Announcing the Release of SQL Server Management Studio 22 Preview 3
The SSMS team is delighted to announce the release of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22 Preview 3. This latest preview is chock full of exiting new features and fixes. For the detailed list of everything we released, as well as download and installation instructions, check out our release notes. Let’s dive into some of the highlights! Update to SSMS 22 Preview 3 Update to the latest version of SSMS 22 Preview by going to Help > Check for Updates or open the Visual Studio Installer to download and install the update. If you don’t have SSMS 22 Preview yet, you can learn more about downloading and installing it here. Initial ARM64 Support We are so excited to announce the initial support of ARM64 devices for SSMS 22 Preview! Like our approach to adding dark mode, ARM64 support for the various components of SSMS will come in phases. If you’re a Windows ARM64 user, you can now download, install, and use SSMS 22 Preview for scenarios like connecting and querying your databases. For a list of scenarios that are still unsupported, visit our known issues page. We know this has been a long-standing request, dating back to the initial SSMS 21 Preview releases. We appreciate your support and patience as we continue to build out our ARM64 story for SSMS 22. Introducing GitHub Copilot in SSMS (Preview) After launching Copilot in SSMS (Preview) in SSMS 21, we received a lot of feedback about integrating with GitHub Copilot (read Erin’s previous blog post for more details about our decision making process and pivot!). Today, we are thrilled to announce the launch of GitHub Copilot in SSMS (Preview) – a new Copilot experience with sidecar and inline chat, code assistance, and more to come. To get started using GitHub Copilot in SSMS, launch the Visual Studio Installer, select AI Assistance from the Workloads tab, and select Modify to download and install the component. For a detailed breakdown of what’s new, be sure to visit Erin’s blog post and our documentation site. Introducing the Query Hint Recommendation tool (Preview) The Query Hint Recommendation tool, a component for SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), automates the identification of optimal query hints to enhance SQL query performance. This tool allows users to explore query hints for a given query while minimizing the need for manual trial and error. The Query Hint Recommendation tool (Preview) works with a single query in the active query editor window. For step-by-step instructions, visit our documentation. SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) Reinstated With SSMS 22 Preview 3, we are bringing back SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) capabilities, including SSISDB catalog management, automated execution of SSIS packages, the Import/Export Wizard, and Maintenance Plans. For a list of known issues, please visit our known issues page. Bug Fixes in SSMS 22 Preview 3 The SSMS team has done an enormous amount of work for this Preview. In addition to all the new features we mentioned above, we’ve also resolved several bug and feedback items. Database Properties: Fixed an issue that blocked the ability to change compatibility level for users with ALTER permissions. See Database compatibility level drop down disabled but query works. Object Explorer and Results Grid: Resolved an issue that prevented direct scroll bar navigation from working properly. See Direct scroll bar navigation via Shift-click does not work for Object Explorer and Results Grid. Solution Explorer: Resolved an error that was generated when opening a folder that was closed but had files that were open. See SSMS 21 Preview – error while opening a folder in Windows 11. Status Bar: Reinstated line and column numbers in the status bar. See In SSMS21 I can’t find column number after clicking cell in grid results. We hope you've been enjoying the latest SSMS 22 Preview. We can't wait to hear your feedback, comments, and suggestions. Thanks for being along for the ride!Now Available by Popular Demand: GitHub Copilot in SSMS (Preview)
GitHub Copilot in SSMS is now available in Preview 3 of SSMS 22! If you’re looking to get help writing, editing, or fixing T-SQL, have questions to ask about your database, and you’d like to use your GitHub Copilot subscription, then it’s time to install SSMS 22 Preview 3 with the AI Assistance workload.Microsoft at PASS Data Community Summit 2025
Microsoft is excited to be back as the Sapphire Sponsor for this year’s PASS Data Community Summit, together with AMD. Together, we’re helping data professionals and DBAs modernize their environments for greater performance, efficiency, and AI readiness. It’ll be a week packed with keynotes, learning pathways, sessions, breakfast, giveaways and more! Our experts and engineers will be there and ready to share all things SQL Server 2025, cover the latest from Azure SQL, Microsoft Fabric and more—delivered on a foundation of AMD-powered innovation. Whether your goals are modernizing for performance and AI readiness or building intelligent apps and agents, we’ll have you covered. We hope you’ll join us to “Connect, Share and Learn” alongside the rest of your peers at the PASS community. CVP of Azure Databases, Shireesh Thota, is back as the keynote speaker, and will be joined by leaders across Microsoft Data including Priya Sathy and Bob Ward—highlighting how Microsoft and AMD are shaping the future of data together. Join us on Day 2, Thursday, November 20 th . Come back and check as new sessions are added: Learning Pathways: Becoming Azure SQL DBA – High Availability and BCDR Dr. Dani Ljepava, Bob Ward, John Morehouse Learn how to evolve your Azure SQL DBA skills in the domain of High Availability (HA), Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery (BCDR) from the perspective of on-premises DBA’s. Becoming Azure SQL DBA – Security, Compliance, Threats, Connectivity Pam Lahoud, Joey Dantoni Evolve your Azure SQL DBA skills in the domain of security, compliance, authentication and connectivity, from the perspective of an on-premises DBA now supporting databases in Azure. Becoming Azure SQL DBA – Performance Monitoring, Tuning, and Alerting Erin Stellato, Pam Lahoud, Monica Morehouse (Rathbun) Extend your Azure SQL DBA skills in the domain of performance monitoring, tuning, and alerting from the perspective of on-premises DBA. Becoming Azure SQL DBA – Copilot and AI Davide Mauri, Erin Stellato Unlock the future of data productivity with a hands-on exploration of AI-powered Copilots! We’ll dive into Copilot in SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), Microsoft Copilot in Azure with NL2SQL and SQL, and Copilot for SQL Databases in Microsoft Fabric. Becoming an Azure SQL DBA - New Opportunities for DBAs in Azure Bob Ward, Dr. Dani Ljepava, Erin Stellato, Pam Lahoud Explore new skill development opportunities as an Azure SQL DBA. Many traditional SQL Server DBA tasks have been partially or fully delegated to Microsoft, and this shift in responsibilities provides a great opportunity to invest in developing new cloud skills that will help you excel as an Azure SQL DBA champion. General Sessions Inside SQL Server 2025 Bob Ward Join Bob Ward and friends to go deep into the next major release of SQL Server, SQL Server 2025, the Enterprise AI-ready database. You will learn the fundamentals and a deep dive of all the new capabilities in the release so you can plan and make key decisions on when and how to upgrade. SQL database in Fabric: The Unified Database for AI Apps with Azure SQL Hyperscale Build AI apps that run securely and scale with your needs with Azure SQL Database Hyperscale. We’ll cover native vector indexes for semantic search, read scale‑out for low‑latency RAG, using the model of your choice, from T‑SQL. We will show how to build modern AI Agents using all the tools you need with databases and MCP Servers. Modernize your AI application using the power of Azure SQL Database Hyperscale Ecosystem sessions Smarter GitHub Copilot + SSMS 22 Erin Stellato Discover how GitHub Copilot is transforming the way you write T-SQL and optimize your SQL databases inside SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22. In this session, we’ll showcase the newest SSMS 22 features alongside real-world demos of GitHub Copilot, highlighting how AI assistance can speed up query writing, reduce errors, and boost productivity. You’ll learn best practices for getting the most out of Copilot in your daily workflow and see firsthand how SSMS 22 + GitHub Copilot can take your efficiency to the next level. Can’t wait until the event? Get an early preview of the sessions at PASS Summit! Watch this free webinar hosted by Redgate’s Kellyn Gorman and Bob Ward, happening October 28 th at 9am PT. Don’t miss this opportunity for a first look into the topics we’ll be covering, register today! --Exclusive Offer for PASS Attendees-- As a special offer from Microsoft, use the code AZURE150 to receive $150 off your 3-day conference pass. Don’t miss this opportunity to connect, grow, and learn with the community. Register todayAnnouncing the release of SSMS 22 Preview 1
The SSMS team is excited to share the first preview of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 22! Preview releases are our way of getting features into your hands early so we can learn from your feedback while we continue building. How to get SSMS 22 Preview 1 You can install SSMS 22 Preview from our documentation site. As always, SSMS 22 Preview can be installed side-by-side with earlier versions of SSMS, including SSMS 21, released today. Full details of all features and fixes are available in our release notes, with known issues documented here. An important note: the SSIS and GitHub Copilot components are not present in SSMS 22 Preview 1. We're working on making these available in upcoming previews! If you need SSIS functionality like import/export or Maintenance Plans, those are supported in SSMS 21. Read here for more details about how to download and install SSIS in SSMS 21. For more information about GitHub Copilot, please reference Erin's blog. Unified Settings We’ve introduced a modern Settings experience with: Search and filtering to help you quickly find what you need. Save options that let you apply settings at the user level, the instance of SSMS, or even scoped to a solution (solution settings override user settings). A clean, modern UI that lays the foundation for future settings enhancements. This feature is still in progress, and we’ll be refining the experience in future previews. New visual themes We’ve retired the classic SSMS blue theme – this was a tough decision and we know that some folks have strong feelings about the look of SSMS. However, this was a necessary action since the classic blue theme was a source of accessibility issues. Accessibility is a top priority for us, and this change ensures SSMS continues to be inclusive for all users. In its place, you’ll find a set of fresh light and dark themes, with full support for customizing fonts, backgrounds, and colors (just like in SSMS 21). Zooming in the results grid You can now zoom the results grid, independent of zooming the editor using: CTRL + scroll up/down Or CTRL + SHIFT + < / > Fabric integration work We’re continuing to make SSMS a great companion for Fabric. In this preview you’ll find: Group by schema support for SQL databases in Fabric Updated right-click menus for smoother workflows More Fabric integration is coming in future previews – stay tuned! IntelliSense updates We’ve made IntelliSense improvements with support for: New syntax (AI_GENERATE_EMBEDDINGS and CURRENT_TIMEZONE_ID) RegEx support (regexp_matches and regexp_split_to_table) ANSI concatenation using the ||= operator General UI fixes We’ve resolved several long-standing UI issues, including fixing dialogs that sometimes popped up behind the main window instead of on top. What's next? Coming in future previews, we’re planning support for: Windows ARM64 GitHub Copilot integration (read more in Erin’s blog post) Fabric integration in the Connection Dialog More SQL Server 2025 features You can track our progress on the SSMS roadmap. Your voice matters! Previews are all about learning from the community, and we’d love your input. You can share feedback directly from SSMS (Help > Send Feedback > Report a Problem / Suggest a Feature), or head to https://aka.ms/ssms-feedback. Pro tip: leaving feedback from inside SSMS automatically includes helpful details like your SSMS version number and OS info, which makes it easier for us to troubleshoot. We’re thrilled to start this journey toward SSMS 22 with you. Please try out Preview 1, let us know what works, what doesn’t, and what you’d love to see next!SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21 is now generally available (GA)
The SQL Tools team is thrilled to announce the general availability of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21. SSMS 21 GA brings a modern installation and update experience through the Visual Studio installer, 64-bit support, Git integration, and initial dark theme support.What’s next for Copilot in SSMS
We released Copilot in SSMS (preview) with the General Availability of SSMS 21 in May of this year. For the uninitiated, the implementation requires creating an endpoint and deployment in Azure OpenAI (AOAI). We expected that some users would encounter friction during initial configuration - not all users of SSMS have Azure portal access, or permission to create such resources in Azure. However, the benefits of using AOAI - built in security, the ability to deploy resources in specific geographic areas, pay-as-you-go model - combined with an underlying architecture that ultimately supports accessing any endpoint (third-party or internal) outweighed potential setup challenges. We also expected that users would ask why we didn’t integrate with GitHub Copilot. And to be clear, it was something we had explored, and it was not feasible at the time due to a variety of factors. We were not surprised to see a feedback item calling for GHCP support. As the vote count climbed, and the comments flowed in, we increased our focus on GHCP feasibility. It was clear that SSMS users wanted a simpler, more familiar Copilot experience, like they have in Visual Studio and VS Code. We explored a PoC with GitHub Copilot, and we put out a survey asking about Copilot in SSMS (thanks to those that responded!). Ultimately, 75% of survey respondents wanted the Copilot experience in SSMS to leverage GitHub Copilot. An implementation pivot is not a quick or easy decision, and not something we take lightly. But at the end of the day, the data - combined with user feedback - supported the move to using GitHub Copilot. And that’s what we’re doing. We’re changing tack mid-course to move in a new direction. If you’re celebrating this decision, welcome to the party! If you’re not sure what this decision means for you, because you’re already using Copilot in SSMS 21, we see you. Keep reading. What about the existing Copilot in SSMS experience? The original Copilot in SSMS 21 will continue to be available in SSMS 21 but will not receive any updates. If you’ve been using Copilot in SSMS 21 (which connects to your Azure OpenAI Service), you can continue to use it in SSMS 21.x. We are not disabling or removing it from SSMS 21. However, the original Copilot in SSMS will not be actively developed further, and it will not be available in the next major release. Think of it as a feature-frozen preview – it will remain as-is (bug fixes aside) while we focus our energy on the new GitHub Copilot integration. This ensures that those of you who have invested time in the current Copilot can keep using it in SSMS 21. Will GHCP in SSMS have the same capabilities as Copilot in SSMS? Yes, in time. Our team’s mandate is to ensure that moving to GitHub Copilot in SSMS does not ultimately remove or degrade any functionality you had with the original Copilot in SSMS. The GitHub Copilot integration will get to parity with the original Copilot in SSMS – but it will take a few releases so please set expectations accordingly. GitHub Copilot in SSMS will have the sidecar chat, code assistance, and of course database context. We’re aiming for a seamless experience: you shouldn’t have to re-learn anything or lose capabilities. Ultimately, it will feel like Copilot is “built in” (because it will be), and then we’ll work to extend capabilities beyond what’s currently available in the existing Copilot experience. What about those of us who want or need to control where our model is deployed? GitHub Copilot supports connecting to your own model using API keys. In addition to OpenAI, connecting to Google and Anthropic are also supported, with more providers planned. When will GHCP in SSMS be available? Makena shared a blog post about the next SSMS release (v22), and GitHub Copilot in SSMS will debut in a preview of SSMS 22 after Preview 1. We know this might be disappointing for those eager to see GitHub Copilot in SSMS immediately, but there are two big factors in play: This integration is a significant engineering pivot for our team This integration requires collaboration with the GitHub Copilot and Visual Studio teams We are actively working to evolve the existing GitHub Copilot experience to one that is tailored for SSMS and includes database and connection context. Once it is available in a preview release, any SSMS user with a GitHub Copilot license will be able to sign in and start using it, with no additional setup required. We’re doing everything we can to minimize the gap between SSMS 22 Preview 1 and the reintroduction of Copilot, while also focusing on quality and reliability. Why can’t you release GHCP in SSMS now? It works in Visual Studio; doesn’t it just work in SSMS? GitHub Copilot in Visual Studio is designed to support a workflow for developers who live in projects and solutions all day. While users in SSMS may use projects and solutions for their T-SQL scripts, the workflow is very different. In addition, the biggest values of Copilot in SSMS are its connection and database context, and its RAG implementation. Neither exist in the current GitHub Copilot integration; we have to add it. The context capabilities from the original Copilot in SSMS cannot just be “dropped” into the GitHub Copilot code. We need time to make this work correctly with the GitHub Copilot integration and ensure code quality meets our expectations. What Copilot experience will be available in SSMS 22 Preview 1? The first public preview of SSMS 22 will not include any Copilot functionality. Those of you excited about GitHub Copilot might be disappointed, and we understand, but it’s necessary for the short term. As discussed above, there is significant engineering work for us to customize GitHub Copilot for SSMS, and the new integration will not be ready for Preview 1. This means when you try out SSMS 22 Preview 1, you won’t see an option to install AI components, and you won’t see Copilot in the menu or have AI suggestions. We want to be very clear, so no one is surprised. Remember, this is temporary! Will you backport GitHub Copilot to SSMS 21? No, GitHub Copilot in SSMS will only be available in SSMS 22. Do I need a GitHub Copilot subscription to use GitHub Copilot in SSMS? Yes. What if I don’t have a GHCP subscription? You can sign up for a personal subscription (GitHub Copilot · Your AI pair programmer), or your company can sign up for a business or enterprise subscription. Once you have a subscription, you can use GitHub Copilot in SSMS. What GHCP subscriptions are supported? All personal and business subscriptions are supported. Can I use GHCP for free? Yes! GitHub Copilot offers a free, personal subscription that can be used in SSMS, just like it can be used in Visual Studio. If I like GitHub Copilot for MSSQL in VS Code, will I like GitHub Copilot in SSMS? We hope so! With GitHub Copilot as the foundation for both, and database context infused in the experience, our teams are working together to create a consistent experience across copilots. What’s next? We are excited about this change. By aligning SSMS with GitHub Copilot, we’re not simply solving a pain point, we’re also creating a more unified experience across the Microsoft ecosystem. Whether you’re writing T-SQL in SSMS, C# in Visual Studio, or both in VS Code, Copilot will operate on the same principles and licensing. This consistency is a win for developers and database professionals who use multiple tools. If you have questions about this change that aren’t answered here, please leave a comment and we’ll answer them (and update the post with the information if applicable). On behalf of the entire team, thank you for your continued interest and feedback. It’s not every day that we make a pivot of this magnitude, but we believe that this will make it easier for users to embrace AI assistance in SSMS. We’re committed to creating a copilot that’s a valuable and efficient companion whether you're writing T-SQL or managing a database, and the move to GitHub Copilot gets us closer to that vision.What’s new in SSMS 21.5.14
We’re excited to share that SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21.5.14 is now available! This release brings a few highly-requested updates to the Modern Connection Dialog (preview) and many other experience improvements. As always, you can check out the full list of fixes and known issues in our release notes, but let’s dive into the highlights. How to get the latest version of SSMS 21 Update to the latest version of SSMS by going to Help > Check for Updates or open the Visual Studio Installer to download and install the update. If you don’t have SSMS 21 yet, you can learn more about downloading and installing it here. Modern Connection Dialog (preview) updates We think of the Connection Dialog as the “front door” to SSMS. It’s the first thing you see when you want to connect, so it needs to be fast, flexible, and easy to use. In this release, we’ve made several improvements to help you get connected more smoothly. Custom connection properties You can now add custom names to your connection profiles. These friendly names show up in Object Explorer and your connection history, making it much easier to tell your connections apart at a glance. Advanced properties We’ve added an Always Encrypted section to the advanced properties menu to make AE configuration easier. The new advanced properties menu also supports Dark Mode and other color themes. Connection string copy/paste Sometimes you just want to skip the fields and drop in a connection string. Now you can! Paste a connection string into the dialog, select Apply, and we’ll validate it while auto-filling the other fields. Pro tip: if you select a recent connection, the Connection string tab doubles as a handy connection string builder – perfect for copying and sharing with teammates. Browsing registered servers Registered servers let you save and organize connections to multiple SQL Server instances, making it easier to quickly reconnect and manage. Previously, registered server browsing was only available from the View > Registered Servers menu, but we are happy to share that we’ve added them to the Browse tab of the connection dialog! Bug fixes in 21.5.14 When we say we look at the feedback site on a regular basis, we mean it! This release is chock-full of bug fixes, nearly all of them coming from the SSMS Developer Community site. A few updates of note: Fixed a bug in Object Explorer Details that threw errors when selecting multiple objects and right-clicking, or when trying to create a script. Updated IntelliSense so the ‘USE’ statement correctly changes database context. Fixed an issue where choosing “New Query” from a Central Management Server opened queries against all registered servers (instead of the CMS server). Restored the Tabify/Untabify options in the Edit > Advanced menu. Fixed a bug where copying from the results grid also included the header row. It is so special to work on a product with such an enthusiastic and engaged community. We are incredibly grateful for the time that folks take to submit detailed feedback and troubleshooting steps. We know many of you spend hours a day in SSMS, and our goal is to make that experience smoother, faster, and more enjoyable. We can’t wait to hear what you think of these updates, so please keep the feedback coming!Coming Soon: More SSMS 21 Updates and SSMS 22 Preview!
Hi SSMS community! It's been a bit since I posted an update about SSMS, but that's only because the SSMS team has been hard at work getting some big updates put together. While I don't have a release to share with you today, I wanted to get you excited about what's coming up soon for SSMS. Read on for more details! SSMS 21.5 Updates We have released several updates in the months following the SSMS 21 GA release. Those updates largely focused on customer feedback submitted via our new Developer Community site, and the upcoming 21.5 release will be no exception. We've got a lineup of much-anticipated bug fixes coming, including updates to the connection dialog, the database properties view, and the results grid. We've also done some work to improve performance and reliability and added additional fields and functionality to the connection dialog. SSMS 22 Preview Coming Soon Surprise! We are beyond pleased to announce that we have the first preview of SSMS 22 coming out soon. As was the case with SSMS 21, you can expect multiple previews to be released with regular frequency. This regular preview cadence allows us to work on implementation of new features as well as addressing any feedback items we receive. A few features you can expect to see in the upcoming Preview 1 include: Additional support for SQL Server 2025 syntax Zoom the results grid Additional visual themes Initial support for unified settings A more complete list of features we're looking to land in upcoming releasees of SSMS 22 can be found on our Roadmap. We are extremely excited to deliver these previews to you and appreciate your support and patience throughout this journey. The opportunity to download the first preview will be available soon - so stay tuned for the official announcement.Announcing the release of SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) 21.2.5
In this latest release, we’re excited to announce the return of SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) capabilities in Preview, Maintenance Plans (Preview), and new features in the Modern connection dialog (Preview) experience. To try it all out, go to Help > Check for Updates in SSMS, or update via the Visual Studio Installer. If you don’t have SSMS 21 yet, you can learn more about downloading and installing it here. As always, please read our release notes to get the full list of features and bug fixes. SQL Server Integration Services (SSIS) (Preview) SSIS is now available in Preview for installation with SSMS 21.2.5. You can install it by selecting Modify in the Visual Studio Installer, adding the Business Intelligence workload, or from the Individual components tab if you only want SSIS. If you are updating a previously installed version of SSMS 21, after the update has finished installing you will need to go back to the Visual Studio Installer and add the SSIS component from the Modify workflow. rver Integration Services (SSIS) (Preview) from the Workloads tab in the Visual Studio Installer. In SSMS 21.2.5 you have access to the following functionality supported by SSIS: SSISDB catalog management Executing and scheduling packages using SQL Server Agent Jobs Data import and export wizard Copy database wizard Use SSMS to manage the SSISDB catalog – the repository for SSIS projects and packages which includes secure storage, package deployment, and efficient monitoring of execution logs. Automate your workflows using SQL Server Agent Jobs, perfect for scheduled or event-triggered package execution. The Import and Export Wizard offers a guided, user-friendly way to move data between sources and destinations. And the Copy Database Wizard helps you copy or move one or more databases from one SQL Server instance to another using SSIS (Preview). Maintenance Plans (Preview) Maintenance plans are back! These make it easier to automate routine database tasks like backups, index maintenance, and integrity checks, all without writing custom scripts. With a simple drag-and-drop interface, you can set up recurring jobs to: Back up your databases Update statistics Perform database integrity checks To get started, connect to your server in SSMS, expand the Management folder in Object Explorer, right-click Maintenance Plans, and select New Maintenance Plan. You can also use the Maintenance Plan Wizard to walk through creating a plan that runs on a schedule via SQL Server Agent. Create a new Maintenance Plan (Preview) from Object Explorer > Management > Maintenance Plans. Modern Connection Dialog (Preview) Updates We’ve continued to add new features to the Modern connection dialog (Preview) based on community feedback and suggestions. In this release we added a Browse tab, providing an easier way to explore your local, network, and Azure resources. The availability to browse registered servers (local server groups) and other cloud resources like Fabric SQL DBs and DWs will be added in a future release. When signed in to Azure, you can select which subscriptions to display. Selecting a resource will automatically populate the connection properties with the connection details. Thank you to the SSMS community for helping us identify where the connection dialog experience can be improved! This release, we reinstated the ability to add firewall rules directly from SSMS, See Modern Connection dialog cannot add firewall exceptions. As always, we hope you are enjoying this latest version of SSMS. We’re grateful for your feedback – keep it coming!
