{"id":4353,"date":"2017-12-18T08:48:39","date_gmt":"2017-12-18T16:48:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.couchbase.com\/blog\/?p=4353"},"modified":"2025-06-13T16:52:24","modified_gmt":"2025-06-13T23:52:24","slug":"scaling-couchbase-server-azure","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.couchbase.com\/blog\/scaling-couchbase-server-azure\/","title":{"rendered":"Scaling Couchbase Server on Azure"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Scaling is one of Couchbase Server’s strengths. It’s easy to scale, and Couchbase’s architecture makes an efficient use of your scaling resources. In fact, when Couchbase customer Viber switched from Mongo to Couchbase, they cut the number of servers they needed in half<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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This blog post is the third in a (loose) series of posts on Azure.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The first post showed you the benefits of serverless computing<\/a><\/strong> on Azure with Couchbase.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The second post showed a concrete example of creating a chatbot using Azure functions and Couchbase Server<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The previous post only used a cluster with a single node for demonstration purposes. Now suppose you’ve been in production for a while, and your chatbot is starting to get really popular. You need to scale up your Couchbase cluster. If you deployed Couchbase from the Azure Marketplace<\/a>, this is a piece of cake. Long story short: you pretty much just move a slider<\/strong>. But this post will take you all the way through the details:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Creating a brand new cluster with 3 nodes.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Scaling the cluster up to 5 nodes.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

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    Scaling the cluster down to 4 nodes.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/div>\n

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    Create Couchbase Cluster on Azure<\/h2>\n
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    Assuming you have an Azure account, login to the portal. If you don’t yet,
    \nGetting Started with Azure is Easy and Free<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Once you’re logged in, click “+ New” and search for Couchbase Server in the marketplace. I’m using BYOL (bring your own license) for demonstration, but there is also an “Hourly Pricing” option that comes with silver support<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Couchbase<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Once you select Couchbase, you’ll be taken through an Azure installation wizard. Click the “Create” button to get started.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Step 1 is the “Basics”. Fill out the username and password you want for Couchbase, the name of a resource group, and a location (I chose North Central US because it is close to me geographically). Make sure to make a note of this information, as you’ll need it later.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    The next step is Couchbase Config. There are some recommended VM types to use. I went with DS1_V2 to keep this blog post cheap, but you probably want at least 4 cores and 4gb of RAM for your production environment. I also elected not to install any Sync Gateway Nodes, but if you plan to use Couchbase Mobile, you will need these too. I’m asking for a total of 3 nodes<\/strong> for Couchbase Server.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    After this, step 3 is just a summary of the information you’ve entered.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    The last step is “buy”. This shows you the terms. One “Create” button is all that remains.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Now, Azure will go to work provisioning 3 VMs, installing Couchbase Server on them, and then creating a cluster. This will take a little bit of time. You’ll get an Azure notification when it’s done.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    You should have just enough time to get yourself a nice beverage.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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    Using your Couchbase Cluster<\/h2>\n
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    When Azure finishes with deployment, go look at “Resource groups” in the Azure portal. Find your resource group. Mine was called my_cb_resource_group<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    \"Azure<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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    Click on the resource group. Inside that resource group, you’ll see 4 things:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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