Migrating database workloads to Azure has evolved well beyond simple lift‑and‑shift. Today’s architects must navigate a growing set of PaaS and SaaS‑first options, including Azure SQL, Managed Instance, Microsoft Fabric Data Warehouse, and Fabric SQL Database—each optimized for different modernization outcomes.

in this session, we will be sharing real‑world field experience to guide migration decisions for both operational and analytics workloads, practical approaches to assessing and executing migrations to Azure SQL, Managed Instance, and Fabric’s SaaS‑native platform, and clear guidance on right‑sizing compute by selecting the right VMs and aligning Azure SQL service tiers with Fabric capacity models to avoid over‑ or under‑provisioning.

Attendees will leave with a practical decision framework for choosing between Azure SQL and Fabric targets, guidance on VM and capacity sizing during migrations, and a realistic understanding of how to modernize database workloads effectively in the 2026 Azure and Fabric ecosystem.

You will learn:

• Migration and assessment tooling across PaaS and SaaS targets.
• Compatibility, performance, and sizing considerations, including how to evaluate database readiness, select the right Azure SQL service tier, size VMs appropriately during migration, and map workloads to Fabric DW or Fabric SQL DB capacity.
• Schema and data migration options for operational and analytical workloads, with clear tradeoffs between traditional VM‑backed migrations and SaaS‑native Fabric approaches.