# Before you begin

You must have an Azure account with an active subscription and an instance of an Azure SQL database. You also need to install the Azure SQL database drivers. For help installing your drivers, see your Microsoft documentation for details.

Additionally, you need to obtain the following information from your system administrator:

* Host name
* Database name
* Port number
* Authentication method
* Username
* Password

If you use the **Always Encryption Enabled** option, you also need to obtain the **Client id** and **Client Secret Key**.


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