Alibaba Cloud has released ApsaraDB RDS for SQL Server 2025, bringing Microsoft’s latest AI-ready database engine to its managed cloud platform. The release integrates built-in vector search, native AI model management, and performance enhancements directly into the database, eliminating the need for separate AI infrastructure. This marks a significant upgrade for enterprise workloads requiring both transactional processing and AI-powered analytics.
What’s New
ApsaraDB RDS for SQL Server 2025 includes the following core capabilities from Microsoft’s latest engine release:
- Built-in vector search: Native support for semantic similarity searches using a new vector data type and DiskANN indexing
- AI model integration: Direct T-SQL access to Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, and Ollama models without external ETL pipelines
- Optimized locking: Reduced blocking and lock memory consumption through Transaction ID locking and Lock After Qualification
- Change Event Streaming: Real-time log changes streamed to Azure Event Hubs for event-driven applications
- Query Store for readable secondaries: Performance monitoring now enabled by default on read-only replicas
The service is available across Alibaba Cloud regions with support for both on-premises and cloud AI model deployment.
Why It Matters
SQL Server 2025 represents the most significant developer-focused release in nearly a decade, according to Microsoft. For Alibaba Cloud customers, this means:
- Faster AI development: Developers can build retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) patterns and AI agents using familiar T-SQL syntax instead of managing separate vector databases
- Lower infrastructure costs: In-database AI inference eliminates data movement between systems, reducing latency and compute overhead
- Enterprise-grade reliability: ApsaraDB RDS maintains high-availability architecture with SLAs up to 99.997% for triple-zone deployments
Companies running mission-critical workloads on SQL Server can now add semantic search and LLM-powered features without rearchitecting their data layer.
Key Features Breakdown
| Feature | What It Does | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| Vector Search | Semantic similarity matching with hybrid SQL queries | Product recommendations, document search |
| AI Model Management | REST API access to GPT/Claude/Llama via T-SQL | Chatbots, sentiment analysis, fraud detection |
| Optimized Locking | Reduces blocking on high-concurrency workloads | E-commerce transactions, booking systems |
| Change Event Streaming | Streams transaction logs to Event Hubs | Real-time dashboards, cache invalidation |
What’s Next
Alibaba Cloud has not disclosed pricing changes specific to SQL Server 2025 support. The release follows Microsoft’s public preview announcement from May 2025, suggesting general availability is imminent.
Customers using older SQL Server versions (2012-2022) on ApsaraDB RDS can leverage blue-green deployment for zero-downtime upgrades. Cross-region disaster recovery via Distributed Availability Groups is also supported for SQL Server instances.
Microsoft plans to add database mirroring in Fabric for near real-time analytics in the final release.
Featured Snippet Boxes
What AI models can I use with ApsaraDB RDS for SQL Server 2025?
You can integrate Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, Ollama, and any REST API-based model directly through T-SQL without external connectors. Models run isolated from the SQL engine for security.
Does this replace existing vector databases?
Not necessarily, but it eliminates the need for separate vector databases in many use cases. The built-in DiskANN index provides efficient semantic search alongside traditional SQL queries within the same database.
Can I upgrade from older SQL Server versions?
Yes. Alibaba Cloud supports blue-green deployment for version upgrades from SQL Server 5.6, 5.7, and 8.0 with minimal downtime. Migration tools are available through the ApsaraDB console.
Is this available in all Alibaba Cloud regions?
Specific regional availability has not been detailed, but ApsaraDB RDS typically launches major updates across core regions. Check the Alibaba Cloud console for your region’s supported SQL Server versions.
