Use Sql Server FileStream or traditional File Server?

Question

I am designing a system that's going to have about 10 millions+ users, each has a photo, which is about 1~2 MB. We are going to deploy both database and web app using Microsoft Azure I am wondering the way I should store the photos, there are currently two options,

1, Store all photos use Sql Server FileStream

2, Use File Server

I haven't experienced such large scale BLOB data using FileStream.

Can anybody give my any suggestion? The Cons and Pros? And anyone with Microsoft Azure experiences concerning the large photos store is really appreciated!

Thx Ryan.

Answer 1

I vote for neither. Use Windows Azure Blob storage. Simple REST API, $0.15/GB/month. You can even serve the images directly from there, if you make them public (like <img src="http://myaccount.blob.core.windows.net/container/image.jpg" />), meaning you don't have to funnel them through your web app.