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SQL Server 2025 CU3 SQL Server 2025 CU3 Cumulative update

KB5077896

KB5077896: Cumulative update for SQL Server 2025, CU branch, March 2026. SqlLocalDB crashes fixed; bulk import gains delegated permissions

In short

Fixes SQL Server issues including SqlLocalDB crashes and adds support for bulk data imports without requiring sysadmin access. Queries using SESSION_CONTEXT might return incorrect results in parallel plans.

Does it affect you? Applies to: SQL Server 2025 on Windows and Linux. The listed package is for x64.

Build
17.0.4025.3
Servicing branch
CU
Restart
Required
Review notes Additional details from the official release notes (1) Read note
  • This page The Bulkadmin role and ADMINISTER BULK OPERATIONS permission for bulk imports are supported on Linux in this update.

The official sources are linked at the end of the page.

For servers on the CU branch: they install cumulative updates, which also bring fixes beyond security. Servers on the GDR branch (security fixes only) get a separate update. Which branch am I on?

What changes

Fixes 9 changes

Column Stores

For: Servers with large core counts

  • Column-store operations scale better on servers with many cores.1
    Reduces false sharing and cache-line invalidation on large core-count server configurations.

SqlLocalDB

2 items
  • SqlLocalDB no longer fails when VECTOR functions are used.2
    Windows.
  • SqlLocalDB no longer crashes when REGEX functions are used.5
    Windows.

Storage Engine

For: Databases using optimized locking and change tracking

  • An assertion error and dump file might no longer occur when optimized locking and change tracking are both enabled.3
    Applies when optimized locking and change tracking are enabled on a database.

High Availability and Disaster Recovery

2 items
  • A configure-only replica of a Contained Availability Group can connect after a restart.4
    Fixes a startup failure when the system database is absent.
  • Using a local monitor server for Log Shipping and a Contained Availability Group works after failover.6

Linux

2 items
  • The Linux disk statistics field name is corrected.7
    In sys.dm_os_linux_disk_stats, ios_in_progess is corrected to ios_in_progress.
  • Changing the SQL Server edition on Linux uses the correct log file locations for the model and msdb databases.9

SQLPAL

For: SQL Server on Linux

  • A crash no longer occurs when a caller requests context containing only control registers.8
    Linux.

New features 4 changes

Security Infrastructure

For: SQL Server on Linux

  • Linux supports bulk data imports through the Bulkadmin role and ADMINISTER BULK OPERATIONS permission, without requiring sysadmin access.10
    Public Preview.

Search

For: SQL Server instances using full-text search

  • Full-text search batches can use a configurable timeout.11
    Set sp_fulltext_service 'batch_timeout' to a value from 1 minute to 1 hour, in milliseconds. The default is 10 minutes when there are no progress updates.

Linux

2 items

For: SQL Server on Linux

  • The getattribute API supports symbolic links.12
  • A configuration option lets Bulkadmin operations be added to the allowlist.13

Improvements 2 changes

Column Stores

For: Servers with large core counts

  • Column-store operations scale better on servers with many cores.14
    Improves performance scalability on large core-count server configurations.

Backup Restore

For: Servers with large core counts

  • Backup and restore operations scale better on servers with many cores.15
    Aligns the I/O completion structure to a 64-byte cache line size for large core-count server configurations.

Known issues

  1. Open Affects: Everyone

    Incorrect behavior of SESSION_CONTEXT in parallel plans

    Queries using SESSION_CONTEXT might return incorrect results or produce access violation dump files when run in parallel query plans, particularly if the session is reset for reuse.16

    Workaround status No workaround yet

    Microsoft has not published a manual workaround for this issue yet. Monitor release health until a resolving update is available.

Technical details

Data sheet · Security · Downloads · Components Click to collapse or expand

Data sheet

Released
2026-03-12
Classification
Updates
Type
Cumulative update
Servicing branch
CU
Restart
Required
Replaces
KB5075211, KB5078298
Replaced by
KB5083245
VersionBuildChannel
2025 17.0.4025.3 General availability

Security

No vulnerabilities are listed for this update.

Downloads (Microsoft Update Catalog)

Package 2025
394.6 MB
sqlserver2025-kb5077896-x64.exe Main update · KB5077896 SHA-1: 0344c9c2…cf8d83

Updated components

180 files changed since the previous update for the same versions.

Top changed componentsFiles
SQL Server Engine24
SQL Server Integration Services14
SQL Server Replication12
SQL Server Agent4
SQL Server Machine Learning Services4
SQL Server Full-Text Search2
SQL Server PolyBase2

Sources

Updated
Cited passages from Microsoft's official notes (16)
  1. 1. Fixes a performance scalability issue to reduce false sharing and cache line invalidation on large core-count server configurations. learn.microsoft.com
  2. 2. Fixes an issue in which using VECTOR functions causes SqlLocalDB to fail. learn.microsoft.com
  3. 3. Fixes an assertion error and a dump file that might occur if optimized locking and change tracking are both enabled on a database. learn.microsoft.com
  4. 4. Fixes an issue in which the configure-only replica of a Contained Availability Group can't be connected after a restart because of a startup failure without the system database. learn.microsoft.com
  5. 5. Fixes an issue where using REGEX functions causes SqlLocalDB to crash. learn.microsoft.com
  6. 6. Fixes an issue that occurs when using a local monitor server for Log Shipping and Contained Availability Group after failover. learn.microsoft.com
  7. 7. Fixes a typo in sys.dm_os_linux_disk_stats by correcting ios_in_progess to ios_in_progress. learn.microsoft.com
  8. 8. Fixes a crash that occurs if a caller requests context that contains only control registers. learn.microsoft.com
  9. 9. Fixes an issue in which changing the SQL Server edition on Linux causes the system to use incorrect log file locations for model and msdb databases. learn.microsoft.com
  10. 10. Adds support for the Bulkadmin role and ADMINISTER BULK OPERATIONS permissions, allowing secure bulk data import without requiring sysadmin access (Public Preview). learn.microsoft.com
  11. 11. Adds a configurable full-text search batch timeout by using sp_fulltext_service 'batch_timeout'. Specify a value between 1 minute and 1 hour, in milliseconds. learn.microsoft.com
  12. 12. Adds support for symbolic links in the getattribute API. learn.microsoft.com
  13. 13. Adds a configuration option to add Bulkadmin operations to the allowlist. learn.microsoft.com
  14. 14. Improves performance scalability on large core-count server configurations. learn.microsoft.com
  15. 15. Improves performance scalability on large core-count server configurations by aligning the I/O completion structure to a 64-byte cache line size. learn.microsoft.com
  16. 16. Queries that use the built-in SESSION_CONTEXT function might return incorrect results or trigger access violation (AV) dump files when run in parallel query plans. learn.microsoft.com
Checked automatically: 8 of 8 checks passed, 16 quoted passages · compared with Microsoft's page on Sep 26, 2026
  • Quotes found in the official pages: passed
  • Numbers found in the sources: passed
  • Vulnerabilities from the dossier only: passed
  • Links to allowed domains only: passed
  • Every official change covered: passed
  • Readable plain text: passed
  • Changes confirmed by the file list: passed
  • Sources agree: passed

A second AI read the text against the sources: correctness 4/5, clarity 4/5, completeness 5/5. How we work

Published by The Update Bureau. Written with AI from Microsoft's own documents, checked by rules and a second AI. How we work · Report a mistake