diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon.inc b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon.inc
index cddfdab9..b1c479e9 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon.inc
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon.inc
@@ -8,30 +8,6 @@
 
 */
 
-//
-// looks like an additional file (in addition to pdo_test_base.inc) may be needed for these PHPTs
-// to be runnable from the MSSQL teams' internal proprietary test running system
-//
-
-function IsAEQualified($conn)
-{
-    $msodbcsql_ver = $conn->getAttribute(PDO::ATTR_CLIENT_VERSION)["DriverVer"];
-    $msodbcsql_maj = explode(".", $msodbcsql_ver)[0];
-    if ($msodbcsql_maj < 17) {
-        return false;
-    }
-    require 'MsSetup.inc';
-    if ($daasMode) {
-        // running against Azure
-        return true;
-    }
-    // if not Azure, check the server version
-    $server_ver = $conn->getAttribute(PDO::ATTR_SERVER_VERSION);
-    if (explode('.', $server_ver)[0] < 13)
-        return false;
-    return true;
-}
-
 // TO BE DELETED
 function connect($options=array())
 {
@@ -40,7 +16,7 @@ function connect($options=array())
     // simply use $databaseName from MsSetup.inc to facilitate testing in Azure,  
     // which does not support switching databases
     require  'MsSetup.inc';
-    $conn = new PDO( "sqlsrv:Server=$server;database=$databaseName;ConnectionPooling=false;" , $uid, $pwd, $options); 
+    $conn = new PDO( "sqlsrv:Server=$server;database=$databaseName;Driver=$driver;ConnectionPooling=false;" , $uid, $pwd, $options); 
     $conn->setAttribute( PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE, PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION );
     return $conn;
   }
@@ -58,138 +34,6 @@ function connect($options=array())
   }
 }
 
-
-/**
- * Connect to the database specified in MsSetup.inc; Column Encryption keywords automatically added when $keystore is not none
- * @param string $keywords : string to append to the dsn string in PDO::_construct
- * @param array $options : attributes to pass to PDO::_construct
- * @param bool $disableCE : flag for disabling column encryption even when keystore is NOT none
- *                          for testing fetching encrypted data when connection column encryption is off
- * @return PDO connection object
- */
-function ae_connect( $keywords='', $options=array(), $disableCE = false )
-{
-    try
-    {
-        // simply use $databaseName from MsSetup.inc to facilitate testing in Azure,
-        // which does not support switching databases
-        require  'MsSetup.inc';
-        $dsn = "sqlsrv:Server=$server;database=$databaseName;ConnectionPooling=false;";
-        if ( $keystore != "none" && !$disableCE )
-        {
-            $dsn .= "ColumnEncryption=Enabled;";
-        }
-        if ( $keystore == "ksp" && !$disableCE )
-        {   
-            require( 'AE_Ksp.inc' );
-            $ksp_path = getKSPPath();
-            $dsn .= "CEKeystoreProvider=$ksp_path;CEKeystoreName=$ksp_name;CEKeystoreEncryptKey=$encrypt_key;";
-        }
-        if ( $keywords )
-        {
-            $dsn .= $keywords;
-        }
-        $conn = new PDO( $dsn, $uid, $pwd, $options );
-        $conn->setAttribute( PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE, PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION );
-        return $conn;
-    }
-    catch( PDOException $e ) 
-    {
-        var_dump( $e );
-        exit;
-    }
-    catch(Exception $e) 
-    {
-        var_dump( $e );
-        exit;
-    }
-}
-
-
-/**
- * @return string CEK name depending on the connection keywords
- */
-function getCekName()
-{
-    require  'MsSetup.inc';
-    $cekName = '';
-    switch ( $keystore ) {
-        case "none":
-            $cekName = '';
-            break;
-        case "win":
-            $cekName = 'AEColumnKey';
-            break;
-        case "ksp":
-            $cekName = 'CustomCEK';
-            break;
-        case "akv":
-            $cekName = 'AKVColumnKey';
-            break;
-        default:
-            echo "getCekName: Invalid keystore name.\n";
-    }
-    return $cekName;
-}
-
-
-/**
- * class for encapsulating column metadata needed for creating a table
- */
-class columnMeta {
-    public $colName;
-    public $dataType;   //a string that includes the size of the type if necessary (e.g., decimal(10,5))
-    public $encType;    //randomized or deterministic; default is deterministic
-    public $options;    //a string that is null by default (e.g. NOT NULL Identity (1,1) )
-        
-    function __construct( $dataType, $colName = null, $options = null, $encType = "deterministic" )
-    {
-        if ( is_null( $colName ))
-        {
-            $this->colName = get_default_colname( $dataType );
-        }
-        else
-        {
-            $this->colName = $colName;
-        }
-        $this->dataType = $dataType;
-        $this->encType = $encType;
-        $this->options = $options;
-    }
-    /**
-     * @return string column definition for creating a table
-     */
-    function getColDef()
-    {
-        require  'MsSetup.inc';
-        $append = " ";
-        
-        // an identity column is not encrypted because a select query with identity column as the where clause is often run and the user want to have to bind parameter every time
-        if ( $keystore != "none" && stripos( $this->options, "identity" ) === false )
-        {
-            $cekName = getCekName();
-            if ( stripos( $this->dataType, "char" ) !== false )
-                $append .= "COLLATE Latin1_General_BIN2 ";
-            $append .= sprintf( "ENCRYPTED WITH (ENCRYPTION_TYPE = %s, ALGORITHM = 'AEAD_AES_256_CBC_HMAC_SHA_256', COLUMN_ENCRYPTION_KEY = $cekName) ", $this->encType );
-        }
-        $append .= $this->options;
-        $colDef = "[" . $this->colName . "] " . $this->dataType . $append;
-        return $colDef;
-    }
-}
-
-
-/**
- * @return string default column name when a name is not provided in the columnMeta class
- */
-function get_default_colname( $dataType )
-{
-    $colName = "c_" . str_replace( ",", "_", str_replace( "(", "_", $dataType ));
-    $colName = rtrim( $colName, ")" );
-    return $colName;
-}
-
-
 /**
  * Create a table
  * @param object $conn : PDO connection object
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc
index dd183c32..7aa915a0 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc
@@ -13,10 +13,6 @@
 // to be runnable from the MSSQL teams' internal proprietary test running system
 //
 
-const KSP_NAME = 'MyCustomKSPName';
-const ENCRYPT_KEY = 'LPKCWVD07N3RG98J0MBLG4H2';
-const KSP_TEST_TABLE = 'CustomKSPTestTable';
-
 function isAEQualified($conn)
 {
     $msodbcsql_ver = $conn->getAttribute(PDO::ATTR_CLIENT_VERSION)["DriverVer"];
@@ -52,7 +48,7 @@ function connect($keywords = '', $options=array(), $errmode = PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEP
         // simply use $databaseName from MsSetup.inc to facilitate testing in Azure,
         // which does not support switching databases
         require("MsSetup.inc");
-        $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName, $keywords, $disableCE);
+        $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName, $driver, $keywords, $disableCE);
         $conn = new PDO($dsn, $uid, $pwd, $options);
         if ($errmode == PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION || $errmode == PDO::ERRMODE_WARNING || $errmode == PDO::ERRMODE_SILENT) {
             $conn->setAttribute(PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE, $errmode);
@@ -76,7 +72,7 @@ function connect($keywords = '', $options=array(), $errmode = PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEP
  * @param  bool  $disableCE : flag for disabling column encryption even when keystore is NOT none
  * @return string dsn string used for PDO constructor
  */
-function getDSN($sqlsrvserver, $database, $keywords = '', $disableCE = false)
+function getDSN($sqlsrvserver, $database, $driver, $keywords = '', $disableCE = false)
 {
     require("MsSetup.inc");
     $dsn = "";
@@ -89,6 +85,9 @@ function getDSN($sqlsrvserver, $database, $keywords = '', $disableCE = false)
     if ($database) {
         $dsn .= "database=$database;";
     }
+    if ($driver) {
+        $dsn .= "driver=$driver;";
+    }
     if ($keystore != "none" && !$disableCE) {
         $dsn .= "ColumnEncryption=Enabled;";
     }
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
index e07c46a7..823f283c 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
@@ -18,7 +18,6 @@ if (isset($_ENV['MSSQL_SERVER']) || isset($_ENV['MSSQL_USER']) || isset($_ENV['M
     $uid = 'TARGET_USERNAME';
     $pwd = 'TARGET_PASSWORD';
     $databaseName = 'TARGET_DATABASE';
-    $DriverName = "ODBC Driver 11 for SQL Server";
 }
 
 $adServer = 'TARGET_AD_SERVER';
@@ -27,13 +26,12 @@ $adUser = 'TARGET_AD_USERNAME';
 $adPassword = 'TARGET_AD_PASSWORD';
 
 $driverType = true;
-$PhpDriver = "ODBC Driver 11 for SQL Server";
+$driver = "ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server";
 
 $tableName = 'pdo_test_table';
 $tableIndex = 'php_test_table_idx';
 $procName = 'php_test_proc';
 $fileName = 'php_test_file.dat';
-$dsn = "odbc:Driver={$DriverName};Server=$server";
 $connectionOptions = array();
 $daasMode = false;
 $marsMode = true;
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/PDO21_Connection.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/PDO21_Connection.phpt
index f0989962..9498a358 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/PDO21_Connection.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/PDO21_Connection.phpt
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ try {
     // Invalid connection attempt => errors are expected
     $serverName="InvalidServerName";
 
-    $dsn = getDSN($serverName, $databaseName);
+    $dsn = getDSN($serverName, $databaseName, $driver);
     $conn1 = new PDO($dsn, $uid, $pwd, $connectionOptions);
     if ($conn1) {
         printf("Invalid connection attempt should have failed.\n");
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_020_bind_params_array.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_020_bind_params_array.phpt
index 577ec0c5..ce12443d 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_020_bind_params_array.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_020_bind_params_array.phpt
@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@ try {
 
     // Create table
     $tableName = 'bindParams';
+    dropTable($conn, $tableName);
+    
     $sql = "CREATE TABLE $tableName (ID TINYINT, SID CHAR(5))";
     $stmt = $conn->exec($sql);
 
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_040_error_information.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_040_error_information.phpt
index 93b6e2fd..c8424856 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_040_error_information.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_040_error_information.phpt
@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@ try {
 
     // Create table
     $tableName = 'pdo_040test';
+    dropTable($conn, $tableName);
+
     // common function insertRow() is not used here since the test deliberately
     // executes an invalid insertion statement
     // thus it's not necessary to create an encrypted column for testing column encryption
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_persistent.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_persistent.phpt
index 883da029..8f2d8e8f 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_persistent.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_persistent.phpt
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ require_once("MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc");
 try {
     echo "Testing a connection with ATTR_PERSISTENT...\n";
     // setting PDO::ATTR_PERSISTENT in PDO constructor returns an exception
-    $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName);
+    $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName, $driver);
     $attr = array(PDO::ATTR_PERSISTENT => true);
     $conn = new PDO($dsn, $uid, $pwd, $attr);
     //free the connection
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_prefetch.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_prefetch.phpt
index 463b7ac4..88f47495 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_prefetch.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_065_construct_prefetch.phpt
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ require_once("MsSetup.inc");
 require_once("MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc");
 try {
     echo "Testing a connection with ATTR_PREFETCH before ERRMODE_EXCEPTION...\n";
-    $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName);
+    $dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName, $driver);
     
     $attr = array(PDO::ATTR_PREFETCH => true, PDO::ATTR_ERRMODE => PDO::ERRMODE_EXCEPTION);
     $conn = new PDO($dsn, $uid, $pwd, $attr); 
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_ae_output_param_all.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_ae_output_param_all.phpt
index 580bbdcf..ea20d7ec 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_ae_output_param_all.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_ae_output_param_all.phpt
@@ -29,6 +29,7 @@ $colMetaArr = array("c1_int" => "int",
 createTable($conn, $tbname, $colMetaArr);
 // Create a Store Procedure
 $spname = 'selectAllColumns';
+dropProc($conn, $spname);
 $spSql = "CREATE PROCEDURE $spname (
                 @c1_int int OUTPUT, @c2_smallint smallint OUTPUT,
                 @c3_tinyint tinyint OUTPUT, @c4_bit bit OUTPUT,
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_utf8_conn.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_utf8_conn.phpt
index f51d3ba6..a5c31e09 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_utf8_conn.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/pdo_utf8_conn.phpt
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ UTF-8 connection strings
 <?php require('skipif_mid-refactor.inc'); ?>
 --FILE--
 <?php
+require_once("MsSetup.inc");
 require_once("MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc");
 
 $server = 'localhost';
@@ -11,7 +12,7 @@ $databaseName = 'test';
 $uid = 'sa';
 $pwd = 'Sunshine4u';
 
-$dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName);
+$dsn = getDSN($server, $databaseName, $driver);
 // test an invalid connection credentials
 $c = new PDO($dsn, $uid, $pwd);
 
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
index da542447..4a3be6f0 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
@@ -4,6 +4,11 @@ if (!extension_loaded("pdo") || !extension_loaded('pdo_sqlsrv')) {
 }
 
 require_once("MsSetup.inc");
+if ($driver != "ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server") {
+    // the testing is not set to use ODBC 17
+    die("skip - AE feature not supported in the current environment.");
+}
+
 require_once("MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc");
 
 $dsn = getDSN($server, null);
diff --git a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
index ed42f74c..e8f46546 100644
--- a/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/pdo_sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
@@ -1,36 +1,49 @@
---TEST--
-retrieval of names of column master key and column encryption key generated in the database setup
---SKIPIF--
-<?php require('skipif_unix.inc'); ?>
---FILE--
-<?php
-sqlsrv_configure( 'WarningsReturnAsErrors', 0 );
-sqlsrv_configure( 'LogSeverity', SQLSRV_LOG_SEVERITY_ALL );
-
-require( 'MsCommon.inc' );
-$conn = Connect();
-    
-if (IsAEQualified($conn)){
-    $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_master_keys";
-    $stmt = $conn->query($query);
-    $master_key_row = $stmt->fetch();
-    
-    $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_encryption_keys";
-    $stmt = $conn->query($query);
-    $encryption_key_row = $stmt->fetch();
-    
-    if ($master_key_row[0] == 'AEMasterKey' && $encryption_key_row[0] == 'AEColumnKey'){
-        echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
-    }
-    else {
-        die("Column Master Key and Column Encryption Key not created.\n");
-    }
-    unset($stmt);
-}
-else {
-    echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
-}
-unset($conn);
-?>
---EXPECT--
+--TEST--
+Test the existence of Windows Always Encrypted keys generated in the database setup
+--DESCRIPTION--
+This test iterates through the rows of sys.column_master_keys and/or 
+sys.column_encryption_keys to look for the specific column master key and 
+column encryption key generated in the database setup
+--SKIPIF--
+<?php require('skipif_unix.inc'); ?>
+--FILE--
+<?php
+require_once('MsCommon_mid-refactor.inc');
+$conn = connect();
+    
+if (isAEQualified($conn)){
+    $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_master_keys";
+    $stmt = $conn->query($query);
+
+    // Do not assume the master key must be the first one created
+    $found = false;
+    while ($master_key_row = $stmt->fetch()) {
+        if ($master_key_row[0] == 'AEMasterKey') {
+            $found = true;
+        }
+    }
+    if (!$found) {
+        die("Windows Column Master Key not created.\n");
+    }
+    
+    // Do not assume the encryption key must be the first one created
+    $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_encryption_keys";
+    $stmt = $conn->query($query);
+    
+    $found = false;
+    while ($encryption_key_row = $stmt->fetch()) {
+        if ($encryption_key_row[0] == 'AEColumnKey') {
+            $found = true;
+        }
+    }
+    if (!$found) {
+        die("Windows Column Encryption Key not created.\n");
+    }
+    unset($stmt);
+}
+
+echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
+unset($conn);
+?>
+--EXPECT--
 Test Successfully done.
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/functional/sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc b/test/functional/sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
index 1ec7ceef..aec2b4bb 100644
--- a/test/functional/sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
+++ b/test/functional/sqlsrv/MsSetup.inc
@@ -18,7 +18,9 @@ $tableIndex = "php_test_table_index";
 $procName = "php_test_proc";
 $fileName = "php_test_file.dat";
 
-$connectionOptions = array("Database"=>$database, "UID"=>$userName, "PWD"=>$userPassword, "TraceOn"=>false);
+$driver = "ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server";
+
+$connectionOptions = array("Database" => $database, "UID" => $userName, "PWD" => $userPassword, "TraceOn" => false, "Driver" => $driver);
 $daasMode = false;
 $marsMode = true;
 
diff --git a/test/functional/sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc b/test/functional/sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
index f56a4522..9746db71 100644
--- a/test/functional/sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
+++ b/test/functional/sqlsrv/skipif_not_akv.inc
@@ -4,6 +4,12 @@ if (! extension_loaded("sqlsrv")) {
     die("skip extension not loaded");
 }
 
+require_once("MsSetup.inc");
+if ($driver != "ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server") {
+    // the testing is not set to use ODBC 17
+    die("skip - AE feature not supported in the current environment.");
+}
+
 require_once('MsCommon.inc');
 
 $conn = AE\connect();
diff --git a/test/functional/sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt b/test/functional/sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
index e70257a2..53a2c0fa 100644
--- a/test/functional/sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
+++ b/test/functional/sqlsrv/test_ae_keys_setup.phpt
@@ -1,5 +1,9 @@
 --TEST--
-retrieval of names of column master key and column encryption key generated in the database setup
+Test the existence of Windows Always Encrypted keys generated in the database setup
+--DESCRIPTION--
+This test iterates through the rows of sys.column_master_keys and/or 
+sys.column_encryption_keys to look for the specific column master key and 
+column encryption key generated in the database setup
 --SKIPIF--
 <?php require('skipif_unix.inc'); ?>
 --FILE--
@@ -13,23 +17,34 @@ $conn = connect();
 if (AE\IsQualified($conn)) {
     $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_master_keys";
     $stmt = sqlsrv_query($conn, $query);
-    sqlsrv_fetch($stmt);
-    $master_key_name = sqlsrv_get_field($stmt, 0);
+    $found = false;
+    while (sqlsrv_fetch($stmt)) {
+        $master_key_name = sqlsrv_get_field($stmt, 0);
+        if ($master_key_name == 'AEMasterKey') {
+            $found = true;
+        }
+    }
+    // $master_key_name = sqlsrv_get_field($stmt, 0);
+    if (!$found) {
+        die("Windows Column Master Key not created.\n");
+    }
 
     $query = "SELECT name FROM sys.column_encryption_keys";
     $stmt = sqlsrv_query($conn, $query);
-    sqlsrv_fetch($stmt);
-    $encryption_key_name = sqlsrv_get_field($stmt, 0);
-
-    if ($master_key_name == 'AEMasterKey' && $encryption_key_name == 'AEColumnKey') {
-        echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
-    } else {
-        echo "Column Master Key and Column Encryption Key not created.\n";
+    $found = false;
+    while (sqlsrv_fetch($stmt)) {
+        $encryption_key_name = sqlsrv_get_field($stmt, 0);
+        if ($encryption_key_name == 'AEColumnKey') {
+            $found = true;
+        }
+    }
+    if (!$found) {
+        die("Windows Column Encryption Key not created.\n");
     }
     sqlsrv_free_stmt($stmt);
-} else {
-    echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
 }
+
+echo "Test Successfully done.\n";
 sqlsrv_close($conn);
 ?>
 --EXPECT--