Learn how to use the Azure Portal to create a cloud-based SQL database with just a few mouse clicks.

When you need a SQL database fast, the cloud is the best way to go. Azure provides a SQL database as a PaaS that eliminates the need to get an entire SQL Server deployment up and running.

Paychex explains why it bet on Microsoft's cloud database and AI services. On Monday, Microsoft also announced Azure SQL Database Hyperscale.

With these elastic database pools, customers pay for the aggregate of all the databases instead of for each one separately.