Microsoft discontinues SQL Server on Windows Containers Beta project

In 2017, Microsoft launched the SQL Server on Windows Containers Beta program to enable developers to connect to SQL Server instances from inside or outside the same container. The benefits include easy setup for development and testing purposes, as well as maximizing instance density and isolating and managing applications in multi-user environments. However, today, Microsoft announced the suspension of the program.

In a short blog post published on July 6, 2021, Microsoft emphasized that the SQL Server on Windows Containers Beta program was suspended due to ecosystem challenges and "frequency of use." Microsoft said that the program has not had enough users since its launch. However, the wording in the blog post is cautious, indicating that there are no plans to resume the program in the foreseeable future, but if the situation changes, it will be announced publicly again.

In the blog post, Microsoft also recommends users to migrate to SQL Server using Linux containers, which is now supported in production environments. It is worth noting that SQL Server on Windows Containers never managed to get rid of its "beta" label, so it is not intended for production use anyway. That said, this announcement will still anger developers who have invested time in building applications that take advantage of this feature, or those who use it in production environments.

Looking ahead, Microsoft has said that the SQL Server Express and Developer for Windows Containers Docker repositories will be removed soon. The tags in these repositories will also be deleted and the Docker images will not be available for download.