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SQL Server 2025 CU7 SQL Server 2025 CU7 Cumulative update

KB5096981

KB5096981: Cumulative update for SQL Server 2025, CU branch, July 2026. JSON corruption fixes; recovery monitoring can still crash

In short

CU7 fixes 10 issues, including JSON corruption and a crash in recovery monitoring queries. A separate open issue can still cause an access violation when sys.dm_exec_requests runs during database recovery.

Does it affect you? Applies to: SQL Server 2025 instances on Windows or Linux. The package updates only the components already installed on the instance.

Build
17.0.4065.4
Servicing branch
CU
Restart
Required
Review notes Additional details from the official release notes (1) Read note
  • In short CU7 fixes intermittent Error 976 or 978 failures in monitoring queries on read-intent-only availability-group secondary replicas. An access violation from querying sys.dm_exec_requests during database recovery remains an open issue.

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 5 changes

High Availability and Disaster Recovery

For: Availability group administrators

  • Monitoring queries on a read-intent-only secondary replica no longer intermittently fail with Error 976 or Error 978.1
    Applies to availability groups; the queries use sys.dm_exec_requests or sys.sysprocesses.

Programmability

4 items
  • A time zone-related error written to the error log no longer causes a non-yielding scheduler condition.2
  • ALTER JSON INDEX REORGANIZE no longer generates a dump file when statistics exist on the JSON index's internal table.3
  • JSON corruption during a JSON_MODIFY operation caused by an incorrectly calculated node parent offset is fixed.4
  • JSON_MODIFY merge operations no longer cause corruption or generate a dump file.5

Improvements 3 changes

Universal Communication Stack

2 items
  • UCS encryption uses AES-256 instead of AES-128 when TLS isn't explicitly enabled.6
    Applies to Windows.
  • Service Broker dialog encryption uses AES-256.7
    Applies to Windows.

Query Execution

  • The EDIT_DISTANCE function limits its calculations to prevent overflow errors that an authenticated user could otherwise use to cause a denial-of-service crash.8
    Adds logical capping to EDIT_DISTANCE.

New feature 1 change

Universal Communication Stack

  • A new trace flag lets you enable TLS 1.3 without editing the registry.9
    Applies to Windows.

Removal 1 change

Integration Services

For: Integration Services administrators

  • The Message Queue task no longer supports the legacy message format, preventing remote code execution from untrusted MSMQ messages.10
    Removes support for the legacy BinaryMessageFormatter (2000 format). Applies to Windows.

Known issues

  1. Open Affects: Organizations and IT administrators

    Linked server queries that use MSDASQL fail with error 7416

    Linked server queries using the MSDASQL provider and a provider string (@provstr) can fail with error 7416. A stricter connection validation check can reject certain configurations, even if earlier builds allowed those connections.11

    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.

  2. Open Affects: Organizations and IT administrators

    Access violation when you query sys.dm_exec_requests during database recovery

    Queries against sys.dm_exec_requests might cause an access violation and generate a dump file while a database is recovering, including during RESTORE, startup recovery, or before an availability group replica comes online.12

    How to apply the workaround SQL Trace Flag

    Enable trace flag 4696 to opt out of the code change, avoid queries against sys.dm_exec_requests for recovering databases, or uninstall this update. With the trace flag enabled, monitoring queries using sys.dm_exec_requests or sys.sysprocesses might return error 976 or 978.12

  3. Open Affects: Organizations and IT administrators

    Incorrect behavior of SESSION_CONTEXT in parallel plans

    Queries using SESSION_CONTEXT might return incorrect results or generate access violation dump files when run in parallel query plans, particularly if the session is reset for reuse.13

    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
2026-07-16
Classification
Updates
Type
Cumulative update
Servicing branch
CU
Restart
Required
Replaces
KB5093421, KB5084896, KB5081495, KB5077896
+2 earlier KB5075211, KB5078298
Replaced by
KB5104822
VersionBuildChannel
2025 17.0.4065.4 General availability

Security

No vulnerabilities are listed for this update.

Downloads (Microsoft Update Catalog)

Package 2025
409.6 MB
sqlserver2025-kb5096981-x64.exe Main update · KB5096981 SHA-1: 9fa0966b…fb21d3

Updated components

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

Top changed componentsFiles
SQL Server Engine37
SQL Server Integration Services24
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 (13)
  1. 1. Fixes an issue in which monitoring queries that use sys.dm_exec_requests or sys.sysprocesses intermittently fail and return Error "976" or Error "978" when they run against a read-intent only secondary replica in an availability group. support.microsoft.com
  2. 2. Fixes a non-yielding scheduler condition that can occur when SQL Server writes a time zone-related error to the error log. support.microsoft.com
  3. 3. Fixes an issue in which ALTER JSON INDEX REORGANIZE generates a dump file if statistics exist on the internal table of a JSON index. support.microsoft.com
  4. 4. Fixes an issue in which the node parent offset is calculated incorrectly and can cause JSON corruption during a JSON_MODIFY operation. support.microsoft.com
  5. 5. Fixes an issue in which a JSON_MODIFY merge operation can cause corruption and generate a dump file. support.microsoft.com
  6. 6. Updates UCS encryption to use the AES-256 algorithm instead of AES-128 if TLS isn't explicitly enabled. support.microsoft.com
  7. 7. Strengthens Service Broker dialog encryption by using the AES-256 algorithm. support.microsoft.com
  8. 8. Adds logical capping to the EDIT_DISTANCE function to prevent overflow errors that an authenticated user could otherwise use to cause a denial-of-service crash. support.microsoft.com
  9. 9. Adds a trace flag that lets you enable TLS 1.3 for SQL Server without having to edit the registry. support.microsoft.com
  10. 10. Fixes an insecure deserialization vulnerability in the Message Queue task by removing support for the legacy BinaryMessageFormatter (2000 format). This change prevents remote code execution from untrusted MSMQ messages. support.microsoft.com
  11. 11. A stricter connection validation check in the Database Engine can reject connections for certain linked server configurations that use the MSDASQL provider, even if earlier builds allowed those connections. support.microsoft.com
  12. 12. Enable trace flag 4696 to opt out of the code change that causes this issue. support.microsoft.com
  13. 13. Queries that use the built-in SESSION_CONTEXT function might return incorrect results or trigger access violation (AV) dump files when they're run in parallel query plans. support.microsoft.com
Checked automatically: 8 of 8 checks passed, 13 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