Microsoft Azure Architect Design (AZ-301) Practice Exam 2025 - Free Azure Architect Practice Questions and Study Guide

When migrating a SQL Server database to Azure, provisioning an Azure Storage account is often a crucial initial step, particularly if you're using certain services like Azure Blob Storage for backup files or staging data during the migration process. Azure Storage provides a scalable, cost-effective solution for storing large volumes of data, including backups and data files that need to be transferred to Azure.

The migration process typically entails using various tools and services, which might include Azure Migrate, Azure Data Migration Service, or exporting the database to a backup file stored in Azure Blob Storage. This makes having a storage account ready a necessary prerequisite.

While creating a new SQL Server instance in Azure is essential, it generally occurs after ensuring that data storage is established. Using a Data Transfer Service may be part of the migration strategy but is not a mandatory requirement for all migration types. Replicating the database to an on-premises server does not align with the common approaches for migrating to Azure, as the goal is to move the database to the cloud rather than keeping a replica on-premises.