Subrata (subrata-ms) · Aug 7, 2026 · Aug 6, 2026
diff --git a/PyPI_Description.md b/PyPI_Description.md
@@ -35,16 +35,22 @@ PyBind11 provides:
 - Memory-safe bindings
 - Clean and Pythonic API, while performance-critical logic remains in robust, maintainable C++.
 
-## What's new in v1.12.0
+## What's new in v1.13.0
 
 ### Enhancements
 
-- **Standalone `mssql-python-odbc` Package** - The bundled ODBC driver binaries are now also published as a separate, pure-data package `mssql-python-odbc` (import name `mssql_python_odbc`, version 18.6.2). `mssql-python` now depends on `mssql-python-odbc==18.6.2` and prefers the external package at import time, falling back to the still-bundled `libs/` tree so existing installs keep working (#663, #687).
+- **ODBC Driver Now Ships Exclusively via `mssql-python-odbc`** - The `libs/` fallback introduced in v1.12.0 has been removed. `mssql-python` now hard-depends on `mssql-python-odbc==18.6.2.1`; `pip install mssql-python` still Just Works and transparently pulls the driver package. Wheels are smaller and driver binaries are managed independently (#693).
+- **Apache Arrow Bulk Copy** - New `Cursor.bulkcopy_arrow(table_name, source)` method for high-performance bulk loading from `pyarrow.Table`, `RecordBatch`, or any object exposing the Arrow C Data Interface, avoiding Python row materialization. The classic `bulkcopy()` now raises `TypeError` for Arrow inputs and steers users to the new method (#665).
+- **`token_provider=` Parameter for Azure Identity** - `connect()` now accepts a `token_provider` object with a `.get_token(scope)` method, enabling `DefaultAzureCredential`, `AzureCliCredential`, `ManagedIdentityCredential`, and any custom credential from `azure-identity`. Bulk copy re-acquires a fresh token per operation. Mutually exclusive with `Authentication=` in the connection string (#603).
+- **Identity-Aware Connection Pooling with Token-Expiry Refresh** - The pool now keys on the security context (connection string + identity discriminator) so a connection authenticated as user A can never be handed to user B. Token acquisition is deferred to pool misses, and pooled connections whose token is within 5 minutes of expiry are refreshed automatically (#660).
 
 ### Bug Fixes
 
-- **Bulk Copy Connection Timeout** - `cursor.bulkcopy()` now forwards the cursor's connection timeout (from `connect(timeout=X)`) into the underlying `mssql_py_core` connection, instead of always using the hardcoded 15s default (#650).
-- **Bulk Copy of Custom CLR UDT Columns** - Fixed a `Protocol Error: Unsupported TDS type for bulk copy: 0xF0` that prevented `cursor.bulkcopy()` from loading rows into custom (non-spatial) CLR UDT columns; UDT columns are now mapped to `varbinary(max)` on the wire and the supplied bytes are streamed as the UDT's serialized form (#688, via `mssql_py_core` 0.1.7).
+- **Silent Zero-Row `executemany` Batches on Late NULLs** - Fixed numeric array parameter binding paths (`TINYINT` / `SMALLINT` / `INT` / `FLOAT`) that left indicator slots uninitialized when a NULL appeared partway through the batch, causing the batch to insert zero rows without raising (#702, issue #670).
+- **`SQL_WVARCHAR` Output Converter Applied to Non-String Columns** - The legacy `SQL_WVARCHAR` catch-all no longer runs against `INT` / `DECIMAL` / `DATE` columns. Registering a single `SQL_WVARCHAR` converter used to mangle every non-string column value; the fallback is now gated on `str`/`bytes` mapped types, matching `Row._apply_output_converters` (#692, issue #691).
+- **Integer-Keyed Output Converters Now Fire** - `Connection.add_output_converter(SQL_DECIMAL, ...)` and any other integer ODBC SQL type code as a key now dispatch correctly. Previously the converter dictionary was keyed only by Python type, so integer-keyed registrations were silently stored but never invoked, diverging from `pyodbc` and from the driver's own documentation. Integer keys take precedence over Python-type keys, and `SQL_DECIMAL` vs `SQL_NUMERIC` are dispatched distinctly (#690, issue #684).
+- **`RecordBatchReader.Close()` for Arrow Result Sets** - `Cursor.arrow_reader()` now returns a wrapped reader whose `.close()` stops fetching, releases the server-side cursor, resets cursor state, and leaves the parent cursor usable. Supports idempotent close and context-manager usage (#644, issue #643).
+- **`AttributeError` on Partially-Initialized `Cursor` Cleanup** - `Cursor.__init__` now sets `self.closed = False` and `self.hstmt = None` before any code that can raise, `close()` defends with `getattr(self, "closed", True)`, and `__del__` uses the correct `sys.is_finalizing()` guard, so half-constructed cursors no longer emit unraisable exceptions during garbage collection (#646, issue #642).
 
 For more information, please visit the project link on Github: https://github.com/microsoft/mssql-python
 

diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
@@ -12,17 +12,15 @@ The driver is compatible with all the Python versions >= 3.10
 > **Important Note:**
 >
 > ### ODBC Driver Distribution
-> The ODBC driver binaries used by `mssql-python` are now distributed through a dedicated companion package:
+> The ODBC driver binaries used by `mssql-python` are distributed exclusively through a dedicated companion package:
 >
 > - Package: `mssql-python-odbc`
 > - Import name: `mssql_python_odbc`
-> - Current version: **18.6.2**
+> - Current version: **18.6.2.1**
 >
-> When installed, `mssql-python` automatically depends on and loads the ODBC driver binaries from `mssql-python-odbc`.
+> `mssql-python` depends on `mssql-python-odbc==18.6.2.1` and loads the ODBC driver binaries from it at import time. `pip install mssql-python` transparently pulls the companion package alongside it — no separate install step is required.
 >
-> To ensure a smooth transition, the current release retains the bundled binaries within the `libs/` directory and uses them as a fallback if the external package is unavailable. Existing installations will continue to work without modification.
->
-> **Note:** The bundled `libs/` fallback is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. Beginning with a subsequent release, the ODBC binaries will be supplied exclusively through the `mssql-python-odbc` package. We recommend validating environments against the standalone package ahead of this change.
+> Starting with v1.13.0, the bundled `libs/` fallback that shipped in v1.12.0 has been removed. `mssql-python` will fail to import if `mssql-python-odbc` is not installed. If you install `mssql-python` from a private index or with `--no-deps`, make sure `mssql-python-odbc==18.6.2.1` is installed alongside it.
 
 ## Installation
 

diff --git a/mssql_python/__init__.py b/mssql_python/__init__.py
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@
 from .helpers import Settings, get_settings, _settings, _settings_lock
 
 # Driver version
-__version__ = "1.12.0"
+__version__ = "1.13.0"
 
 # Exceptions
 # https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0249/#exceptions

diff --git a/setup.py b/setup.py
@@ -197,7 +197,7 @@ def run(self):
 
 setup(
     name="mssql-python",
-    version="1.12.0",
+    version="1.13.0",
     description="A Python library for interacting with Microsoft SQL Server",
     long_description=open("PyPI_Description.md", encoding="utf-8").read(),
     long_description_content_type="text/markdown",