Quickstart: Use SSMS to connect to and query Azure SQL Database or Azure SQL Managed Instance

  • Article

Applies to: Azure SQL Database Azure SQL Managed Instance

In this quickstart, you'll learn how to use SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) to connect to Azure SQL Database or Azure SQL Managed Instance and run queries.

Prerequisites

Completing this quickstart requires the following items:

1 This tutorial uses Microsoft Entra multifactor authentication (MFA), which requires configuring a Microsoft Entra admin for your resource. If you haven't configured Microsoft Entra authentication for your resource, you can use SQL Server Authentication instead, though it is less secure.

Important

The scripts in this article are written to use the Adventure Works database. With a managed instance, you must either import the Adventure Works database into an instance database or modify the scripts in this article to use the Wide World Importers database.

If you simply want to run some ad hoc queries in Azure SQL Database without installing SSMS, use the Azure portal's query editor to query a database.

Get server connection information

Get the connection information you need to connect to your resource. You'll need the fully qualified server name (for Azure SQL Database) or host name (for Azure SQL Managed Instance), database name, and login information to complete this quickstart.

  1. Sign in to the Azure portal.

  2. Navigate to the database or managed instance you want to query.

  3. On the Overview page, review the fully qualified server name next to Server name for your database in SQL Database or the fully qualified server name (or IP address) next to Host for your managed instance in SQL Managed Instance or your SQL Server instance on your VM. To copy the server name or host name, hover over it and select the Copy icon.

Important

  • For connection information for SQL Server on Azure VM, see Connect to SQL Server
  • A server listens on port 1433. To connect to a server from behind a corporate firewall, the firewall must have this port open.

Connect to your database

In SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), connect to your database.

  1. Open SSMS.

  2. The Connect to Server dialog box appears. Enter the following information on the Login tab:

    Setting Suggested value Description
    Server type Database engine Required value.
    Server name The fully qualified server name Something like: servername.database.chinacloudapi.cn.
    Authentication SQL Server Authentication This tutorial uses SQL Authentication.
    Login Server admin account user ID The user ID from the server admin account used to create the server.
    Password Server admin account password The password from the server admin account used to create the server.

    Screenshot of connection dialog for Azure SQL.

Note

This tutorial utilizes SQL Server Authentication.

  1. Select Options in the Connect to Server dialog box. In the Connect to database drop-down menu, select mySampleDatabase. Completing the quickstart in the Prerequisites section creates an AdventureWorksLT database named mySampleDatabase. If your working copy of the AdventureWorks database has a different name than mySampleDatabase, then select it instead.

    Screenshot of connect to db on server.

  2. Select Connect. The Object Explorer window opens.

  3. To view the database's objects, expand Databases and then expand your database node.

    Screenshot of mySampleDatabase objects.

Query data

Run this SELECT Transact-SQL code to query for the top 20 products by category.

  1. In Object Explorer, right-click mySampleDatabase and select New Query. A new query window connected to your database opens.

  2. In the query window, paste the following SQL query:

    SELECT pc.Name AS CategoryName,
       p.name AS ProductName
FROM [SalesLT].[ProductCategory] AS pc
     INNER JOIN
     [SalesLT].[Product] AS p
     ON pc.productcategoryid = p.productcategoryid;

  3. On the toolbar, select Execute to run the query and retrieve data from the Product and ProductCategory tables.

    Screenshot of query to retrieve data from table Product and ProductCategory.

Insert data

Run this INSERT Transact-SQL code to create a new product in the SalesLT.Product table.

  1. Replace the previous query with this one.

    INSERT INTO [SalesLT].[Product] ([Name], [ProductNumber], [Color], [ProductCategoryID], [StandardCost], [ListPrice], [SellStartDate])
VALUES                         ('myNewProduct', 123456789, 'NewColor', 1, 100, 100, GETDATE());

  2. Select Execute to insert a new row in the Product table. The Messages pane displays (1 row affected).

View the result

  1. Replace the previous query with this one.

    SELECT *
FROM [SalesLT].[Product]
WHERE Name = 'myNewProduct';

  2. Select Execute. The following result appears.

    Screenshot of result of Product table query.

Update data

Run this UPDATE Transact-SQL code to modify your new product.

  1. Replace the previous query with this one that returns the new record created previously:

    UPDATE [SalesLT].[Product]
    SET [ListPrice] = 125
WHERE Name = 'myNewProduct';

  2. Select Execute to update the specified row in the Product table. The Messages pane displays (1 row affected).

Delete data

Run this DELETE Transact-SQL code to remove your new product.

  1. Replace the previous query with this one.

    DELETE [SalesLT].[Product]
WHERE Name = 'myNewProduct';

  2. Select Execute to delete the specified row in the Product table. The Messages pane displays (1 row affected).

Authentication options

Other authentication options are available, such as:

  • Default: The default option can be used when connecting using any Microsoft Entra authentication mode that's passwordless and noninteractive.
  • Managed identities in Microsoft Entra for Azure SQL: Supports two types of managed identities: system-assigned managed identity (SMI) and user-assigned managed identity (UMI). If you want to use a managed identity to connect to any SQL product from SSMS, install SSMS to an Azure VM. SSMS needs to be within an Azure context where it has access to request a token for that managed identity. The SQL product must have a principal for that managed identity. See Use a Windows VM system-assigned managed identity to access Azure SQL.
  • Microsoft Entra service principals: Use a service principal to authenticate to a SQL product from SSMS by using its application client ID and secret.
  • Microsoft Entra password: Uses a Microsoft Entra user name and password to connect to the SQL product.
  • Microsoft Entra integrated: Uses the current Windows user's credentials to connect to the SQL product.
  • SQL Server Authentication: Uses a SQL Server login and password to connect to the SQL product. This option is less secure than Microsoft Entra authentication.

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