A new compute tier for single databases has been made available that allows single databases to automatically scale based upon workload demand. Azure SQL Database serverless (in preview) provides the ability for single databases to scale up and down based upon workload and only bills for the amount of compute used per second. Serverless also allows databases to pause during inactive periods. During the time a database is paused, only storage is being billed. Databases are automatically resumed when activity returns.
Customers get to select a compute autoscaling range and an autopause delay parameter. This is a price-performance optimized tier for single databases that have intermittent, unpredictable usage patterns that can handle some delay in compute warm-up after idle usage periods. For databases with higher average usage, elastic pools is the better option.
I see this feature as a great option for low utilized databases or for those with unpredictable workloads that need to be able to automatically scale when the workload demands it.
I’m looking forward to seeing how this feature matures and develops during preview. If you’ve played with the preview, share your experience in the comments.