Azure Analysis Services Quickstart Guide

Get started with Azure Analysis Services quickly and efficiently.

1. Create an Azure Analysis Services Instance

First, you need to provision an Azure Analysis Services instance in your Azure subscription.

Using the Azure Portal

1. Sign in to the Azure portal.
2. Click Create a resource.
3. In the search bar, type "Azure Analysis Services" and select it from the results.
4. Click Create.
5. Fill in the required fields:
   • Subscription: Select your Azure subscription.
   • Resource group: Create a new one or select an existing one.
   • Instance name: A unique name for your Analysis Services instance.
   • Location: Choose the Azure region closest to your users.
   • Tier: Select a tier (e.g., Developer, Basic, Standard) based on your performance and capacity needs. For this quickstart, Developer tier is recommended for evaluation.
   • Capacity: Specify the number of Analysis Services engine (asv) units.
6. Click Review + create, then Create.

Using Azure CLI

You can also create an instance using the Azure Command-Line Interface.

az group create --name MyResourceGroup --location eastus
az analysisServices server create \
  --name myasinstance \
  --resource-group MyResourceGroup \
  --location eastus \
  --sku S1 \
  --tier Standard
            

2. Connect to the Analysis Services Instance

Once your instance is deployed, you can connect to it using various tools.

Using SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS)

1. Download and install the latest version of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).
2. Open SSMS.
3. In the Connect to Server dialog:
   • Server type: Select Analysis Services.
   • Server name: Enter the server name of your Analysis Services instance (e.g., your-instance-name.asazure.windows.net).
   • Authentication: Choose Active Directory - Universal with MFA or Windows Authentication if connecting from a domain-joined machine.
4. Click Connect.

Using Visual Studio with Analysis Services Projects

For developing tabular models, Visual Studio with the Analysis Services projects extension is recommended.

1. Install Visual Studio (e.g., Community Edition).
2. Install the Microsoft Analysis Services Projects extension.
3. Create a new project of type Tabular Model Project.
4. In the project properties, set the Server Name to your Analysis Services instance.

3. Next Steps

Congratulations! You have successfully created and connected to an Azure Analysis Services instance. Here are some recommended next steps:

• Create a Tabular Model: Learn how to build semantic models for your data.
• Load Data: Import data from various sources into your model.
• Deploy to Azure Analysis Services: Deploy your developed model to the Azure instance.
• Connect from BI Tools: Connect tools like Power BI, Excel, or Tableau to your Analysis Services model.