Microsoft SQL Server API Essential Guide

What type of API does Microsoft SQL Server provide?

Microsoft SQL Server primarily uses a proprietary protocol called Tabular Data Stream (TDS) for communication between clients and the database server. However, it can be accessed through various API types depending on how it is configured and what additional services are used. Here are the key points to consider:

Native Protocol

• Microsoft SQL Server uses the Tabular Data Stream (TDS) protocol as its native communication protocol.
• TDS is a proprietary application layer protocol used for transferring data between a database server and client.

REST API

• While SQL Server itself doesn't natively expose a REST API, Microsoft provides ways to create REST APIs on top of SQL Server:
  • Azure SQL Database can be exposed as a REST API using Azure API Management.
  • SQL Server can be used with ASP.NET Core to create REST APIs that interact with the database.

GraphQL API

• Similar to REST, SQL Server doesn't natively provide a GraphQL API, but it can be used as a data source for GraphQL APIs:
  • Microsoft offers tools like Data API builder that can host GraphQL endpoints on top of SQL Server databases.
  • Third-party libraries and frameworks can be used to create GraphQL APIs that interact with SQL Server.

SOAP API

• While not as common in modern applications, SQL Server can still be used with SOAP APIs:
  • Historically, SQL Server supported SOAP natively through HTTP endpoints, but this feature was deprecated.
  • SOAP APIs can still be built on top of SQL Server using technologies like Windows Communication Foundation (WCF).

OData API

• Microsoft supports OData (Open Data Protocol) which can be used to create RESTful APIs for SQL Server databases.
• This allows for standardized querying and data manipulation over HTTP.

Best Practices

• When exposing SQL Server data through APIs, it's important to consider:
  • Security: Implement proper authentication and authorization.
  • Performance: Use appropriate indexing and query optimization.
  • Data integrity: Ensure ACID properties are maintained when modifying data through APIs.

In summary, while Microsoft SQL Server doesn't natively implement REST, GraphQL, or SOAP APIs, it can be used as a backend for these API types through various Microsoft and third-party tools and frameworks. The choice of API type depends on the specific requirements of the application and the ecosystem it's being used in.

Does the Microsoft SQL Server API have webhooks?

1. Transactable SaaS offers and account types

Transactable SaaS offers can only be done through Microsoft with a Work or School account. Personal Microsoft Accounts cannot be used for transactable SaaS offers.

2. Tenant ID for Microsoft Accounts

Personal Microsoft Accounts do not have tenant IDs in the same way that Work/School accounts do. There isn't a common tenant ID for all personal accounts.

3. SaaS fulfillment lifecycle and license assignment

When a purchaser reaches your landing page after buying a subscription:

• You can resolve the token to get subscription details like Quantity, Purchaser, and Beneficiary.
• For company admins buying multiple licenses, you won't get information about individual users receiving licenses.
• The Purchaser and Beneficiary fields will likely be the same (the admin's information).
• There is a separate process for admins to assign licenses to users in the Microsoft Admin Center.

Your landing page should inform the purchaser that the subscription is active and direct them to assign licenses in the Admin Center.

4. Webhook notifications for license assignments

There doesn't seem to be a webhook notification specifically for when an admin assigns or unassigns licenses to users for your app. This appears to be a limitation of the current system.

Key considerations:

1. Your landing page should guide purchasers (especially admins) on next steps for license assignment.
2. You may need to implement a separate mechanism to track individual user activations within your app, since you won't receive webhook notifications for license assignments.
3. Consider providing documentation or guidance for admins on how to assign licenses to users in the Microsoft Admin Center.

Rate Limits and other limitations

Here are the key points about API rate limits for Microsoft SQL Server API:

Default Service Protection API Limits

The default limits enforced per web server are:

• Number of requests: 6000 within a 5 minute sliding window
• Execution time: 20 minutes (1200 seconds) within a 5 minute sliding window
• Number of concurrent requests: 52 or higher

These limits are enforced independently by each web server available to an environment.

Resource-Based Limits

In addition to the user-based limits above, there are resource-based limits that throttle requests when aggregate resource utilization (CPU, memory, etc.) reaches certain thresholds.

Exceptions

Certain services are exempt from these limits, including:

• Document Routing Agent
• Warehouse Management mobile app
• Retail Server API
• Office Integration
• Data Import/Export Framework
• Recurring integrations
• Data Integrator
• Power Platform virtual tables
• Finance and Operations apps Connector

Key Considerations

• Limits are designed to only affect applications making extraordinary API requests, not normal interactive usage.
• When limits are exceeded, a 429 Too Many Requests error is returned.
• Limits can be tracked via HTTP response headers like x-ms-ratelimit-burst-remaining-xrm-requests.
• Implementing techniques like local rate limiting, optimizing API usage, and handling rate limit errors is recommended.
• Limits may vary between environments and are subject to change.

Best Practices

• Understand the specific rate limits for your environment and API usage.
• Monitor rate limit headers to stay within limits.
• Implement retry logic with backoff for 429 errors.
• Optimize API calls to reduce request volume where possible.
• Consider batching requests to reduce total number of calls.

The exact limits may vary, so consulting the latest documentation and monitoring actual usage is important for staying within the allowed thresholds.

Latest API Version

Based on the search results provided, here are the key points regarding the most recent version of Microsoft SQL Server and its API:

Current Version

The most recent version of Microsoft SQL Server is SQL Server 2022, released on November 16, 2022 [1]. The RTM (Release to Manufacturing) version number is 16.0.1000.6 [1].

Latest Updates

As of July 2024, the latest updates for SQL Server 2022 are:

• GDR (General Distribution Release): Build 16.0.1121.4 (July 2024)
• CU14 (Cumulative Update 14): Build 16.0.4135.4 (July 2024)
• CU13 + GDR: Build 16.0.4131.2 (July 2024) [2]

API and Tools

While there isn't a specific mention of an API for SQL Server 2022, Microsoft provides several tools and interfaces for interacting with SQL Server:

1. Azure Data Studio: The latest release includes support for SQL Server 2022 [3].

2. SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS): Version 19.0 is recommended for SQL Server 2022 [3].

3. SqlPackage.exe: Version 19 provides support for SQL Server 2022 [3].

4. VS Code: Version 1.67 and higher support SQL Server 2022 [3].

Version History and Updates

There isn't a specific REST API mentioned for retrieving SQL Server version history. However, there are a few alternatives:

1. RSS Feed: Microsoft SQL Server Release Services offers an RSS feed that can be consumed by applications.

2. Manual tracking: The Microsoft documentation provides tables with version information, but this isn't an API solution.

3. Third-party resources: Websites like https://sqlserverbuilds.blogspot.com/ provide comprehensive and up-to-date information, though not in API form.

In summary, while there isn't a dedicated API for retrieving SQL Server version history, Microsoft provides various tools and resources for working with SQL Server 2022, the most recent version. For tracking version history and updates, developers may need to rely on RSS feeds, official documentation, or third-party resources.

How to get a Microsoft SQL Server developer account and API Keys?

Key Points

1. To access APIs for SQL Server, you need to have a CSP (Cloud Solution Provider) tenant and be either an indirect provider or a Direct bill partner.

2. You need to enable API access separately for both your primary Partner account and your integration sandbox account in Partner Center.

3. To enable API access:

   • Sign in to Partner Center with a Global admin account
   • Add a new web app or add a key to an existing app
   • Copy and securely store the app registration information, especially the Key

4. You'll need the following information to set up authentication:

   • App ID / Client ID
   • Key
   • Domain

5. For testing, you can use an integration sandbox account before using your primary Partner account credentials.

6. Alternatively, you can use Azure API Management to create and manage APIs for SQL Server:

   • Create an Azure account if you don't have one
   • Create a new API Management instance in the Azure portal

Best Practices

• Always securely store API keys and credentials
• Test thoroughly in a sandbox environment before using production credentials
• Follow Microsoft's documentation and best practices for API development and integration
• Consider using Azure API Management for more robust API management capabilities
• Implement proper error handling and logging in your API integrations

What can you do with the Microsoft SQL Server API?

Here are the key data models you can interact with using the Microsoft SQL Server API, along with what is possible for each:

Relational Data Model

• Store and query structured data in tables with rows and columns
• Define relationships between tables using primary and foreign keys
• Use SQL to perform CRUD operations and complex queries
• Apply constraints, indexes, and other optimizations
• Leverage features like transactions, stored procedures, triggers, etc.

JSON Data Model

• Store JSON documents in VARCHAR/NVARCHAR columns
• Parse and query JSON data using built-in JSON functions
• Extract values from JSON using JSON_VALUE
• Transform JSON arrays into tabular format with OPENJSON
• Generate JSON output from relational data using FOR JSON
• Index JSON data for improved query performance

XML Data Model

• Store XML documents using the native XML data type
• Query XML data using XQuery and XPath expressions
• Index XML columns for faster searches
• Validate XML against XML schemas
• Transform relational data to XML format

Graph Data Model

• Model many-to-many relationships using nodes and edges
• Define node and edge tables to represent graph structures
• Use MATCH clause for graph pattern matching queries
• Perform multi-hop traversals and shortest path queries
• Combine graph queries with regular SQL

Spatial Data Model

• Store geometric and geographic data using spatial data types
• Perform spatial operations like distance calculations, intersections, etc.
• Index spatial data for efficient spatial queries
• Visualize spatial data using mapping tools

Key-Value Model

• Implement key-value pairs using regular tables
• Use a key column and a value column to store arbitrary data
• Optimize for key-based lookups
• Leverage in-memory tables for high-performance scenarios

Summary

SQL Server provides a flexible multi-model database that allows you to work with relational, document, graph, spatial, and key-value data - all using a unified SQL-based query language and leveraging the full capabilities of the SQL Server engine. This enables you to choose the most appropriate data model for different parts of your application while maintaining a single database platform.