensure isolation and high performance. Smoke tests, automated backups, and automated updates guarantee the secure operation of SQLServer Flex and the protection of the stored data.

This documentation enables you to use the full potential of STACKIT SQLServer Flex. The Getting started section enables you to set up an instance with common settings and connect to it within minutes. In the How-tos section you learn about all features, concepts and settings of the product in depth. If you experience problems while implementing or using SQLServer Flex, you can consult the Troubleshooting section to get help.

What is a Database Managed Service?

Database Managed Services offer a comprehensive solution, disburdening businesses from the complexities of database management. By entrusting this task to experienced providers, companies can enjoy the benefits of optimized performance, high availability, and robust security for their SQLServer Flex environments. This approach not only enhances operational efficiency but also allows organizations to focus on core business functions, knowing their data management is in expert hands.

Database managed service model is part of a bigger cloud computing model which is Platform as a Service (PaaS) while it is a little bit different from another bigger cloud computing model which is Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) An example of IaaS model is building database instances and clusters on a cloud provider virtual machine.

STACKIT SQLServer Flex as a Managed Service

SQLServer Flex service follows the PaaS model of database managed service, offloading the customers from the infrastructure database administration day to day work and let them focus on database performance, security and development activities.

Below is a list of database features and a comparison between the customer responsibilities and the Cloud Provider responsibilities in the traditional on-premise database management model, the Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) database model and the Platform as a Service (PaaS) database model. SQLServer Flex follows the PaaS model.

Feature	On-premises Model	IaaS Model	PaaS Model SQLServer Flex
Application optimization	Customer	Customer	Customer
Database design and development
Database performance optimization
Application security
Database accessibility
Database maintenance
Database tasks automation
Database security			Cloud Provider STACKIT
Scaling
High availability
Database backups
Database software patching
Database software install
OS patching
OS installation
Server maintenance		Cloud Provider
Hardware lifecycle
Power, network, and cooling

Characteristics of SQLServer Flex Managed Service

The SQLServer Flex main characteristics are:

• The core scope of the service is the Database instance/cluster: There is no access to a physical environment, like physical servers with databases instances/clusters on them.

• Database infrastructure management is the responsibility of the cloud provider: Customer accounts will not get sysadmin/super user permissions.

• Database design, maintenance, performance and accessibility is the responsibility of the customer: There is a special type of login with higher administrative permissions for customer’s accounts.

• Additional supported features are not guaranteed: The supported features in general are fewer when compared to on-premises and IaaS, but new ones are continuously added with new product releases.

• Service specifications are defined via service flavors: The managed service is being delivered with different resource specifications based on the selected service flavors.

• SLA for RTO and RPO is maintained: There is a clear SLA defined between the customer and the cloud provider for both recovery time objective and recovery point objective.

• High availability is maintained: The cloud provider is responsible for maintaining the agreed level of high availability. (This is subject to the service flavors selected.)

Customer Administrative Account Scope

This list contains the current scope and tasks the customer administrative account can perform.

Scope	Task	Description
Instance	Create databases	Customer admin account can create databases and will be assigned as the database owner by default (unless it is defined for a different user).
Instance	Drop databases	Customer admin account can drop databases.
Instance	Create server logins	Customer admin account can create both other admin logins and normal logins.
Instance	Drop server logins	Customer admin account can drop server logins, both other admin logins and normal ones.
Database	Create database users	Customer admin account can create database users.
Database	Drop database users	Customer admin account can drop database users.
Database	Create database objects	Customer admin account can create any database object. Also users created by the admin account can create any database objects.
Database	Drop database objects	Customer admin account can drop any database object.

Customer Administrative Account Considerations

• Customer administrative accounts are not created by default, customers have to create it via API or console after Creating Logins and Users in SQLServer Flex Instances.
• There is no limit for the number of administrative accounts logins the customer can create. They are all share the same level of administrative permissions.
• It is a best practice to use the administrative accounts for SQLServer Flex administration tasks only.
  Please create other users with a lower permission level for applications usage. Example permissions are db_owner or db_datareader/db_datawriter.
• The set of permissions and scope level of the administrative account are subject to change with new releases. Please refer back to this page for the up-to-date list of permissions and scope.