SQL2022 Release Date is currently scheduled for a release in mid 2022.
Microsoft typically does not announce any actual release dates until very close to the release.
The current version is Microsoft SQL Server 2019, released November 4, 2019. The RTM version is 15.0.
The lack of a clear roadmap for Microsoft SQL Server is a bit disconcerting given the huge user base of this Enterprise solution.
Many key users see Microsoft pushing hard on on all things Azure and it’s clear that the subscription model via the Cloud is the future.
However for some users Azure can be painfully expensive is the design is not correct or optimised.
SQL Server will be supported until the latter end of the decade but having seen what happened to Office and so many other Microsoft products some users are wondering whether Azure is the writing on the wall for SQL Server.
How soon will it be before Microsoft gives us the ultimatum of migrating to Azure or else?
Typically before a major release of a critical product like SQL, Microsoft normally deliver a Community Technology Preview (CTP).
The CTP will precede the SQL2022 release date.
The CTP is normally issued to major systems integrators and large users as a “Alpha” style release.
Given the elapsed three years since the last release a number of new features are expected to be available with the SQL2022 release date
- Accelerated Database Recovery (ADR)
- Polybase – with SQL Server 2022, Polybase was expanded support Oracle, Teradata, MongoDb and more.
- Key features available in Azure
- Features currently working flawlessly in Azure will be migrated down to SQL Server 2022. And some of the slightly buggy features will appear in SQL Server 2021/2022 in a CU or SP once they get ironed out.
As with most Microsoft products, Microsoft provides mainstream support for a product for 5 years after its initial release. This means that for the first 5 years you may see new smaller features or enhancements added to the product along with any bug fixes and security patches. After this mainstream support ends you will usually get another 5 years of extended support at which time you can only expect bug fixes and security patches.