How to detect underused sql databases.
Underused SQL Databases can quietly add recurring Azure cost when resource state, utilization, or lifecycle policy no longer matches real usage. This guide explains why it costs money, how to find it manually, and how Costframe detects it read-only.
Underused SQL Databases
Orphaned underused sql databases found in billing records with zero active workload associations over a rolling 30-day window.
Operational Description
Relational SQL databases are often provisioned on high DTU (Database Transaction Unit) or vCore pricing tiers to accommodate anticipated heavy reporting workloads that are actually only run occasionally or have been moved to other services.
Primary Root Cause
Oversizing databases to survive rare, temporary spike events, or leaving development/testing database copies fully active on standard production tiers.
How Costframe Detects & Verifies This
We monitor database DTU or vCore utilization metrics. If average DTU remains below 3% and max DTU peaks below 8% over 30 days, we suggest database consolidation or tier scale-down.
Continuous cloud audits, automated
Run this detector and dozens of other cloud-waste rules across all your Azure subscriptions continuously.