Adding blockchain capabilities to Azure SQL Database

In early 2018 when I was starting my journey to build Azure Blockchain Service, I was introduced to the concept of bringing blockchain to traditional database technologies. At the time, I thought the idea didn't lack merit. Why re-invent the wheel when blockchain already solved the problem?

After talking with 100's of customers and partners, I learned that they didn't necessarily want blockchain. Rather, they wanted to digitize trust when sharing data with multiple parties. Blockchain solved this problem, right? The answer is yes if the system being designed has a need for decentralization. Specifically, if the system would be hindered if a single entity were in control of the data and the business logic. However, in many cases customers told me that they already had a system that was centralized but needed a way to prove non-repudiation in the data being shared. In some cases, these were multi-party scenarios such as supply chain track and trace. In others, it was as simple as proving to auditors or regulators that their data had not been maliciously tampered with. Implementing a blockchain-based solution in these centralized cases typically meant starting from scratch and building a decentralized solution that introduced other challenges they were not prepared to tackle. Who manages and governs the blockchain network? How do parties come to agreement on such governance models?

I quickly learned that adding digital trust to existing centralized systems was an un-met need. It indeed did have merit. As it so happened, we were working on exactly that problem in the Azure SQL Database team. I decided to join the effort in early 2020, and today I'm excited to announce Azure SQL Database ledger, which brings digital trust to existing (or new) systems based on SQL, providing the ability to cryptographically verify data has not been tampered with.

Where blockchain is ideal for multi-party computing systems where trust between parties is low, Azure SQL Database ledger is ideal for centralized systems where parties trust the central authority but want to the ability to verify data integrity. No need to build a network of decentralized infrastructure, simply enable it on your database, and ledger tables work exactly as existing tables, but are cryptographically protected through SHA 256 hashing of transactions.

Check it out today, for as little as $5/mo using the Serverless option when creating a new Azure SQL Database. Here's a simple QuickStart on how to get started.