Microsoft SQL Server 2025 Release Candidate 0 Announcement

Microsoft SQL Server 2025 Release Candidate 0 Announcement

SQL Server 2025 Enters Release Candidate Phase

In November 2024, a private preview of SQL Server 2025 was introduced, followed by a public preview in May 2025. The software has now progressed to its first release candidate, known as “RC0”, marking a significant step towards its anticipated general availability later this year.

Key Features in SQL Server 2025 RC0

The release features a noteworthy addition for developers, database administrators, and enthusiasts: a PREVIEW_FEATURES database scoped configuration. This new setting allows users to explore experimental features as they prepare for broader deployment. For detailed guidance on maximizing these capabilities, refer to the release notes here.

AI Enhancements and Performance Improvements

In line with Microsoft’s emphasis on artificial intelligence, SQL Server 2025 introduces a range of AI enhancements. Developers can now efficiently create vector indexes and perform vector searches, leveraging the PREVIEW_FEATURES capability. Additionally, the release promises intra-query parallelism with hyperthreading, which is set to significantly enhance query performance. Notably, macOS developers will also benefit from these advancements through the Rosetta 2 translation layer.

Several additional AI features are included, such as:

  • Text chunking and ONNX model integration via the AI_GENERATE_CHUNKS and CREATE EXTERNAL MODEL features, both of which are part of the PREVIEW_FEATURES.
  • sys.vector_indexes now inherits columns from sys.indexes, aligning naming conventions for easier management.

Platform Updates and Security Enhancements

SQL Server 2025 RC0 also enhances compatibility and security, supporting Ubuntu 24.04 and enabling TLS 1.3 by default. Additional refinements include:

  • Time-bound extended event sessions that automatically cease after the designated period expires.
  • Cardinality Estimation (CE) Feedback for Expressions introducing cache persistence, which maintains learned query patterns across restarts and failovers, leading to optimized performance.
  • PolyBase’s capability to communicate with Microsoft Azure Blob Storage and Microsoft Azure Data Lake Storage via managed identity.
  • Updates to JARO_WINKLER_DISTANCE and JARO_WINKLER_SIMILARITY functions for improved data handling.
  • Support for large object (LOB) types in REGEXP_REPLACE and REGEXP_SUBSTR functions.
  • The REGEXP_LIKE function is now SARGable, enhancing index usage for expedited query execution.
  • Default encryption settings for SQL Server Agent and Linked Servers adhering to the latest security protocols—TDS 8.0 and TLS 1.3.
  • Enhanced configuration for TLS 1.3 encryption across Always On availability groups, failover cluster instances (FCI), replication, and log shipping.
  • Replication now enforces OLEDB version 19 for inter-instance communications, ensuring TLS 1.3 with strict encryption.
  • Resource governance mechanisms to manage resource utilization more effectively in Fabric Mirroring.
  • A dynamic maxtrans configuration option aimed at optimizing Fabric mirroring performance.

Get Involved with SQL Server 2025

If these developments pique your interest, download SQL Server 2025 RC0 here to explore its capabilities firsthand.

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