Microsoft for Python Developers Blog
Read the latest updates about all things Python at Microsoft
Latest posts
Python in Visual Studio Code – November 2025 Release
The November 2025 release brings new Pylance features including improvements to Copilot Hover Summaries and a Code Action to convert wildcard imports to explicit imports. Keep on reading to learn more!
Python in Visual Studio Code – October 2025 Release
The October 2025 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code are now available. This release includes improvements to the Python Environments extension, Copy Test ID functionality, and enhanced environment activation when using Copilot Chat. Keep on reading to learn more!
Simplifying Resource Management in mssql-python through Context Manager
Reviewed by: Sumit Sarabhai and Gaurav Sharma If you’ve worked with databases in Python, you know the boilerplate: open a connection, create a cursor, run queries, commit or rollback transactions, close cursors and connection. Forgetting just one cleanup step can lead to resource leaks (open connections) or even inconsistent data. That’s where context managers step in. We’ve introduced context manager support in mssql‑python driver, enabling Python applications to interact with SQL Server and Azure SQL more safely, cleanly, and in a truly Pythonic way. Why Context Managers? In Python, the sta...
Python in Visual Studio Code – September 2025 Release
The September 2025 release includes pipenv support in the Python Environment Extension, a new experimental hover feature with GitHub Copilot and Pylance, and more!
Announcing the Data Wrangler powered Notebook Results Table
An introduction to the new Results Table integrated into the output cell of Notebooks, powered by the VS Code extension called Data Wrangler.
mssql-python vs pyodbc: Benchmarking SQL Server Performance
Reviewed by Imran Masud and Sumit Sarabhai When it comes to working with Microsoft SQL Server in Python, pyodbc has long been the de facto driver. It's mature, trusted and has been serving the community well for years. But as applications scale and Python becomes more central to modern data workflows — from microservices to data engineering and platforms like Microsoft Fabric — there's a growing need to modernize and improve the developer experience. So, can we take this further? Meet mssql-python - a modern SQL Server driver for Python that rethinks the architecture from the ground up while pres...
Python in Visual Studio Code – August 2025 Release
The August 2025 release includes Python shell integration support for Python 3.13+, Python Environments extension improvements, enhanced terminal suggestions with documentation, and more!
Announcing Full Cross-Platform Support for the mssql-python Driver
After the successful release of Public Preview of mssql-python driver, we’re thrilled to announce a major milestone for the mssql-python driver: full support for all three major operating systems—Windows, macOS, and Linux. This release marks a significant leap forward in our mission to provide seamless, performant, and Pythonic connectivity to Microsoft SQL Server and the Azure SQL family. Try it here: mssql-python Linux Joins the Party With this release, Linux support is officially live, completing our cross-platform vision. Whether you're developing on Ubuntu, Red Hat or Debian, the mssql-python...
Python in Visual Studio Code – July 2025 Release
The July 2025 release includes TBA and more!
Python in Visual Studio Code – June 2025 Release
The June 2025 release includes Copilot chat tools in the Python extension, project creation from a template, language server based terminal suggest, and more!
Python in Visual Studio Code – May 2025 Release
The May 2025 release includes updates in the Python Environments extension, a new color picker added by Pylance, branch coverage support, and more!
Microsoft at PyTexas 2025: Join Us for a Celebration of Python and Innovation
Microsoft is thrilled to announce our participation in PyTexas 2025, taking place this year in the vibrant city of Austin, Texas! At this year’s event, Microsoft is proud to contribute to the community’s growth and excitement by hosting a booth and delivering an engaging talk.
Build AI agents with Python in #AgentsHack
Microsoft is holding an AI Agents Hackathon, and we want to see what you can build with Python! We'll have 20+ live streams showing you how to build AI agents with Python using popular agent frameworks and Microsoft technologies. Then, you can submit your project for a chance to win prizes, including a Best in Python prize!
Python in Visual Studio Code – April 2025 Release
The April 2025 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code is now available. This update introduces enhancements to the Copilot experience in Notebooks, improved support for editable installs, faster and more reliable diagnostics, and the addition of custom Node.js arguments with Pylance, and more!
New Python Driver for SQL Server and Azure SQL!
We’re thrilled to announce the alpha release of our new open-source Python driver for Microsoft SQL Server and the Azure SQL family, now available on GitHub at mssql-python.
Python in Visual Studio Code – March 2025 Release
The March 2025 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code are now available. This month's updates include improvements to shell integration, a new setting to change auto test discovery file patterns, inline values shown on hover, and more!
Python in Visual Studio Code – February 2025 Release
The February 2025 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code are now available. This month's updates include .
Python in Visual Studio Code – December 2024 Release
The December 2024 release of the Python and Jupyter extensions for Visual Studio Code are now available. This month's updates include a special review of docstring generation features from Pylance, the new Python Environments extension in preview, Pylance's "full" language server mode, and much more. Keep reading to learn more!
