Are You Working With SQL Server?

SQL Server expertise for real-world challenges

SQL Server 2016 left Microsoft support in July 2026. SQL Server 2025 is here, with vectors, JSON and smarter query processing built in. And your estate probably spans on-premises, Azure and Fabric, with AI agents now asking for access to your data. Whatever you are running, SQLBits is where you work out what to do next, with people who have already done it.

Practical SQL Server skills you can put to work

Performance tuning and troubleshooting, high availability and disaster recovery, security, migrations and upgrades, automation and now agent-assisted operations. Every session is built so you can take something back to your own environment, and because your pass includes virtual you can catch up on anything you miss.

Meet the top team at Microsoft

Microsoft is a headline sponsor of SQLBits, bringing engineers and product leads from SQL Server, Azure SQL and SQL database in Fabric. Ask them directly about the challenges in your environment, alongside 100+ Microsoft MVPs and industry experts.

The challenges we’ll help you solve

If any of these sound familiar, you will find people at SQLBits who have already been there.

SQL Server 2016 is out of support, and unpatched production servers are now an audit and compliance problem.
SQL Server 2019 is on a security-fixes-only clock to January 2030, and 2022 leaves mainstream support in January 2028.
Extended Security Updates buy time, not progress, and they cost more every year.
We can’t afford the upgrade risk: compatibility-level changes and plan regressions after a migration.
New encryption defaults in SQL Server 2025 can trip up linked servers, replication and log shipping, so upgrades need real testing.
The headline AI features (vector index, change event streaming, fuzzy matching) are still preview in the boxed product, so we can’t plan production around them.
Licence cost and edition limits force awkward Standard-versus-Enterprise decisions.
HA/DR across on-premises, Azure and Fabric estates is complex and hard to test.
We’re short of skilled DBAs, and the ones we have are burning out.
Nobody has decided who allows AI agents to touch production data, or how that access is governed and audited.
Cloud and database spend is hard to forecast and control.
Azure Data Studio has been retired and our team needs to settle on SSMS or VS Code.

Vector search next to your operational data

The vector data type and functions are generally available in SQL Server 2025, Azure SQL and Fabric SQL, so embeddings live alongside the data they describe.

Scalable approximate search

DiskANN vector indexes reached GA in Azure SQL Database, Managed Instance and Fabric SQL on 29 September 2026. They remain in preview in the boxed SQL Server 2025 product.

Embeddings generated in T-SQL

CREATE EXTERNAL MODEL and AI_GENERATE_EMBEDDINGS call Azure OpenAI, OpenAI or Ollama directly from T-SQL.

RAG and hybrid search over live data

Combine vector search with ordinary T-SQL filters and your existing security model (row-level security, permissions), with no separate search service to secure.

Calling REST and AI endpoints from the database

sp_invoke_external_rest_endpoint is generally available in SQL Server 2025. Change event streaming to Event Hubs is in preview.

Feeding Fabric and data agents

Mirroring brings SQL Server data into OneLake, where Fabric data agents (GA) can answer questions over it.

A governed API layer for apps and agents

Data API builder adds vector and JSON types to REST, GraphQL and MCP endpoints, so agents get access without direct database credentials.

Eight places agents are already earning their keep in SQL Server, and where SQLBits sessions will show you how.

Performance triage

An agent inside SSMS inspects waits, slow queries, I/O pressure, memory and statistics, then explains what it found and what to try next. GitHub Copilot Agent Mode in SSMS 22 reached general availability in September 2026.

Query and index tuning

Azure SQL automatic tuning forces the last known good plan when a query regresses, and can recommend or apply index changes. The Query Hint Recommendation Tool in SSMS (GA, March 2026) suggests hints for troublesome queries.

Estate-wide incident awareness

Database Hub in Microsoft Fabric (public preview) uses agents to watch signals across Arc-enabled SQL Server, Azure SQL, PostgreSQL and Cosmos DB, flag changes and suggest next steps, with a human in the loop.

Migration assessment and execution

Agent skills for SQL migration to Azure (preview) drive assessment, migration and validation. SSMS target sizing and pricing recommendations are generally available.

T-SQL generation, explanation and documentation

Copilot in SSMS explains, documents, fixes and optimises T-SQL (GA, March 2026). The mssql extension for VS Code adds Copilot chat and a Schema Designer that turns plain-English prompts into schemas.

Governed agent access to live data

SQL MCP Server (open source, GA June 2026) gives agents a controlled endpoint over your data through REST, GraphQL and MCP, on-premises or in any cloud.

Building applications with coding agents

Microsoft SQL Agent Skills (preview) teach coding agents the right SQL patterns, with one-click install in the mssql extension.

Troubleshooting in the Azure portal

Copilot in Azure can answer questions such as ‘why was my database unavailable?’ using DMVs, Query Store and diagnostics

All of these speakers have appeared on the SQLBits stage – check our 2027 agenda when it’s announced for details of our 2027 SQL Server speakers.

Bob Ward needs no introduction. A bona fide SQL Server GOAT, Bob has shaped SQL from ground to cloud to Fabric. In 32 years at Microsoft, he’s worked on every version of SQL Server, from OS/2 1.1 to SQL Server 2025, as well as Azure SQL and SQL database in Fabric. A world-renowned speaker and bestselling technical author, Bob is also the face of the popular Azure SQL for Beginners series.

Brent Ozar makes SQL Server go faster, and makes learning it a whole lot more fun. A world-renowned SQL Server expert, performance tuning specialist and speaker, Brent has spent decades helping database professionals solve their toughest performance problems.

Anna Hoffman is helping shape the future of Microsoft SQL. A Principal Group Product Manager on Microsoft’s SQL engineering team, Anna works across the tools and experiences that power SQL Server, Azure SQL and SQL database in Microsoft Fabric. She’s also the host of Data Exposed.

Anna Hoffman - Data, Artificial Intelligence & Advanced Analytics Summit

Kevin Kline is a noted database expert and software industry veteran. A 20-year Microsoft Data Platform MVP and noted community leader in the IT industry, Kevin is a founder and former president of the Professional Association for SQL Server (PASS.ORG), as well as the author of the bestseller “SQL in a Nutshell”.