AzureFeeds

The SQL development experience is taking a major leap forward with the MSSQL Extension for VS Code.

The MSSQL extension is evolving to meet the needs of modern developers, bringing powerful, intelligent, and intuitive capabilities directly into your daily workflow. With this release, we’re announcing the general availability of the enhanced UI and the public preview of GitHub Copilot integration. Together, these updates streamline how developers connect to databases, write queries, and manage schema objects—whether you’re working locally with SQL Server 2025 or in the cloud with Azure SQL or SQL Database in Fabric.

As part of our broader effort, this release continues to transform SQL development in VS Code. While the new Schema Designer debuts alongside these updates, we’ll cover it separately in an upcoming post.

A modern SQL development experience, now generally available

The enhanced UI in the MSSQL extension—first introduced in preview and made default in v1.30—is now officially generally available. Over the past several months, these experiences have been refined based on community feedback to deliver a faster, more intuitive way to work with SQL in Visual Studio Code.

What’s included in the GA release:

• Connection Dialog: Quickly connect to local or cloud databases using parameters, connection strings, or Azure browsing. Easily access saved and recent connections.


• Object Explorer: Navigate complex database hierarchies with advanced filtering by object type, name, and schema.


• Table Designer: Visually build or update tables, define relationships and constraints, and publish schema changes with a T-SQL preview.


• Query Results Pane: Export, sort, and inspect query results in-grid or in a new tab. Includes Estimated and Actual Execution Plan buttons for performance analysis.


• Query Plan Visualizer: Explore query execution plans with zoom, metrics, and node-level insights to help you identify and resolve performance bottlenecks.

As of this release, these features no longer require preview settings or feature flags. In other words, if you’re already using the extension, the new UI is available immediately upon update.

GitHub Copilot is now integrated with the MSSQL extension (Preview)

In parallel with the UI GA release, GitHub Copilot integrates with the MSSQL extension for Visual Studio Code. This integration brings AI-assisted development into your SQL workflows. Available as a Public Preview, this integration helps developers write, understand, and optimize SQL code faster—whether you’re working with raw T-SQL or modern ORMs. Since it’s available as a Public Preview, you can start using it right away.

Importantly, we have designed this experience specifically with developers in mind—especially those who work code-first or may not have deep T-SQL expertise. GitHub Copilot adapts to your database schema and open files to offer contextual suggestions and explanations.

What you can do with GitHub Copilot:

• Chat with mssql​: Ask natural language questions to generate queries, explain logic, scaffold tables, or debug stored procedures—all grounded in your connected database.


• Inline Suggestions: Get real-time completions while writing SQL or ORM code, including Sequelize, Prisma, SQLAlchemy, and Entity Framework.


• Schema Design and Exploration: Create, update, and reverse-engineer schemas using conversational or code-based prompts.


• Query Optimization: Receive AI-driven suggestions to refactor slow queries, improve indexing, and analyze execution plans.


• Understand Business Logic: Let GitHub Copilot explain stored procedures, views, and functions—ideal for onboarding or working with legacy code.


• Security Analyzer: Identify vulnerable patterns like SQL injection and get safer alternatives in context.


• Mock and Test Data Generation: Automatically generate sample data based on your schema for prototyping and testing.

GitHub Copilot actively uses your database connection and open files to deliver tailored assistance. To get the most out of it, connect to a database and work within SQL or ORM files.

For additional guidance, check out the official documentation or watch the demo video to see GitHub Copilot in action.

Get started with GitHub Copilot

It’s easy to try the enhanced UI and GitHub Copilot integration in the MSSQL extension—no setup scripts, no configuration needed. Follow these steps:

1. Install or update the MSSQL extension for Visual Studio Code.


2. Connect to any database, local or cloud (SQL Database in Fabric, Azure SQL, or SQL Server 2025 (Public Preview) or prior).


3. If you have a GitHub Copilot subscription, sign in. That’s it—Copilot works automatically based on your connected database and active SQL or ORM files.


4. To start chatting, right-click any database in the Object Explorer and select “Chat with this database.”

This opens a connected chat session with the Azure SQL Copilot agent, ready to assist with queries, schema design, optimization, and more.

Need guidance on how to get started with the MSSQL extension for VS Code? Check out the official documentation for detailed information and quickstarts on every feature, or catch our latest livestream on the VS Code YouTube channel.

Conclusion

This release marks a significant step forward in the SQL developer experience inside VS Code—bringing a modern, streamlined UI and AI-assisted capabilities together in a single tool built for developers.

As we continue evolving the extension, your feedback plays a critical role. If you try GitHub Copilot with the MSSQL extension, we’d love to hear from you:

• 🤖 GitHub Copilot feedback form – Share your experience using GitHub Copilot with the MSSQL extension


• 💬 GitHub discussions – Share your ideas and suggestions to improve the extension

This is just the beginning—we’re building a modern SQL development experience for real-world workflows, and your input helps drive what comes next.

Happy coding!