diff --git a/application/single_app/Dockerfile b/application/single_app/Dockerfile
index 7d3d79c9f..99bfff5d2 100644
--- a/application/single_app/Dockerfile
+++ b/application/single_app/Dockerfile
@@ -38,12 +38,12 @@ RUN set -eux; \
     driver_lib="$(find /opt/microsoft/msodbcsql18/lib64 -name 'libmsodbcsql-*.so*' | sort | tail -n 1)"; \
     test -n "${driver_lib}"; \
     printf '[ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server]\nDescription=Microsoft ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server\nDriver=%s\nUsageCount=1\n' "${driver_lib}" > /etc/odbcinst.ini; \
-    mkdir -p /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64; \
+    mkdir -p /odbc-runtime/usr/lib; \
     for lib in /usr/lib64/libodbc* /usr/lib/libodbc* /usr/lib64/libltdl* /usr/lib/libltdl*; do \
-        if [ -e "${lib}" ]; then cp -a "${lib}" /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64/; fi; \
+        if [ -e "${lib}" ]; then cp -a "${lib}" /odbc-runtime/usr/lib/; fi; \
     done; \
-    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64 -maxdepth 1 -name 'libodbc*' | grep -q .; \
-    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64 -maxdepth 1 -name 'libltdl*' | grep -q .; \
+    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib -maxdepth 1 -name 'libodbc*' | grep -q .; \
+    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib -maxdepth 1 -name 'libltdl*' | grep -q .; \
     tdnf clean all
 
 RUN set -eux; \
@@ -129,14 +129,15 @@ RUN set -eux; \
     esac; \
     driver_config_dir="${driver_config_file%/odbcinst.ini}"; \
     test -f "${driver_config_file}"; \
-    mkdir -p /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64 /odbc-runtime/opt "/odbc-runtime${driver_config_dir}" /odbc-runtime/etc; \
+    mkdir -p /odbc-runtime/usr/lib /odbc-runtime/opt "/odbc-runtime${driver_config_dir}" /odbc-runtime/etc; \
     cp -a "${driver_config_file}" "/odbc-runtime${driver_config_dir}/"; \
     if [ "${driver_config_dir}" != "/etc" ]; then cp -a "${driver_config_file}" /odbc-runtime/etc/; fi; \
     cp -a /opt/microsoft /odbc-runtime/opt/; \
-    cp -a /usr/lib64/libodbc.so* /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64/; \
-    cp -a /usr/lib64/libodbcinst.so* /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64/; \
-    cp -a /usr/lib64/libodbccr.so* /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64/; \
-    cp -a /usr/lib64/libltdl.so* /odbc-runtime/usr/lib64/
+    for lib in /usr/lib64/libodbc.so* /usr/lib/libodbc.so* /usr/lib64/libodbcinst.so* /usr/lib/libodbcinst.so* /usr/lib64/libodbccr.so* /usr/lib/libodbccr.so* /usr/lib64/libltdl.so* /usr/lib/libltdl.so*; do \
+        if [ -e "${lib}" ]; then cp -a "${lib}" /odbc-runtime/usr/lib/; fi; \
+    done; \
+    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib -maxdepth 1 -name 'libodbc*' | grep -q .; \
+    find /odbc-runtime/usr/lib -maxdepth 1 -name 'libltdl*' | grep -q .
 
 WORKDIR /app
 
@@ -161,9 +162,11 @@ RUN set -eux; \
         true|1|yes|on) \
             python3 -m playwright install chromium; \
             find /ms-playwright -name chrome_sandbox -exec chown root:root {} \; -exec chmod 4755 {} \;; \
-            mkdir -p /playwright-runtime/ms-playwright /playwright-runtime/usr/lib64 /playwright-runtime/usr/share /playwright-runtime/etc; \
+            mkdir -p /playwright-runtime/ms-playwright /playwright-runtime/usr/lib /playwright-runtime/usr/share /playwright-runtime/etc; \
             cp -a /ms-playwright/. /playwright-runtime/ms-playwright/; \
-            cp -a /usr/lib64/*.so* /playwright-runtime/usr/lib64/; \
+            for lib in /usr/lib64/*.so* /usr/lib/*.so*; do \
+                if [ -e "${lib}" ]; then cp -a "${lib}" /playwright-runtime/usr/lib/; fi; \
+            done; \
             if [ -d /usr/share/fonts ]; then cp -a /usr/share/fonts /playwright-runtime/usr/share/; fi; \
             if [ -d /usr/share/fontconfig ]; then cp -a /usr/share/fontconfig /playwright-runtime/usr/share/; fi; \
             if [ -d /etc/fonts ]; then cp -a /etc/fonts /playwright-runtime/etc/; fi; \
diff --git a/application/single_app/config.py b/application/single_app/config.py
index 4b44e54ca..a6bb61a3a 100644
--- a/application/single_app/config.py
+++ b/application/single_app/config.py
@@ -97,7 +97,7 @@
 EXECUTOR_TYPE = 'thread'
 EXECUTOR_MAX_WORKERS = 30
 SESSION_TYPE = 'filesystem'
-VERSION = "0.261.007"
+VERSION = "0.261.009"
 IS_DEVELOPMENT = is_development_env_enabled()
 
 # Opt-out for deployments where App Service Easy Auth is active but the platform
diff --git a/application/single_app/functions_document_access_index.py b/application/single_app/functions_document_access_index.py
index fa53e9c05..fb2b1605f 100644
--- a/application/single_app/functions_document_access_index.py
+++ b/application/single_app/functions_document_access_index.py
@@ -2165,7 +2165,7 @@ def _query_candidate_projection_rows_for_scope(scope_key, source_scope):
         'WHERE c.type = @type '
         'AND c.source_scope = @source_scope '
         'AND c.scope_key = @scope_key '
-        'AND c.access_granted = true '
+        'AND (c.access_granted = true OR c.approval_status = @approval_not_approved) '
         'AND c.is_current_version = true '
         'AND c.projection_version = @projection_version'
     )
@@ -2177,6 +2177,7 @@ def _query_candidate_projection_rows_for_scope(scope_key, source_scope):
             {'name': '@type', 'value': DOCUMENT_ACCESS_INDEX_TYPE},
             {'name': '@source_scope', 'value': source_scope},
             {'name': '@scope_key', 'value': scope_key},
+            {'name': '@approval_not_approved', 'value': DOCUMENT_ACCESS_APPROVAL_NOT_APPROVED},
             {'name': '@projection_version', 'value': DOCUMENT_ACCESS_INDEX_SCHEMA_VERSION},
         ],
         partition_key=scope_key,
diff --git a/docs/explanation/fixes/DISTROLESS_RUNTIME_OVERLAY_PATH_FIX.md b/docs/explanation/fixes/DISTROLESS_RUNTIME_OVERLAY_PATH_FIX.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..7b1dc699a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/explanation/fixes/DISTROLESS_RUNTIME_OVERLAY_PATH_FIX.md
@@ -0,0 +1,54 @@
+# Distroless Runtime Overlay Path Fix
+
+Fixed in version: **0.261.009**
+
+Related config.py version update: `application/single_app/config.py` was incremented to `0.261.009`.
+
+## Issue Description
+
+Container builds could fail during final-stage runtime overlay copy with:
+
+`cannot copy to non-directory ... /usr/lib64`
+
+The failure was first observed on:
+
+- `COPY --from=builder /odbc-runtime/ /`
+
+After addressing that path, the same failure surfaced on:
+
+- `COPY --from=builder /playwright-runtime/ /`
+
+## Root Cause Analysis
+
+The builder staged runtime payloads under directory trees containing `usr/lib64`, then copied those trees into `/` on a distroless base image. On newer base-image layouts, `/usr/lib64` may be a symlink or other non-directory entry, and Docker BuildKit refuses to overlay a directory on top of a non-directory path.
+
+This made full-tree overlays brittle against base image filesystem changes.
+
+## Technical Details
+
+Files modified:
+
+- `application/single_app/Dockerfile`
+- `application/single_app/config.py`
+- `functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py`
+- `functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py`
+
+Code changes summary:
+
+- Updated ODBC staging destination from `"/odbc-runtime/usr/lib64"` to `"/odbc-runtime/usr/lib"`.
+- Updated Playwright staging destination from `"/playwright-runtime/usr/lib64"` to `"/playwright-runtime/usr/lib"`.
+- Preserved source library glob coverage from both `/usr/lib64` and `/usr/lib` in the builder stage so either package layout remains supported.
+- Kept final runtime copies (`/odbc-runtime/` and `/playwright-runtime/`) unchanged while eliminating directory-vs-non-directory path collisions at `/usr/lib64`.
+
+## Validation
+
+Validation evidence for the change sequence included:
+
+- `functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py` passed after assertion alignment and Dockerfile path updates.
+- `functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py` continued to validate SQL ODBC Driver 18 runtime/default behavior.
+- `functional_tests/test_deep_research_chromium_build_opt_out.py` covered Playwright Chromium build-arg and runtime copy wiring.
+
+## Before and After
+
+- Before: BuildKit could fail in the final stage when runtime overlay trees attempted to create `usr/lib64` as a directory over a non-directory target in the distroless base.
+- After: Runtime overlays stage libraries under `usr/lib`, avoiding `/usr/lib64` target-shape conflicts while preserving SQL ODBC and Playwright native runtime packaging.
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/docs/explanation/fixes/WORKSPACE_SHARED_FILE_APPROVAL_VISIBILITY_FIX.md b/docs/explanation/fixes/WORKSPACE_SHARED_FILE_APPROVAL_VISIBILITY_FIX.md
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..a1b184b74
--- /dev/null
+++ b/docs/explanation/fixes/WORKSPACE_SHARED_FILE_APPROVAL_VISIBILITY_FIX.md
@@ -0,0 +1,59 @@
+# Workspace Shared File Approval Visibility Fix
+
+Fixed in version: **0.261.009**
+
+Related config.py version update: `application/single_app/config.py` was incremented to `0.261.009`.
+
+## Issue Description
+
+Files shared into personal or group workspace approval flows could fail to appear in approval-facing views even when they were waiting for approval.
+
+The impact was that approvers could not reliably see pending files to review, which blocked the expected approve or deny workflow.
+
+## Root Cause Analysis
+
+The document access index scope projection candidate query filtered strictly on granted access:
+
+- `c.access_granted = true`
+
+Pending approval records are expected to remain ungranted until an approver acts. Those records carry a pending approval state, so the strict granted-only filter excluded them from candidate projection rows.
+
+## Technical Details
+
+Files modified:
+
+- `application/single_app/functions_document_access_index.py`
+
+Code changes summary:
+
+- Updated `_query_candidate_projection_rows_for_scope` to include pending approval rows in addition to granted rows.
+- Added the `@approval_not_approved` query parameter bound to `DOCUMENT_ACCESS_APPROVAL_NOT_APPROVED`.
+
+Updated query predicate:
+
+- From: `AND c.access_granted = true`
+- To: `AND (c.access_granted = true OR c.approval_status = @approval_not_approved)`
+
+This preserves existing constraints for source scope, scope key, current-version records, and projection schema version while restoring visibility for pending approval artifacts.
+
+## Validation
+
+Validation performed for this change set included:
+
+- Python compile checks for changed files and `application/single_app` compile sweep.
+- Security guardrails for changed Python files:
+  - `scripts/check_xss_sinks.py`
+  - `scripts/check_broken_access_control.py`
+
+Additional branch validation:
+
+- Updated and re-ran `functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py` to align assertions with current SQL ODBC default behavior (3/3 passed).
+
+Recommended follow-up coverage:
+
+- Add a dedicated functional test that asserts pending approval records are included in document access index scope projections for approver-visible queues.
+
+## Before and After
+
+- Before: Pending approval shared files could be missing from approval visibility surfaces because only granted access rows were projected.
+- After: Pending approval shared files are included in projection candidates and remain visible to approvers while still ungranted until approval.
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/docs/explanation/fixes/index.md b/docs/explanation/fixes/index.md
index 5557504c1..294c896ce 100644
--- a/docs/explanation/fixes/index.md
+++ b/docs/explanation/fixes/index.md
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ category: Version History
 ---
 
 - [Chat Document Search File Name and Divider Artifact Fix](CHAT_DOCUMENT_SEARCH_FILENAME_AND_DIVIDER_FIX.md)
+- [Distroless Runtime Overlay Path Fix](DISTROLESS_RUNTIME_OVERLAY_PATH_FIX.md)
+- [Workspace Shared File Approval Visibility Fix](WORKSPACE_SHARED_FILE_APPROVAL_VISIBILITY_FIX.md)
 - [Semantic Kernel Startup Request Context Fix](SEMANTIC_KERNEL_STARTUP_REQUEST_CONTEXT_FIX.md)
 - [Data Management Restore Route Endpoint Collision Fix](DATA_MANAGEMENT_RESTORE_ROUTE_ENDPOINT_COLLISION_FIX.md)
 - [Font Size and 200 Percent Zoom Fix](FONT_SIZE_AND_200_PERCENT_ZOOM_FIX.md)
diff --git a/docs/explanation/release_notes.md b/docs/explanation/release_notes.md
index f3f2b74d2..bcbde2f12 100644
--- a/docs/explanation/release_notes.md
+++ b/docs/explanation/release_notes.md
@@ -2,6 +2,22 @@
 
 For feature-focused and fix-focused drill-downs by version, see [Features by Version](https://github.com/microsoft/simplechat/tree/main/docs/explanation/features) and [Fixes by Version](https://github.com/microsoft/simplechat/tree/main/docs/explanation/fixes).
 
+### **(v0.261.009)**
+
+#### Bug Fixes
+
+*   **Shared Workspace File Approvals Are Visible To Approvers Again**
+    *   Fixed document access index candidate selection for workspace scope projections so pending-approval records are considered alongside already granted records.
+    *   Shared files staged for approval are intentionally not granted yet, so filtering only on `access_granted = true` could hide those files from approval experiences even though they were eligible for review.
+    *   The projection query now includes `approval_status = not_approved` rows while still requiring current-version projection records.
+    *   (Ref: `functions_document_access_index.py`, [Workspace Shared File Approval Visibility Fix](fixes/WORKSPACE_SHARED_FILE_APPROVAL_VISIBILITY_FIX.md))
+
+*   **Distroless Runtime Copy No Longer Fails On `/usr/lib64` Overlay Conflicts**
+    *   Fixed Docker BuildKit failures where `COPY --from=builder /odbc-runtime/ /` or `COPY --from=builder /playwright-runtime/ /` could abort with `cannot copy to non-directory ... /usr/lib64` when the distroless base exposes `/usr/lib64` as a non-directory entry.
+    *   Updated runtime staging to copy native shared libraries into `/odbc-runtime/usr/lib` and `/playwright-runtime/usr/lib` while continuing to source candidates from both `/usr/lib64` and `/usr/lib` in the builder stage.
+    *   This preserves SQL ODBC and Playwright Chromium runtime packaging while avoiding path-type collisions against evolving base-image filesystem layouts.
+    *   (Ref: `Dockerfile`, `test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py`, `test_deep_research_chromium_build_opt_out.py`, [Distroless Runtime Overlay Path Fix](fixes/DISTROLESS_RUNTIME_OVERLAY_PATH_FIX.md))
+
 ### **(v0.261.007)**
 
 #### Bug Fixes
diff --git a/functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py b/functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py
index 2b80169b5..897ad9fb4 100644
--- a/functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py
+++ b/functional_tests/test_sql_container_odbc_runtime.py
@@ -30,6 +30,7 @@ def test_dockerfile_packages_odbc_runtime() -> bool:
         "tdnf install -y unixODBC unixODBC-devel msodbcsql18",
         "COPY --from=builder /odbc-runtime/ /",
         'LD_LIBRARY_PATH="/usr/lib64:/opt/microsoft/msodbcsql18/lib64"',
+        "mkdir -p /odbc-runtime/usr/lib /odbc-runtime/opt",
         'driver_config_path="$(odbcinst -j | while IFS= read -r line; do case "$line" in DRIVERS*) printf \'%s\\n\' "${line##*: }"; break ;; esac; done)"',
         'test -n "${driver_config_path}"',
         'case "${driver_config_path}" in',
@@ -39,6 +40,8 @@ def test_dockerfile_packages_odbc_runtime() -> bool:
         'test -f "${driver_config_file}"',
         'cp -a "${driver_config_file}" "/odbc-runtime${driver_config_dir}/"',
         'if [ "${driver_config_dir}" != "/etc" ]; then cp -a "${driver_config_file}" /odbc-runtime/etc/; fi;',
+        'for lib in /usr/lib64/libodbc.so* /usr/lib/libodbc.so* /usr/lib64/libodbcinst.so* /usr/lib/libodbcinst.so* /usr/lib64/libodbccr.so* /usr/lib/libodbccr.so* /usr/lib64/libltdl.so* /usr/lib/libltdl.so*; do',
+        'if [ -e "${lib}" ]; then cp -a "${lib}" /odbc-runtime/usr/lib/; fi;',
     ]
 
     missing = [snippet for snippet in expected_snippets if snippet not in dockerfile]
@@ -59,10 +62,10 @@ def test_sql_defaults_use_odbc_driver_18() -> bool:
     print("🔍 Testing SQL defaults use ODBC Driver 18...")
 
     expected_defaults = {
-        "application/single_app/route_backend_plugins.py": "driver or 'ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server'",
-        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_query_plugin.py": "'default_driver': 'ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server'",
-        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_schema_plugin.py": "'default_driver': 'ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server'",
-        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_plugin_factory.py": '"driver": "ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server"',
+        "application/single_app/route_backend_plugins.py": "driver=driver or DEFAULT_SQL_SERVER_ODBC_DRIVER",
+        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_query_plugin.py": "'default_driver': DEFAULT_SQL_SERVER_ODBC_DRIVER",
+        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_schema_plugin.py": "'default_driver': DEFAULT_SQL_SERVER_ODBC_DRIVER",
+        "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/sql_plugin_factory.py": '"driver": DEFAULT_SQL_SERVER_ODBC_DRIVER',
         "application/single_app/static/js/plugin_modal_stepper.js": "additionalFields.driver || 'ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server'",
         "application/single_app/semantic_kernel_plugins/SQL_Plugins_Configuration_Guide.md": 'DRIVER={ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server}',
     }
diff --git a/functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py b/functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py
index 7ba719424..3cd036a3d 100644
--- a/functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py
+++ b/functional_tests/test_sql_odbc_driver_18_support.py
@@ -43,7 +43,7 @@ def test_dockerfile_installs_driver_18_runtime():
         assert "find /opt/microsoft/msodbcsql18/lib64 -name 'libmsodbcsql-*.so*'" in dockerfile, \
             'Docker build should resolve the installed Driver 18 shared library path'
         assert "UsageCount=1" in dockerfile, 'Docker build should create a deterministic odbcinst.ini registration'
-        assert '/odbc-runtime/usr/lib64' in dockerfile, \
+        assert '/odbc-runtime/usr/lib' in dockerfile, \
             'Docker build should stage unixODBC libraries from Azure Linux library paths before runtime copy'
         assert "/usr/lib64/libodbc* /usr/lib/libodbc*" in dockerfile, \
             'Docker build should support unixODBC libraries installed under /usr/lib64 or /usr/lib'