Windows: Microsoft Workaround for ODBC SQL connection issues (Jan. 5, 2023)

Posted on 2023-01-06 by guenni

Windows[German]Since the release of the November 2022 updates, issues can occur when accessing SQL databases. This has already been admitted by Microsoft. Here on the blog, readers had suggested a workaround in the form of an ODBC driver replacement. Now Microsoft has officially released a workaround for solving the ODBC access problems to SQL databases.

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The ODBC SQL connection problem

Microsoft had confirmed ODBC connection issues as of December 5, 2022 in the Windows Release Health status area (for example, of Windows 11 22H2) in the post Database connections using Microsoft ODBC SQL Server driver might fail. These issues may occur after installing the updates listed below on Windows clients:

The following Windows Server versions are also affected:

I had compiled more details in the blog post Windows: November 2022 updates cause ODBC connection problems with SQL databases. German blog reader Klaus451f said in the following comment:

Solution is to install and use SQL driver 17 (delete old ODBC connection and create with new driver).
It's better anyway, because it's a bit faster. Native Client would also work, but is actually too old.

We know the problem for about 3 weeks, does not occur immediately but is probably dependent on the memory usage, among other things. But if the error is there, it stays. Our application then freezes completely and has to be shut down.

But this only works if the application does not bring its own drivers. The comment here mentions a case where a server application recreates the data source with the old driver SQL driver at every startup.

Microsoft propose workarounds

As of January 5, 2023, Microsoft has suggested a workaround in the Windows Release Health status area (for example, of Windows 11 22H2) in the Known issues. The article Database connections using Microsoft ODBC SQL Server driver might fail states:

Workaround: To mitigate this issue, you can do one of the following:

  • ​If your app is already using or able to use Data Source Name (DSN) to select ODBC connections, install Microsoft ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server and select it for use with your app using DSN. Note: We recommend the latest version of Microsoft ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server, as it is more compatible with apps currently using the legacy Microsoft ODBC SQL Server Driver (sqlsrv32.dll) than Microsoft ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server.
  • ​If your app is unable to use DSN, the app will need to be modified to allow for DSN or to use a newer ODBC driver than Microsoft ODBC SQL Server Driver (sqlsrv32.dll).

However, the first item corresponds to the workaround suggested by blog readers above: Replacing the ODBC driver with the working version 17. Microsoft is currently working on this problem – but it is unknown whether this will be fixed with the updates for January 10, 2023.

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