Unlock next-gen database performance: C4A Axion and N4 machines for Cloud SQL now GA

For today’s business-critical database workloads, the bar that their infrastructure must meet has never been higher. Organizations expect systems that are performant, cost-efficient, scalable and secure. But meeting those expectations is no small feat. Surging data volumes, increasingly complex workloads, and new demands from advanced analytics and vector search for generative AI are intensifying the pressure on database performance. These trends necessitate greater computing power for running high performance database workloads.

We continue to bring new innovations and performance improvements to both Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus and Enterprise editions. Today, we’re excited to deliver substantial efficiency gains to your database operations with the general availability of the C4A machine series, powered by Google Axion processors, for Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition, and the N4 machine series for Cloud SQL Enterprise edition. The existing Cloud SQL Enterprise edition machines will now be available as “General Purpose” machine series under Cloud SQL Enterprise edition with no changes to feature or pricing.

Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition running on Axion-based C4A virtual machines delivers up to 48% better price-performance than N2 machine series for transactional workloads. Additionally, Cloud SQL Enterprise edition running on N4 machines delivers up to 44% better price-performance for transactional workloads and up to 3x higher throughput performance for read-only workloads as compared to Cloud SQL general purpose machine series.

Axion-powered C4A for Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus

C4A instances bring compelling advantages to managed Google Cloud database workloads. They deliver significant price-performance advantages compared to the N2 machine series and run your critical database workloads with greater speed and lower latency. Purpose-built to handle data-intensive workloads that require real-time processing, C4A instances are well-suited for high-performance databases and demanding analytics engines. The general availability of Axion-based C4A VMs for Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition underscores our commitment to infusing this cutting-edge technology for a diverse range of database deployments.

Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition for PostgreSQL and MySQL benefit significantly from Axion C4A instances:

• They deliver up to 2x higher throughput performance and up to 65% better price-performance versus Amazon’s Graviton4 based offerings.

• They also deliver up to 48% better price-performance over N2 machines for transactional workloads.

N4 machines for Cloud SQL Enterprise

N4 machine series are powered by the fifth-generation Intel Xeon Scalable processor, and support PostgreSQL, MySQL and SQL Server engines for Cloud SQL Enterprise edition. Compared to Cloud SQL general purpose machine series, N4 machines deliver up to 44% better price-performance for transactional workloads and up to 3x higher throughput performance for read-only workloads. 

Amplify performance with Hyperdisk Balanced storage

To further boost performance of I/O intensive workloads, both C4A and N4 machine series support the latest generation Hyperdisk Balanced storage. This combination enables higher disk performance while simultaneously lowering disk costs.

Hyperdisk Balanced provides up to 1.6x higher IOPS and up to 2x higher throughput as compared to SSD offerings that are available for Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus and Enterprise editions. Hyperdisk Balanced for Cloud SQL also helps you optimize disk costs by letting you independently configure capacity, throughput, and IOPS to match your workload requirements.

What customers are saying 

We’re proud to partner with industry leaders to bring this technology to market. Check out what our customers are saying about the performance gains and efficiency improvements they’re seeing on the new C4A machines:

“As Germany’s leading chain of general practitioner clinics, Avi Medical depends on fast, highly available data to provide seamless patient care. That’s why we moved our existing Cloud SQL servers to C4A machines, slashing our database costs by 35% and cutting user latency by 20%. This powerful optimization delivered a significantly faster experience for our healthcare professionals while driving down operational expenses.” – Patrick Palacin, Managing Director, Avi Tech GmbH

“At SpareRoom, the leading room and roommate finder, the performance and efficiency of our platform are paramount. To support our scale and enhance customer experience, we continuously seek to improve key application components. While testing Cloud SQL Enterprise Plus edition running on C4A Axion machines, we saw 10% to 50% faster response times and a 40% to 150% increase in maximum throughput for multi-threaded workloads compared to our current Cloud SQL instances. Cloud SQL C4A also provides the granular control we need over storage performance, enabling us to align it perfectly with the requirements of our diverse workloads. With similar per-core and per-memory costs, the performance boost clearly makes C4A a better value for us.” – Dimitrios Kechagias, Principal Developer, Cloud Infrastructure Optimisation Lead, SpareRoom

“Synspective designs, builds, and operates a fleet of [Synthetic Aperture Radar] satellites to detect and understand changes across the globe. Our services help organizations derive critical insights from large volumes of data. We rely on Cloud SQL’s high performance databases to deliver our services worldwide. Our evaluation of Cloud SQL C4A Axion machines for our workload showed a 50% improvement in query-execution performance and a nearly 50% reduction in CPU utilization compared to our existing Cloud SQL instances. We are thrilled with these results, which give us the performance and efficiency we need to continue innovating on Google Cloud.” – Masaya Arai, Principal Cloud Architect, Synspective Inc.

Availability and getting started

Both N4 and C4A machines for Cloud SQL are now generally available in select Google Cloud regions. For detailed pricing information, please refer to the Cloud SQL pricing page.

To learn more about Cloud SQL, click here. 

Ready to get started? Visit the Google Cloud console and create a Cloud SQL instance with just a few clicks. New Google Cloud customers can start a free trial and receive $300 in free credits.