Diagnose Azure SQL Database resource pressure

On SQL Server you look at the machine. Here the machine is not yours and the governed limit is the product. Every headline number is a percentage of a ceiling set by the service objective, not a reading off hardware. Ask which limit is being hit, not how busy the box is: CPU, data IO, log IO, memory, and workers and sessions each have their own fix, and only some are fixed by scaling.

Checked 2026-09-03 against Microsoft Learn and 2026-08-29 against a live engine reporting SERVERPROPERTY('EngineEdition') = 5 and Edition = SQL Azure, the local Azure SQL Database container.

1. Substrate and purchasing model

SELECT SERVERPROPERTY('EngineEdition') AS engine_edition, SERVERPROPERTY('Edition') AS edition;
SELECT TOP 1 end_time, dtu_limit, cpu_limit
FROM sys.dm_db_resource_stats ORDER BY end_time DESC;