Documentation forNetFlow Traffic Analyzer
Analyzing network traffic and bandwidth is a key capability of SolarWinds Observability Self-Hosted (formerly Hybrid Cloud Observability) and is available in the Advanced edition. NetFlow Traffic Analyzer (NTA) is also available in a standalone module.

Deploy NTA to Microsoft Azure

Before deploying NTA to Microsoft Azure, review the system requirements and the information below to help avoid installation and configuration issues.

SolarWinds NTA officially supports the Azure SQL database and the Azure SQL managed instance. The SQL Data Warehouse and SQL Elastic database pool are not supported.

New installation

The installation process is the same, as on-premise deployment. The NTA Flow Storage database section of the Configuration wizard accepts connections to the Azure SQL server. Azure supports SQL authentication and Azure Active Directory authentication methods.

You can select an existing database or let the Configuration wizard create a new one.

  • The newly created database has a Standard S3 tier.
  • An existing database needs to have at least Standard S3 or any of the v-Core based tiers.

Azure SQL database has the Read Committed Snapshot Isolation (RCSI) level set by default, which is different from the default for on-premise RCSI level. The Configuration wizard sets the isolation level to the same as the default on-premise database when creating a new database, but leaves it unchanged when an existing Azure SQL database is used.

Database migration

NTA stores data in both the SolarWinds Platform database and the NTA SQL Flow Storage database. The NTA Flow Storage database migration process is the same as the SolarWinds Platform database. The main difference is that migration from the Azure database to an on-premise database is not possible for the NTA Flow Storage database, which means flow data is lost. However, all NTA-specific settings, configurations, and CBQoS data are migrated because they are stored in the SolarWinds Platform database.

Supported scenarios

Source Destination
MS SQL Server 2016 SP1 and higher Azure SQL Server database with DTU Tier S3 and higher, or vCore Tiers
Azure SQL Server database with DTU Tier S3 and higher or vCore Tiers

MS SQL Server 2016 SP1 and higher

This scenario is valid only for the SolarWinds Platform database. All NTA-specific settings, configurations, and CBQoS data that are stored in the SolarWinds Platform database are migrated, but flow data stored in the NTA Flow Storage database are lost.

Prepare for migration

Pre-migration checklist
Upgrade SolarWinds Platform products to versions that support Azure SQL database and run the Configuration wizard on all servers.

Determine if you are using In-Memory tables* (only if you migrate from SQL 2016 SP1 or higher):

  • Run the following query to see if TimeSeries.MemoryOptimizedTables is set to true:

    SELECT * FROM dbm_DatabaseProperties WHERE [Key] = 'TimeSeries.MemoryOptimizedTables'

  • If true, check the your Azure database tier for in-memory OLTP storage support:
    • https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/sql-database/sql-database-dtu-resource-limits-single-databases
    • https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/sql-database/sql-database-vcore-resource-limits-single-databases
  • If it doesn't, turn them off before migration:
    1. Open C:\Program Files (x86)\SolarWinds\Orion\ConfigurationWizard.exe.config
    2. Set <add key="TimeSeries_MemoryOptimizedTables_Enabled" value="false"/>
    3. Rerun the Configuration Wizard

Before migration to Azure from on-premise, execute the following command on the NTA Flow Storage database:

REVOKE CONNECT FROM guest

*Memory-optimized tables, also known as In-Memory OLTP. A feature available in MS SQL Server 2016 and 2019 that improves the performance of transaction processing, data ingestion, data load, and transient data scenarios.

  • Azure does not support file groups. After migration, everything is moved into the default primary file group.
  • The on-premise migration process for the NTA Flow Storage database is the same as the SolarWinds Platform database.

Migrate the NTA Flow Storage database from on-premise to Azure

  1. Stop SolarWinds Platform Services.
  2. Migrate the NTA Flow Storage database using Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio.
    1. Right-click a database.
    2. Select Deploy Database to Microsoft Azure SQL Database.
    3. The wizard guides you through the remaining steps.
  3. Run the Configuration wizard on all servers.
  4. Start SolarWinds Platform Services.

The scripts are not supported under any SolarWinds support program or service. The scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. SolarWinds further disclaims all warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose. The risk arising out of the use or performance of the scripts and documentation stays with you. In no event shall SolarWinds or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the scripts or documentation.