go-sqlcmd v1.0 - Create, Connect to, and Query SQL Server
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably used sqlcmd to connect to a SQL Server or Azure SQL Database and query it. Chances are you’ve also used a modern CLI like Azure az or Kubernetes kubectl to create and manage resources. Our open-source sqlcmd combines both into one amazing tool, and today we are announcing v1.0!Announcing the Public Preview of mssql-python
We’re excited to announce the public preview of the mssql-python driver with new platform support and powerful features for Microsoft SQL Server and the Azure SQL family, now available on GitHub: mssql-python. Join us and contribute in shaping the future of Python connectivity with SQL Server! MacOS Support The mssql-python driver is now compatible with macOS ARM-based systems, expanding support for developers using Apple Silicon (M-Series) devices. This adds to our growing cross-platform story, and we’re not done yet — Linux support is coming soon! Connection Pooling We’ve built a robust, configurable connection pooling system to help boost performance and optimize resource usage. Key highlights: Connection Reuse: Reuses existing alive connections instead of creating new ones, improving performance. Max Pool Size Limit: Enforces a configurable maximum number of connections per pool to limit resource consumption. Idle Connection Pruning: Automatically disconnects and removes connections idle beyond a configurable timeout to free resources. Multiple Pools by Connection String: Maintains separate pools keyed by connection string, supporting multiple distinct databases/endpoints. Thread Safety: Uses mutex locking for safe concurrent access in multi-threaded environments. Connection Health Checking: Validates connections are alive before reuse and discards dead ones. Explicit Connection Reset: Resets connections before reuse to clear session state and ensure clean context. Configurable Global Pool Settings: Provides a singleton manager to configure default max pool size and idle timeout for all pools. Simple Global API: Exposes easy-to-use functions to configure pooling and acquire pooled connections. Logging: Outputs console logs for major events like creation, acquisition, release, pruning, and errors for easy debugging. Note: This feature is currently available on Windows only. macOS and Linux support is in progress. What's Next Here’s a sneak peek at what we’re working on for upcoming releases: Linux Support Connection Pooling for macOS and Linux Support for Bulk Copy for accelerated data transfer Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure AD) Authentication for macOS and Linux Try It and Share Your Feedback! Ready to test the latest features? We invite you to: Try it out: Check-out the mssql-python driver and integrate it into your projects. Share your thoughts: Open issues, suggest features, and contribute to the project. Join the conversation: GitHub Discussions | SQL Server Tech Community. We look forward to your feedback and collaboration!Introducing mssql-python alpha
We’re thrilled to announce the alpha release of our new open-source Python driver for Microsoft SQL Server and the Azure SQL family, now available on GitHub: mssql-python. Built from the ground up, this driver offers Python developers a robust, efficient, and fully open-source solution for connecting to SQL Server and Azure SQL. Whether you're building data-driven applications, automating workflows, or leveraging advanced analytics, mssql-python is designed to provide a seamless and high-performance experience. This is just the beginning—we’re excited to build this driver together with the community and would love your feedback! Documentation | Release Notes | Roadmap Join us in shaping the future of Python connectivity with SQL Server! Key Features Supported Platforms: Windows only (macOS and Linux support is coming soon) Support for Microsoft Entra ID Authentication Fully compliant with the DB API 2.0 specification. Key aspects include: Connection Objects: Establishing and managing connections to the database. Cursor Objects: Executing SQL commands and retrieving results. Transaction Management: Supporting commit and rollback operations to ensure data integrity. Error Handling: Providing a consistent set of exceptions for handling database errors. Parameter Substitution: Allowing the use of placeholders in SQL queries to prevent SQL injection attacks. What's Next? We’re committed to continuously enhancing the mssql-python driver and value feedback from the community. Here's what the team is working on next: Cross-Platform Support: MacOS and Linux Distributions We are committed to providing cross-platform support for our Python driver. In the next few months, we will release versions compatible with MacOS and various Linux distributions. Support for macOS (Issue #11) Support for major Linux distributions (Issue #10) Asynchronous Query Execution Execute queries without blocking the main thread, perfect for applications requiring high concurrency and low latency. True async query execution (Issue #9) Connection Pooling Improve performance by reusing existing connections rather than establishing new ones for every query. Async built-in connection pool (Issue #8) Try It and Share Your Feedback! As this is an alpha release, your feedback is crucial. We invite you to: Try it out: Check-out the mssql-python driver and integrate it into your projects. Share your thoughts: Open issues, suggest features, and contribute to the project. Join the conversation: GitHub Discussions | SQL Server Tech Community. We look forward to your feedback and collaboration!All about SQL drivers and access tokens
We often get support escalations related to failures around expired access tokens when using Microsoft Entra ID (formerly Azure Active Directory) authentication. There is a lot of nuance in the various drivers about how and when access tokens are used and when they get renewed after expiring. I’m going to do a deep-dive and try to explain some of the details here. This post is mainly targeted at people who have to troubleshoot issues in this area or those who are building large services and need to understand the impact of their authentication choices.
