Azure SQL Server in Virtual Machine (IaaS)

 Azure SQL Server in Virtual Machine (IaaS) Benefits :

1. Enables to use full version of SQL server on cloud without having to manage any on premise          hardware

2. Create virtual machines in many different geographic regions around the world. They also            offer a variety of machine sizes.

3. SQL Server Azure Virtual Machine can use automated patching to schedule a maintenance             window for installing important windows and SQL Server updates automatically. 

4. Sql Server Azure Virtual Machine can take advantage of automatic backup, which regularly            creates backups of your database to block storage. You can also manually use this technique. 

5. For high availability consider configuring SQL Server Availability groups. This involves                  multiple SQL Server Azure Virtual Machines in a virtual network. 

6. SQL Virtual Machines also provide Automatic Storage Configuration which is optimized for           your performance requirements.