SQL 2014 Release Date and More

The much awaited SQL Server 2014 release is now amongst us with general availability on the 1st April 2014

http://blogs.technet.com/b/microsoft_blog/archive/2014/03/18/sql-server-2014-released-to-manufacturers-will-be-generally-available-april-1.aspx

Also according to the “Features Supported by the Editions of SQL Server 2014” there will be a raised 128 GB limit for Standard Edition. If this is correct then this is fantastic news for customers limited by memory but without the resource or requirements for the enterprise edition. Also in standard edition will be the buffer extension feature.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc645993(v=sql.120).aspx#CrossBoxScale

Also new is that SQL Server 2014 has the ability to encrypt the data while creating a backup using various algorithms, most notably AES 256.

In enterprise edition we see great new features such as  IO Resource Governance, more Availability Group enhancements and the amazing In-Memory OLTP.

These new features combined with natively compiled stored procedure and other enhancements in the Windows Server stack, such as Storage Tiering and Dynamic Quorum, add up to some enticing performance improvements.