Provision an Azure Analysis Services server

This article explains how to provision an Azure Analysis Services server instance. Provisioning refers to the creation and initial configuration of your Analysis Services server in Azure.

Note: Azure Analysis Services is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) offering. When you provision a server, you are essentially creating an instance of this service with specific configurations, rather than managing virtual machines.

Prerequisites

Before you begin provisioning, ensure you have the following:

An Azure subscription. If you don't have one, you can create a free account.
Appropriate permissions to create resources within your Azure subscription (e.g., Contributor or Owner role).

Provisioning via Azure Portal

The Azure portal provides a user-friendly graphical interface for provisioning resources.

Sign in to the Azure portal.
In the portal search bar, type "Azure Analysis Services" and select it from the results.
Click + Create.
On the Basics tab:
- Subscription: Select your Azure subscription.
- Resource group: Choose an existing resource group or create a new one.
- Server name: Enter a unique name for your Analysis Services server. This name will be part of the server's URL.
- Location: Select the Azure region where you want to deploy your server.
- Pricing tier: Choose a pricing tier that matches your performance and scalability needs. Common tiers include Developer, Basic, Standard (S0, S1, S2, S3), and Premium (PS1, PS2, PS3).
Click Review + create.
Review the deployment settings. If everything looks correct, click Create.

The deployment process can take a few minutes. Once completed, you will see a notification indicating that your Azure Analysis Services server has been successfully deployed.

Azure Analysis Services New Server Creation Screen

Azure Portal: Creating a new Azure Analysis Services server.

Provisioning via Azure CLI

You can also provision an Analysis Services server using the Azure Command-Line Interface (CLI).

First, ensure you have the Azure CLI installed and are logged in to your Azure account:


az login
az account set --subscription "Your Subscription ID"

Then, use the following command to create a server. Replace the placeholders with your specific values:


az ams server create --resource-group "MyResourceGroup" --name "my-aas-server" --location "West US" --sku S0

--resource-group: The name of your resource group.
--name: The desired name for your Analysis Services server.
--location: The Azure region for the server.
--sku: The pricing tier (e.g., S0, S1, P1).

Provisioning via Azure PowerShell

For users who prefer PowerShell, the following cmdlet can be used:


New-AzAnalysisServicesServer -ResourceGroupName "MyResourceGroup" -Name "my-aas-server" -Location "West US" -Sku "S0"

Ensure you have the Az.AnalysisServices module installed and are connected to your Azure account.

Tip: When choosing a pricing tier, consider your workload's performance requirements, memory needs, and budget. The Standard tier offers a good balance for most analytical workloads, while the Premium tier is for high-performance, large-scale deployments.

Next Steps

Once your Azure Analysis Services server is provisioned, you can:

Connect to the server using tools like SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) or Visual Studio.
Deploy tabular models to your server.
Configure server properties and access permissions.

Last updated: January 15, 2024