What’s new in SQL Server 2014?

The release of SQL Server 2014 has brought good amount of new features and enhancements. Some of the notable features are presented below.

  • Database Engine Enhancement
     
    • In-Memory OLTP for ~10X performance gains by moving most used tables into memory.
    • Updatable and clustered column store indexes for faster retrieval.
    • Enhanced query processing for better performance without app changes.
    • Buffer Pool extension to SSDs for faster paging.
    • Resource Governor controls IO along with CPU and memory.
    • Enhanced Always On now supports 8 secondary for better HA (High Availability)
  • Business Intelligence Enhancement
     
    • Power Query (formally codename “Data Explorer”) in Excel makes easy to access Internal and External data (both Relational and Non-Relational).
    • Power Map (formally codename “Geo Flow”) in Excel can be used to get insights with 3D visualization.
    • Parallel Data Warehouse with Polybase to support querying Big Data with T-SQL.
  • Cloud support Enhancement
     
    • Simplified cloud Backup and Deployment lets you Backup and Restore from SQL Azure/Windows Azure VM to SQL Server and vice-versa.
    • HA/Always On in Azure helps to handle disaster recovery.