The Ultimate Guide To Migrating Databases From SQL Server to Snowflake

Data is what drives businesses today, regardless of the size and structure of the organization. Data volumes are driven up by both internal and external sources which are then processed and collated to make cutting-edge business decisions. Moving ahead to the digital ecosystem and leaving traditional manual processes behind has been a slow transformation over the years. 

One of the ways that organizations are streamlining their data management and increasing operating efficiencies is by migrating databases from SQL Server to Snowflake, a platform that is based in the cloud. 

In this post, we will dive into the many aspects of this form of migration. We will know what Microsoft SQL Server and Snowflake are as standalone entities, the many benefits of Snowflake, and finally analyze the migration process in detail. 

SQL Server and Snowflake – A Brief Study

SQL Server

The SQL Server is based on the SQL programming language and is a part of the overall Microsoft environment. Hence, all applications have the support of the SQL Server, whether it is a standalone system or a local area network. Over the years, SQL Server has evolved into a top database technology at par with Oracle and DB2 from IBM. 

SQL Server is a Relational Database Management System (RDMS) and is available out of the box as a component of the MS .NET framework.    

Snowflake

Snowflake is a cloud-based data warehousing solution offering advanced technology and features that are typically associated with cloud infrastructure. These features will be elaborately analyzed in the next section. Snowflake has been a recent launch in this niche but within a short period, has taken the world by storm, one of the reasons why businesses are increasingly migrating their databases from SQL Server to Snowflake.  

Why Migrate Databases From SQL Server to Snowflake

Here are the reasons why it makes sense to migrate databases from SQL Server to Snowflake.

• Snowflake provides unlimited storage capacity, a huge need for modern businesses. However, what sets Snowflake apart from SQL Server is that users pay only for what they use. It is possible to download additional storage in minutes from Snowflake whenever there is a spike in demand and pay for that portion only. This results in huge savings as unlike the SQL Server, there are no flat rates for storage volume which users must pay even if it is not used. 
• Snowflake offers high computing power, essential in today’s data-driven environment where massive data volumes are processed every day. Even if several users simultaneously execute intricate queries, Snowflake does not show any lag or drop in database performance. 
• Users can input data in its native form into Snowflake, whether it is structured, semi-structured, or unstructured without needing to go through several formatting stages. In SQL Server, data that only complements its architecture can be entered. Snowflake offers comprehensive support for JSON, Avro, XML, and Parquet data. 
• Snowflake provides separate storage and computing facilities, unlike SQL Server where these two cannot be separated and accounted for. The benefit here is that businesses know the amount paid for each facility and can tweak the usage to maximize costs and profits. 
• Since Snowflake is a cloud-based platform, users do not have to define indexes before clustering data for both encoding of columns and computing. However, to co-locate table data for very large tables, the clustering keys must be used manually.  
• Snowflake is compatible with a wide range of cloud vendors. Hence, users do not have to be trained in new technologies and techniques to work on Snowflake as their previous experience with other cloud platforms will be relevant here too. 

All these cutting-edge benefits are available to organizations when they migrate their databases from SQL Server to Snowflake.   

Latest Innovation from Snowflake 

Snowflake has recently launched its Database Replication feature which further strengthens the need for businesses to move their databases from SQL Server to Snowflake. Users can now sync and replicate databases across several regions or cloud providers. This ensures business continuity even when there is a crash or an outage afflicting databases. 

This is how it works. In the event of an outage in the primary server, the secondary servers having replicated data are triggered automatically, preventing any downtime and making sure that work is not affected. When the outage is resolved, the system goes into the opposite mode. The secondary servers that functioned normally during the outage now update the primary server with data inputted during the break period.     

After the outage or any other reason for the crash is resolved, the Data Replication mode works in the reverse direction. The secondary servers that functioned normally during the outage now update the primary server with all the transactions that took place during the break period. 

This latest feature is a further incentive for organizations to migrate databases from SQL Server to Snowflake.  

How to Migrate Databases From SQL Server to Snowflake

There are four steps in this process. 

Step 1

Data is extracted from SQL Server using queries for extraction and select statements. Large databases in texts, CSV, or SQL query formats can be extracted with the SQL Server Management tool. 

Step 2

The extracted data must be processed and formatted now to match the data structure supported by Snowflake. Currently, Snowflake supports XML and JSON data.

Step 3

This data must now be kept in a temporary location which may be either an internal or external one. An internal staging area is created by users with SQL statements. An external staging area is pre-determined with Snowflake currently supporting Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) and MS Azure. 

Step 4

Finally, the data from the staging area is loaded to Snowflake.