Releasesby GlyphVARIANT cast extends to ARRAY and MAP columns in ABAC column masks
You can now use a single VARIANT function to mask columns of type ARRAY and MAP , in addition to STRUCT and other types. This requires Databricks Runtime 19 or above. See Masking multiple column types with a single function .
Also shipped Sep 16, 2026Databricks in September 2026 →
BigQuery migration lineage service enters preview
The migration lineage service visualizes data flow and connections in a source database to help plan a BigQuery data warehouse migration.
Cortex Agents object enhancements (General availability)
The following Cortex Agents object enhancements are now generally available:
Include and exclude per-user quota users by name (General availability)
Per-user quotas now accept individual user names, so you can add or remove specific users alongside the quota's tag scope. INCLUDE_USERS is new and takes user names directly, and EXCLUDE_USERS accepts a 'USER' argument alongside its existing 'TAG' form:
Weekly per-user quota limits (General availability)
Per-user quotas now support a weekly credit limit alongside the existing monthly and daily limits. Pass 'WEEKLY' as the cycle argument to SET_PER_USER_LIMIT :
[In preview] Public Preview: Azure SQL updates for mid-September 2026
In mid-September 2026, the following updates and enhancements were made to Azure SQL:Configure soft delete for the Azure SQL logical server. When the logical server is deleted, it goes into a soft deleted state and is self-restorable during the configured
[In preview] Public Preview: PostgreSQL skills and MCP plugin for Azure Database for PostgreSQL
The PostgreSQL skills and MCP plugin turns supported AI coding assistants into context-aware PostgreSQL experts that can both provide guidance and act on a connected database. The bundled plugin combines expert-curated skills for PostgreSQL and Azure Data
More from Unity CatalogEvery Unity Catalog release →
Metastore-level ABAC policies are in Beta
Metastore-level ABAC policies are in Beta in Unity Catalog. You can now attach an ABAC policy (row filter, column mask, GRANT, or DENY) at the metastore level, so a single policy applies across every catalog in the metastore, including catalogs created later.
The READ METADATA privilege will soon be available by default for workspaces with the compliance security profile enabled
The READ METADATA privilege will be available by default for workspaces with the compliance security profile enabled in mid-October 2026. READ METADATA grants read-only visibility into an object's metadata, including security-sensitive information that BROWSE doesn't expose, such as privilege grants, row filters and column masks, and ABAC policies.
Sharing foreign Delta tables with OpenSharing is now generally available
Sharing and reading foreign Delta tables with OpenSharing is now generally available. Providers can share Delta-format tables federated from OneLake, a Hive metastore, or AWS Glue, without copying data into Databricks. See Add foreign Delta tables to a share .
Data Classification now scans Unity Catalog views (Beta)
Data Classification can now scan Unity Catalog views in addition to tables, classifying columns for sensitive data using the same detection engine. This is a Beta feature. See Classify views .
Sharing foreign Iceberg tables with OpenSharing is now generally available
Sharing and reading foreign Iceberg tables with OpenSharing is now generally available. Providers can share Iceberg tables federated from foreign Iceberg catalogs using Lakehouse Federation, including to recipients using external Iceberg clients.
Sharing foreign schemas and tables with OpenSharing is now generally available
Sharing and reading foreign schemas and foreign tables with OpenSharing is now generally available. Providers can share foreign schemas and tables federated from external data sources using Lakehouse Federation, without copying data into Databricks.
Invite OpenSharing recipients by email (Beta)
You can now invite OpenSharing recipients by email instead of exchanging a sharing identifier or credential file. OpenSharing emails the recipient a secure activation link to connect and read the shared data. Email sharing is in Beta . See OpenSharing by email .
Scalar and Batch Unity Catalog Python UDFs are now generally available
Scalar and Batch Unity Catalog Python UDFs are now generally available on all supported compute types. This release adds named handlers for row-at-a-time scalar UDFs, removes the five-UDF-call-per-query limit, and aligns scalar TIMESTAMP inputs with PySpark behavior.