Overview 

Planview Hub supports Microsoft SQL Server 2022, including Azure deployments of Azure SQL Database 2022. User authentication can be done through direct username and password or via Microsoft Entra authentication (Azure Active Directory) using the user-assigned Managed Identity authentication method. This allows Planview Hub instances hosted on Azure Virtual Machines (VMs) to authenticate using a user-assigned Managed Identity account managed by Microsoft Entra.

The following instructions can be used when deploying a new Planview Hub instance with an Azure SQL Database 2022, or when changing the authentication method for an existing Planview Hub instance that is currently using an Azure SQL 2022 database as its operational database.

Prerequisites 

1. The Planview Hub instance must be on version 25.1 or later. 

2. The Planview Hub instance must be installed on an Azure virtual machine.

3. Azure SQL 2022 database set as the operational database for Planview Hub.

4. Azure SQL Server and Planview Hub virtual machine hosted within the same Azure environment.

5. Azure Entra (Azure Active Directory) server configured in the Azure environment.

6. User-assigned Managed Identity account created in Azure Entra with access to the Azure SQL Server.

7. Managed Identity GUID (username) for the account that Planview Hub will use to access the Azure SQL Server. 

8. Microsoft JDBC Driver version 12.2 or higher downloaded from the Microsoft website.

9. The Managed Identity user must have the following roles granted on the Azure SQL Server: 

   • db_datareader 

   • db_datawriter 

   • db_ddladmin 

Configuration Steps 

1. Configure an Entra account that Planview Hub will use to access the Azure SQL 2022 database within the Azure environment. Ensure this account has the necessary roles and permissions for read/write access to the Azure SQL Server

2. If required, configure the virtual machines (VMs) hosting Planview Hub and the Azure SQL instance to use the Managed Identity from step 1 to generate an access token for Managed Identity authentication. This step may not be necessary if the VMs are already within the same domain configured with Entra user management. Refer to the Microsoft documentation for more information

3. In the Planview Hub UI, navigate to Settings > General > Storage Settings.

4. Click Configure JDBC Driver to select the Microsoft JDBC Driver as your database.

   • Note: Use Microsoft JDBC Driver version 12.2 or higher. As of the writing of this document, the latest Microsoft JDBC Driver is 12.8.

5. Provide the following Database Connection details:

   • Location: For user-assigned Managed Identity authentication in Azure via Entra, use the following format: jdbc:sqlserver://;serverName=<URL>;databaseName=AzureSQLDB;authentication=ActiveDirectoryManagedIdentity

   • Username: Enter the GUID for the Managed Identity account as defined in your Entra server.

   • Password: Leave this field blank for Managed Identity authentication.

   • Backoff Interval: Configure this setting if you want to set a specific backoff interval, which is used to set an interval before retrying a failed database connection (e.g., due to incorrect user credentials). This defaults to one hour but can be customized as desired. 

6. Click Test Connection to validate that the user account has been configured correctly and Planview Hub has appropriate access to the Azure SQL Server. 

7. If the Test Connection is successful, click Save to apply the updated database authentication settings to Planview Hub.