The latest from the MySQL community

Starting with version 1.1.0, the Percona Kubernetes Operator for MySQL now supports incremental backups. This feature lets you backup only the changed data since the last backup, instead of copying your entire dataset each time. The result is dramatically smaller backup sizes, faster backup windows, and lower cloud storage costs.

In this post, we’ll walk through how the feature works under the hood, how to configure it, and what to keep in mind when designing your backup strategy.

How Incremental Backups Work in Percona XtraBackup

The foundation of this feature is Percona XtraBackup (PXB), an open source backup tool for MySQL. PXB has supported incremental backups for a while, and the operator now brings that capability into the backup workflow.

Every InnoDB data page carries a Log Sequence Number …

Benchmarking MyRocks vs. InnoDB in Memory-Constrained Environments It is a well-known fact in the database world that InnoDB is incredibly fast when the entire database fits into memory. But what happens when your data grows beyond your available RAM? MyRocks, built on RocksDB, is frequently recommended as a superior choice for environments constrained by memory, […]

As we set out to help the MySQL ecosystem assert greater independence from Oracle by establishing a vendor-neutral industry association, we had to confront a deceptively simple question:

What exactly is the MySQL ecosystem?

There are many views on this question.

Some argue it should revolve strictly around the MySQL brand—meaning MariaDB would be excluded. Others believe it should be defined by codebase lineage—therefore ruling out systems like TiDB. Still others insist it must center exclusively on open-source software, which would exclude offerings such as AWS Aurora for MySQL.

We believe this kind of exclusivity is counterproductive. It shifts the focus to boundaries instead of outcomes.

What truly matters are MySQL users: the …

Over the past weeks, we have seen renewed discussion/concern in the MySQL community around claims that “Oracle has stopped developing MySQL” or that “MySQL is being abandoned.” These concerns were amplified by graphs showing an apparent halt in GitHub commits after October 2025, as well as by blog posts and forum discussions that interpreted these signals at face value.

As someone who has publicly analyzed the MySQL repository activity and who works daily with MySQL at Percona, I want to clearly separate what the data actually shows from what it does not.

This post should not be read as an uncritical defense of Oracle. We often disagree with Oracle’s decisions, and we say so openly. But fairness matters — especially when fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) start affecting customers and the wider ecosystem.

The Claim: “Oracle Stopped Committing to MySQL After October 2025”

When we run databases in Kubernetes, we quickly learn one important truth: things will fail, and we need to be prepared for this. Pods are ephemeral; nodes can come and go, storage is abstracted behind PersistentVolumes and can be either local to a node or backed by network storage, and Kubernetes moves workloads as needed […]

Where We Are We can all agree that the MySQL ecosystem isn’t in great shape right now. Take a look at Julia’s blog post [Analyzing the Heartbeat of the MySQL Server: A Look at Repository Statistics], which confirms what many of us have felt: Oracle isn’t as committed to MySQL and its ecosystem as it […]

Note: The opinions below represent my personal perspective only. They don’t include any confidential information or represent the views of Oracle or my current employer, Percona.

The question I brought home after this conference is:

Was this an AI conference because everyone is already using AI, or because they want you to use AI?

For context, I’ve worked with MySQL databases for more than 12 years, mainly focused on the open-source ecosystem. However, as an Oracle ACE Director, I also keep an eye on what’s happening with the enterprise and cloud offerings. Understanding what happens outside — even in the PostgreSQL world — helps me see how MySQL differentiates itself and maintains its position as the leading open-source database, although it has lost ground to Postgres in recent years.

Your MySQL database has been running smoothly for years. Your team knows it inside and out. Everything just… works. Why rock the boat with an upgrade? Here’s why: MySQL 8.0 reaches its end-of-life date in April 2026. After this date, there’s no safety net; staying on end-of-life software means you’re taking on all the responsibility […]

Index maintenance can be a real challenge for anyone managing databases, and what makes it even trickier is that open source databases each handle it differently. In this post, we’ll take a closer look at how those differences show up in practice, and what they mean for you. When rows are added, updated, or deleted […]

At Percona, we’ve always been dedicated to providing robust, open source high availability solutions that meet our users’ evolving needs. Percona XtraDB Cluster (PXC) stands as a testament to this commitment, offering a highly available and scalable solution for your MySQL and Percona Server for MySQL deployments. We understand that database high availability is critical […]