I’ve written quite a lot about Azure SQL Database recently, but that doesn’t mean I’ve forgotten about the on-premises version of SQL Server.
What could be better than Microsoft announcing a new tool for upgrading to SQL Server 2016? The Data Migration Assistant (DMA) for SQL Server was announced on 26 August 2016.
Data Migration Assistant (DMA) delivers scenarios that reduce the effort to upgrade to a modern data platform by detecting compatibility issues that can impact database functionality after an upgrade. It recommends performance and reliability improvements for your target environment.
Why is this a big deal? Well, as Microsoft themselves put it:
DMA replaces SQL Server Upgrade Advisor.
The Data Migration Assistant helps us make sure that not only is our database instance upgradeable to the latest version of SQL Server, but it also helps us make the best use of new features.
My friend Kenneth Fisher has a post titled The new Data Migration Assistant has been released!, which I encourage you to check out.
We don’t have to run DMA on the SQL Server machine directly. We can install and run it from a workstation and point it at our server. In fact, this is a recommended best practice.
Kenneth and I also strongly expect that later versions of DMA will support Azure SQL Database migrations, which is also exciting (and though I don’t like to read too much into the names Microsoft gives its products, it’s pretty evident from the name that this is where we’re headed).
To share your horror stories about SQL Server Upgrade Advisor, find me on Twitter at @bornsql .