- Introduces GA Flexible Password Policy replacing legacy settings with a unified `options.password_options` object for granular controls (composition, history, dictionary, profile data).
- New database connections default to the Flexible Policy (15‑char minimum, NIST‑aligned defaults) as of July 2026; existing connections remain unchanged.
- API PATCH now rejects requests containing both `password_options` and legacy fields, requiring migration to the new schema.