SQL Azure is Microsoft's relational database offering in the cloud. While it's similar to SQL Server 2008 there are enough differences that it's important to understand what you can and cannot do with SQL Azure. This presentation with accompanying hands-on-lab is to get you comfortable with SQL Azure and understand how it can best be used. Topics:

• Signing up for SQL Azure
• Creating a database, users and tables
• Differences from other SQL Server 2008 editions
• Configuring the firewall
• Moving schema and data up and down from the cloud
• Getting the right connection string from the Azure UI
• Checking Usage and Billing information
• Connecting to SQL Azure
• Approaches to scaling with SQL Azure
• Data Access with OData

The Lab portion of the presentation goes through the basics of creating a database, firewall rule, and performing data access.

 Examples and Lab materials around the time of the first presentation

Go here for slides