Quick Start Update: Deploy SQL Server on the AWS Cloud

AWS is pleased to release a major update to the SQL Server Quick Start to support SQL Server version 2016.

This Quick Start implements a high availability solution built with Microsoft Windows Server and SQL Server running on Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2), using the Always On Availability Groups feature of SQL Server Enterprise edition. The Quick Start also deploys Windows Server Failover Clustering (WSFC) to complement the high availability and disaster recovery features in the AWS Cloud.

This update includes the following features:
• SQL Server 2016 and license-included Amazon Machine Image (AMI) provided by Amazon.
• Two options for the Active Directory implementation: You can use AWS Directory Service for Active Directory, or manage the EC2 instances for Active Directory yourself.
• Three tenancy options: shared, dedicated, and dedicated hosts.
• Choice of two or three Availability Zones for the deployment.
• Choice of two SQL nodes plus dedicated file share witness, or three SQL nodes.
• Customizable EBS volume types (gp2, io1) and adjustable IOPS for io1.
• New R4 instance types.

You can use the AWS CloudFormation templates included with the Quick Start to deploy SQL Server into a new or existing AWS infrastructure. You can also use the templates as a starting point for your own implementation, by downloading them from the GitHub repository.

To try out the updated SQL Server Quick Start, use the following resources:
- View the architecture and details
- View the deployment guide
- Browse and launch other AWS Quick Start reference deployments

About Quick Starts

Quick Starts are automated reference deployments for key workloads on the AWS Cloud. Each Quick Start launches, configures, and runs the AWS compute, network, storage, and other services required to deploy a specific workload on AWS, using AWS best practices for security and availability.