From legacy to leadership: How PostgreSQL on Azure powers enterprise agility and innovation

Our goal is to establish PostgreSQL as the leading open database platform in terms of performance, scalability, and enterprise readiness. We are realising this aim through Azure Database for PostgreSQL and the newly launched Azure HorizonDB.

In the current digital landscape, business leaders are grappling with a daunting task: providing innovation, scalability, and resilience, all while keeping costs down and maintaining performance. This challenge is rooted in data infrastructure, often the most vital yet constrained layer of the enterprise stack.

At Microsoft, we have observed how outdated systems, particularly on-premises databases like Oracle, hinder progress. These legacy systems are costly to upkeep, challenging to scale, and increasingly misaligned with the dynamics that modern businesses thrive on. However, we recognise that transitioning to a new system is a significant decision, with genuine concerns regarding downtime, compatibility, security, and the need for retraining staff.

To address these issues, we’ve dedicated several years to improving PostgreSQL. Our aim is to make it the most efficient, scalable, and enterprise-ready open database platform available. With Azure Database for PostgreSQL and the newly launched Azure HorizonDB, we are making significant strides towards that goal.

The Financial Impact of Inaction

Remaining on outdated infrastructure might seem sensible, but it’s rarely the best route to take. The expenses tied to supporting aging on-premises databases are on the rise. Costs related to hardware replacements, soaring licensing fees, and the need for specialized expertise quickly accumulate. Many organisations find that they spend a large portion of their IT budgets and time merely keeping existing systems operational, leaving little opportunity for innovation.

Several Oracle users have reported increased licensing costs, performance issues, and scalability challenges as significant pain points. Others have highlighted escalating support expenses and the need for advanced AI functionalities as top reasons for contemplating a departure from Oracle databases.

However, migration brings its own set of hurdles. What happens if your applications aren’t compatible with the new system? What if your team doesn’t have the skills needed to manage it? How will you ensure performance stays intact, or what if something fails? These are all valid concerns, and precisely the challenges we’ve designed PostgreSQL on Azure to overcome.

Apollo Hospitals: A Transformation Case Study

Apollo Hospitals, a leading healthcare provider in Asia, faced similar dilemmas. With over 74 hospitals and more than 10,000 beds, their digital infrastructure is crucial. Their in-house hospital information system, based on Oracle, was increasingly hard to maintain. Performance slowdowns affected patient care, and the cost of scaling became unmanageable.

Apollo Hospitals made the courageous choice to migrate their databases to Azure Database for PostgreSQL. Their IT and development teams collaborated closely with Microsoft and their cloud partner to smooth the transition. The outcome was remarkable. Since the migration, Apollo has recorded:

• 90% of transactions processed within five seconds, a major improvement for clinical systems.
• Uptime enhanced to 99.95%, ensuring that essential hospital operations continue without interruption.
• Deployment times reduced by 40%, enabling quicker rollout of new features and updates.

Perhaps most significantly, Apollo has achieved a 60% reduction in operational costs and a threefold increase in overall system performance. Apollo’s journey exemplifies the possibilities that arise when the right technology aligns with an effective migration strategy.

Enhanced Oracle to PostgreSQL Migrations with AI-Driven Tools

One of the largest obstacles to migration is the intricate process of adapting Oracle schemas, stored procedures, and application code. Many enterprise applications depend on numerous stored procedures, functions, and code built around Oracle-specific syntax. Manually rewriting and validating this code can be tedious, prone to errors, and expensive.

To tackle this, we’ve created an AI-supported Oracle-to-PostgreSQL migration tool, now available in preview as part of the PostgreSQL extension for Visual Studio Code. This innovative tool leverages GitHub Copilot and a multi-agent AI system to automate the entire conversion process.

The AI-Enhanced Migration Tool in Action

The tool starts by examining Oracle schemas and stored procedures, converting them into PostgreSQL-compatible formats through smart pattern analysis and transformation logic. Its function extends beyond the database layer; it also scans application code, like Java or .NET, updates database drivers, rewrites SQL queries, and modifies stored procedure calls to align with PostgreSQL syntax. To validate the converted logic, it generates automated unit tests and performs post-conversion checks in a test PostgreSQL environment to ensure everything works as intended.

This tool employs a hybrid AI system with dedicated agents for migration, validation, and documentation, which reduces manual work and lowers the chances of errors. It also provides side-by-side comparisons and detailed reports, giving teams the transparency and control they need to trust the process. By integrating AI-assisted conversion into the PostgreSQL extension for Visual Studio Code, we’re making it easier for developers to work. The result is an efficient, intelligent workflow that speeds up delivery.

Post-Migration: Top-Tier Performance, Scalability, and Security

PostgreSQL on Azure is not just a cost-effective alternative to outdated systems. With Azure Database for PostgreSQL and the new Azure HorizonDB service, migrating to Azure means high performance, scalability, and security optimised for your most critical business workloads.

Ongoing Innovations in Azure Database for PostgreSQL

With the launch of v6-series compute SKUs, clients can now scale up to 192 vCores vertically, ideal for high-throughput transactional tasks and complex analytical queries. For those needing horizontal scaling, elastic clusters using the open-source Citus extension facilitate distributed PostgreSQL deployments across multiple nodes. This infrastructure easily supports multi-tenant SaaS applications, IoT platforms, and large-scale analytics.

Storage performance in Azure Database for PostgreSQL has also advanced significantly. SSD v2 storage offers high IOPS and minimal latency, ensuring even the most demanding workloads perform efficiently. Integrated monitoring tools like Azure Monitor deliver real-time insights and automated optimisation, allowing teams to maintain peak performance without manual effort.

Security remains paramount. Azure Database for PostgreSQL comes with enterprise-level protections such as Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Entra ID integration, private endpoints, confidential compute SKUs, and end-to-end encryption. These features help businesses meet compliance standards and protect sensitive data.

Furthermore, as PostgreSQL is open source, there are no licensing costs. It’s one of the most widely adopted databases globally, supported by a vibrant community and robust assistance from Microsoft.

Azure HorizonDB: The Future of High-Performance PostgreSQL

For organisations with extreme performance and scale demands, we’ve launched Azure HorizonDB, a cloud-native PostgreSQL service tailored for the most rigorous workloads. Currently in private preview, Azure HorizonDB can support up to 3,072 vCores and 128 TB of auto-scaling storage. It delivers sub-millisecond commit latencies across multiple zones and up to three times the throughput of self-managed PostgreSQL. Furthermore, Azure HorizonDB incorporates the AI capabilities of Azure Database for PostgreSQL with built-in AI model management and advanced DiskANN filtering, making it suitable for next-gen applications needing real-time analytics and intelligent data processing.

Since Azure HorizonDB is PostgreSQL-compatible, businesses can begin with Azure Database for PostgreSQL today and seamlessly transition to Azure HorizonDB if required, ensuring a smooth changeover without needing to replatform or rewrite applications.

Open Source: Engineered for Business Needs

Microsoft takes pride in being one of the largest corporate contributors to the PostgreSQL project. Our engineering teams continue to drive key advancements, and we are dedicated to ensuring that PostgreSQL remains the most capable and reliable open-source database for the cloud era.

We believe that open-source data platforms like PostgreSQL are essential for the next wave of intelligent applications. Our aim is to make PostgreSQL not just accessible, but exceptional for enterprise needs. This means investing in performance, security, user experience, and ecosystem compatibility.

The Rewards: Innovation, Agility, and Confidence

Migrating to PostgreSQL on Azure involves more than just fixing existing issues; it’s about unlocking future potential. For example, Apollo Hospitals is now exploring AI-driven clinical dashboards, real-time analytics with Microsoft Fabric, and container workloads through Azure Kubernetes Service. Their teams are more agile, their systems more resilient, setting a robust foundation for future growth. As Sridhar Yadla, Apollo’s General Manager, stated:

We’re no longer stuck reacting to problems. Now we’re thinking proactively about how we can evolve.

That’s the strength of PostgreSQL on Azure.

Ready to Embrace Modernization?

If you’re considering a transition from Oracle to PostgreSQL, we have the tools, platform, and partner network to ensure your success.

Download our latest e-book and check out the Azure Database for PostgreSQL documentation for guidance on planning, executing, and hastening your journey.