Announcing the LocalStack for Snowflake 2026.08.0 Release

Introduction

LocalStack for Snowflake 2026.08.0 is now available. This release improves query status reporting, metadata queries, ordered aggregates, pipes, and tags in the current emulator.

Alongside this release, Snowflake-Next is entering preview. It is a new generation of the LocalStack for Snowflake emulator and is planned to become the default in the near future. The preview is separate from the standard 2026.08.0 upgrade and is available by invitation or request.

Get a free LocalStack trial to use LocalStack for Snowflake. To request Snowflake-Next preview access, contact LocalStack Support.

How to upgrade?

To upgrade the current LocalStack for Snowflake emulator to 2026.08.0 using the LocalStack CLI, run:

docker pull localstack/snowflake:2026.08.0
localstack start --stack snowflake

If you use the lstk CLI, the first run prompts you to select a default emulator. You can select and run the Snowflake emulator from that flow.

If you use LocalStack for Snowflake with Docker CLI or Docker Compose, pin the image version in your docker run command or Docker Compose file to 2026.08.0.

What’s new in LocalStack for Snowflake 2026.08.0?

Snowflake-Next preview
SQL function and expression compatibility updates
Improved parity with Snowflake
Miscellaneous
Conclusion

Snowflake-Next preview

Snowflake-Next is a new generation of the LocalStack for Snowflake emulator. It enters preview with this release cycle and is planned to become the default in the near future.

Snowflake-Next improves query execution performance compared with the current emulator. In our internal testing, it ran the LocalStack regression suite more than 10 times faster.

The preview also includes the following feature areas:

Streams, including STREAM ON VIEW, for testing change data capture and incremental data pipelines.
Zero-copy CLONE for development and test branches that do not need a full data copy.
Time Travel for working with historical data states.

Existing customers will receive preview invitations. Other users and prospective customers who want to take part can request access by contacting support@localstack.cloud.

SQL function and expression compatibility updates

There are no new SQL functions in this release. The following changes improve existing functions and aggregate expressions:

Function or expression	Notes
RESULT_SCAN	`RESULT_SCAN(LAST_QUERY_ID())` can now process results from `SHOW`, `DESC`, `LIST`, and commands that return status rows. This includes empty `SHOW` results. Failed or in-progress source queries return Snowflake-style result errors instead of an unrelated syntax error.
LISTAGG / ARRAY_AGG	A single `SELECT` can now contain multiple ordered aggregates with separate `WITHIN GROUP` clauses. Each aggregate uses its own ordering expression.

Improved parity with Snowflake

We have made several additional changes to match Snowflake behavior:

Long-running queries now remain in progress until execution finishes. Connectors continue to poll instead of receiving a success response while the statement is still running. For example, CREATE TABLE ... AS SELECT is not reported as complete until the new table is available to subsequent queries.
SHOW <objects> IN SCHEMA now limits results to the requested schema for views, materialized views, sequences, and file formats. The result no longer depends on the current session schema. SHOW VIEWS now identifies materialized views through the is_materialized result field, and SHOW MATERIALIZED VIEWS returns the view definition in its text field.
ALTER PIPE, DESC PIPE, and DROP PIPE now resolve fully qualified pipe names independently of the current session schema. DROP PIPE IF EXISTS also removes an existing pipe as expected.
CREATE TAG IF NOT EXISTS is now idempotent. Qualified tag names are preserved during create, alter, and drop operations, including renames into another schema.
Dropping a database or schema now removes only the tags owned by that database or schema. Tags in other namespaces are not affected, even when the current session uses a different database or schema. This also applies to qualified names and IF EXISTS. DROP DATABASE ROLE does not trigger database tag cleanup.

Miscellaneous

The LocalStack for Snowflake Docker image now uses Debian trixie, the stable Debian release, instead of the rolling Debian sid distribution. This aligns the base image with the LocalStack for AWS image.

Conclusion

LocalStack for Snowflake 2026.08.0 improves compatibility for long-running statements, result scanning, ordered aggregates, metadata queries, pipes, and tags. Snowflake-Next also enters preview for users who want to evaluate the new generation of the emulator.

Sign up for a free trial or upgrade to LocalStack for Snowflake 2026.08.0 to use the latest fixes. To request Snowflake-Next preview access, contact LocalStack Support.