The MySQL database server is a foundational component of the open-source world. While its impact is undeniable, looking at the raw statistics of its core source code repository reveals a dynamic and sometimes surprising development history. By analyzing the total lines of code inserted, the number of commits over the years, and unique contributors, we […]

In a recent post, The Quirks of Index Maintenance in Open Source Databases, I compared the IO load generated by open source databases while inserting rows in a table with many secondary indexes. Because of its change buffer, InnoDB was the most efficient solution. However, that’s not the end of the story. Evolution of the […]

Data masking lets you hide sensitive fields (emails, credit-card numbers, job titles, etc.) while keeping data realistic for reporting, support, or testing. It is particularly useful when you collaborate with external entities and need to share your data for development reasons. You also need to protect your data and keep your customers’ privacy safe. Last […]

We’ve mentioned this a few times here on the blog already, but in case you missed it, MySQL 8.0’s end-of-life date is April 2026. This probably sounds forever away, but it’s going to sneak up before you know it. Maybe you’ve been putting off thinking about it, or maybe you’re already weighing your options but […]

When you run a simple write, …it may look simple, but under the hood, MySQL’s InnoDB engine kicks off a pretty complex sequence to ensure your data stays safe, consistent, and crash-recoverable. In the top-left corner of the diagram, we see exactly where this begins — the moment the query is executed: [crayon-697773637c60c399076158/] The log […]

Right now, you’re probably hoping someone else will deal with this MySQL 8.0 end-of-life situation. Maybe your team can squeeze another few months out of it. Maybe Oracle will extend support. Maybe it won’t be as bad as everyone says. We get it.  You’ve got enough things going on without adding “major database upgrade” to […]

Percona has a great set of tools known as the Percona Toolkit, one of which is pt-upgrade. The idea behind this tool is to replay a captured sequence of queries that were executed on a different database server. This is very useful to validate if a new version of the database server works as expected […]

How do you know if your backup is truly reliable? The last thing you want is to discover your data is corrupted during a critical restore or during a migration. While MyDumper is a powerful tool for logical backups, its -M option takes backup integrity to the next level by creating checksums. This often-overlooked feature […]

If you manage a MySQL database, you’ve probably heard the news: MySQL 8.0 is heading for its End of Life (EOL), and taking center stage is MySQL 8.4, the first-ever Long-Term Support (LTS) release. This is great news for all of us who value stability, as it means a more predictable, enterprise-ready platform for the […]

It may be surprising when a new InnoDB Cluster is set up, and despite not being in production yet and completely idle, it manifests a significant amount of writes visible in growing binary logs. This effect became much more spectacular after MySQL version 8.4. In this write-up, I will explain why it happens and how to address […]