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Microsoft's release of SQL 2016 has been a hot topic during our recent Lunch and Learns. It's believed that this latest release reinforced Microsoft's Mobile / Cloud First strategy while also introducing new features that make data delivery easier and faster for users. With SQL Saturday happening this weekend, our engineering team wanted to share their thoughts on the new release.

Reporting and mobile delivery is going to be more efficient and user-centered than ever, with new updates to the web portals, KPIs, Power BI Mobile app integration, etc. The addition of mobile delivery reporting built on the Datazen BI tool that Microsoft recently purchased allows for viewing reports on many devices. For end users, this reporting feature will make data easier to access, analyze and understand. For engineers, this may cause a little more work, but the result is worth the investment.

With the addition of R Services in SQL Server 2016, consumers can run the highly popular open source R language inside of SQL Server to uncover new insights. R has a fast-growing community with a large ecosystem of incredibly rich packages to help solve complex problems and provide advanced analytics. Another benefit with SQL Server R Services is that it allows you to keep analytics close to the data and eliminate the costs and security risks associated with moving data around.

There are many benefits for Microsoft's Mobile First, Cloud First strategy. Releasing features on Azure allows for a wide range of users to test and shape tools that will eventually filter down to SQL Server. It's a win for consumers who have the option to build on the cloud and later transition to SQL thereby reducing the risk of investing in an expensive platform rather than an inexpensive cloud base solution. It's also a win for engineers because skills transfer easily between Azure and SQL giving them the flexibility to build on multiple platforms

SQL 2016 will offer exciting opportunities for both businesses and engineers. Businesses will be able to utilize better and make sense of the data that they collect while engineers will have the flexibility to develop on multiple platforms. Watching Microsoft's Mobile First, Cloud First strategy evolve and develop reassures us that they are heading in a solid direction.