Databricks releases, every cloud
- Scala UDFs can access Unity Catalog secrets
They use the caller's or function owner's permissions. Requires environment version 6 or Databricks Runtime 19.
- Time travel queries now enforce ABAC policies (Beta)
Requires Databricks Runtime 19 and Unity Catalog managed tables.
- Databricks Runtime 19: September 21, 2026
It supports truncate and trim_array functions in SQL and DataFrame APIs. Session environment variables are set using spark.pythonWorkerEnv.
- VARIANT cast extends to ARRAY and MAP columns in ABAC column masks
Requires Databricks Runtime 19 or above. Supports ARRAY and MAP in addition to STRUCT.
- Data Classification now scans Unity Catalog views (Beta)
Scans Unity Catalog views in addition to tables, using the same detection engine, and is currently in Beta.
- The counter_diff SQL window function is now available
Calculates differences between consecutive cumulative counter values, available in Databricks Runtime 19 and above.
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- Window measures on a numeric index column in metric views
Supports unitless offset and ranges on consecutive integer columns, useful for non-calendar periods like fiscal weeks.
- External secrets in Unity Catalog (Beta)
Connects Unity Catalog schema to AWS Secrets Manager, appearing as read-only objects.
- Databricks SQL version 2026.36 is rolling out in Current
It includes features from version 2026.32.
- See which chunks support each ai_search answer (Beta)
Added generate_citations option to show supporting chunks.
- time_bucket SQL function aligns timestamps to fixed-width time buckets
Replaces date_trunc for non-calendar units, requires origin and width parameters.
- Databricks Runtime 19: September 1, 2026
Auto CDF requires Databricks Runtime 19 or above with row tracking enabled. It makes MERGE and UPDATE operations about 15% faster.
- Databricks Runtime maintenance updates (09/01)
Includes bug fixes, security patches, and performance improvements for versions 13.3 to 18.2.
- Databricks SQL version 2026.36 is now available in Preview
It includes features from version 2026.32.
- Unity Catalog Skills (Beta)
Publishes and governs agent skills, controlling access with Unity Catalog permissions.
- Databricks Runtime 19: August 24, 2026
Updates Java to Zulu21.52+15-CA and upgrades Jackson libraries to version 2.22.
- Databricks SQL version 2026.32 is rolling out in Current
It is available in the Current channel and includes new features.
- Context attributes in ABAC column mask and row filter policies (Beta)
Targets request context, such as OAuth client ID and on-behalf-of status, in Unity Catalog policies.
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- Identity attributes in ABAC column mask policies (Beta)
Targets users by attributes like department or country, using has_identity_attribute_value and has_identity_attribute_tag_match functions.
- Tags page in Governance Hub (Beta)
Provides a centralized view of tag usage, summarizes governed tags, and offers recommendations for invalid values. Requires account admins to enable from Previews page.
- Define business concepts with Pages (Beta)
Gives business terms a single governed definition, part of Unity Catalog semantics.
- Databricks SQL version 2026.32 is now available in Preview
It includes the is_valid_variant function and supports REPLACE USING and REPLACE ON clauses with INSERT INTO.
- REPLACE USING flows for standalone streaming tables (Beta)
Replaces rows matching specified key columns, requires SEQUENCE BY column.
- Databricks Runtime 19: August 10, 2026
It supports collect_union and evaluates HAVING before window functions.
- READ METADATA privilege is GA
Provides read-only visibility into security-sensitive metadata, including privilege grants and ABAC policies.
- Change data feed on materialized views (Beta)
Requires Databricks Runtime 18 LTS or above. Enables replication to external destinations.
- Tag automations (Beta)
Assigns or removes governed tags on Unity Catalog tables or volumes based on defined conditions.
- Databricks Runtime maintenance updates (08/04)
Includes bug fixes, security patches, and performance improvements for versions 13.3 to 18.2.
- Automatic cost attribution for materialized views and streaming tables in Databricks SQL
Inherits custom tags from enclosing SQL warehouse environment for billing.
- Refresh materialized views and streaming tables without exempting the pipeline owner from ABAC policies
Pipeline owners are now subject to ABAC policies when refreshing views and tables. Policies are evaluated using the pipeline owner's identity.
- Secrets in Unity Catalog is GA
Stores secrets as securable objects with Unity Catalog privileges. Uses catalog.schema.secret namespace.
- Upcoming general availability of Unity Gateway Coming soon
Unity Gateway extends Unity Catalog governance to runtime interactions and will be available by default for workspaces with the compliance security profile.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Databricks Runtime maintenance updates (07/24)
Includes bug fixes, security patches, and performance improvements for versions 13.3 to 18.2.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Databricks Runtime 18 and Databricks Runtime 18 for Machine Learning have transitioned to LTS
Receives 3 years of stability and security fixes.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Databricks Runtime 19: July 23, 2026
Enables Arrow-optimized Python UDFs by default, changing type-coercion behavior.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Automated setup for S3 external locations
Uses AWS IAM temporary delegation to configure external locations and provision required resources.
- Databricks-hosted sample datasets available in the samples catalog
Available in Unity Catalog-enabled workspaces through OpenSharing as samples.databricks.datasets.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Warehouse-level statement timeouts (Beta)
Set via statement_timeout field in Create or Update warehouse APIs.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Lakehouse Real-Time (Beta)
Delivers sub-second SQL read queries against Unity Catalog tables. Built for low-latency workloads.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud) - Databricks Runtime maintenance updates (06/29)
Includes bug fixes, security patches, and performance improvements for versions 13.3 to 18.2.
AWS, read it on their docsAzure, read it on their docsGCP, read it on their docsSAP(not on this cloud)
Headlines, dates and product areas are Databricks' own, and every item links to the note it came from. The one-line summaries are ours.