As data volumes grow, so does the complexity of managing them. With every increase in data, there's more to extract, transform, and load. This often requires connectors for both extraction and import, yet legacy tools like SSIS may fall short, lacking the modern connectivity and scalability that today’s data demands.

Azure Data Factory (ADF) offers a powerful, cloud-native alternative. With over 120 built-in connectors, ADF enables seamless data integration from virtually any source, while scaling effortlessly to handle large datasets.

In this session, we’ll explore how ADF modernizes ETL/ELT workflows, replacing SSIS with a flexible and scalable platform. We’ll dive into its core components—pipelines, activities, datasets, linked services, data flows, and integration runtimes—and discuss best practices for deployment, monitoring, scheduling, and cost optimization.

To bring it all together, we’ll walk through a live demo of a real-world pipeline originally built for SQL Saturday Jacksonville, showcasing how ADF can tackle practical data integration challenges with minimal coding.


A live demo and walkthrough of a real-world pipeline—originally designed for SQL Saturday Jacksonville—will illustrate how ADF can be used to solve practical data integration challenges with minimal code.

Prerequisites

Participants should have:

A basic understanding of ETL/ELT concepts.
Familiarity with SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) or other data integration tools.

General knowledge of Azure services and cloud-based data workflows.

Some experience with SQL and data pipelines is helpful, but not required.

Session Goals

By the end of this session, attendees will:

Understand the core components of Azure Data Factory (ADF), including pipelines, activities, datasets, linked services, and data flows.

Learn how ADF compares to and improves upon SSIS in a cloud-native environment.

Gain insight into best practices for deployment, monitoring, scheduling, and cost management in ADF.

See a real-world ADF pipeline in action through a live demo, originally built for SQL Saturday Jacksonville.

Leave with practical knowledge to start building or migrating data integration solutions using ADF.