MySQL uses disk. Ok, so everybody knew that. MySQL uses disk in two primary ways.

• Random I/O (Reading & Writing Data/Index blocks)
• Sequential I/O (Binary Log, InnoDB Redo Log)

Historically it’s been best practice to separate these onto different spindles, and also separating the OS and tmp space onto a third spindle. With commodity H/W that can be easily done, but today a lot of people use SAN. Is this a good thing for a MySQL Database?
That’s a topic of much discussion at a later time, however I’ll add two points. A lot of SAN configurations are RAID 5, and RAID 10 is a better choice due to removing the requirement to calculate the parity. Second, last week I observed a RAID disk failure and it took an incredible long time for the disk to be re-built. Just how many SAN uses our there have actually timed a disk rebuild on a loaded system and seen the impact on the system in general.

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Okay... I had originally stated that I would not publish my wish-list but since Jay Pipes has said that he was collating these ideas, I'll play along hoping that there is a positive influence on the future of MySQL. Here are my five, plus a few extra.... (out of list of many others)

1. Modular Architecture
   
   I know that many people have put this on their wish list and I am sure that many people would probably blame me for some of the current architecture woes. Honestly, I have an excuse: I am trying to evolve the plug-in system into something more usable. As Eric Herman can testify, we actually had an alternative plug-in architecture under development as a small skunk works project, which in my opinion was superior than what we have today but we permanently shelved it after the current plug-in system appeared in the tree.
   
   A good modular architecture would allow parts to be …

My opinion on MySql best practices, the new new 'chain letter' started by Ronald Bradford. As always, this is a developers point of view.

0. Make a database design. Databases generated automatically might work very well in development, but when you have large data volumes and lots of concurrent users they do not.

1. Be consistent in your choice of datatypes. I prefer to use just a subset in a system. Try to stick with SMALLINT UNSIGNED or INTEGER UNSIGNED for keys. Always use the same datatype for the same term in all tables, no joins with datatype conversion! Do not store numbers as CHAR/VARCHAR fields.

2. Make sure there are indexes supporting all searches that are part of routine system usage. If you have tables that are very small it might be better not to index them, but this should be an active decision.

3. Verify your …

As I felt the itch to do some quick hacking yesterday, I decided to provide an RPM spec file for the MySQL proxy. The changes have been commited to the SVN trunk now and I added some hints to the INSTALL file on how to perform an RPM build.

Here is a quick summary of how to convert the current SVN code into an installable RPM. You build environment needs to fulfill a few additional prerequisites (a gcc compiler and the C library header files are taken for granted here), I added the versions I used on my openSUSE 10.2 system for reference:

• autoconf 2.56 or newer (autoconf-2.60)
• automake 1.9 or newer (automake-1.9.6)
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The submissions have been flowing in nicely, but the usual speaker slackness (and waiting for the deadline to make that pretty whizzing sound as it zaps past) appears to also be alive and well!
So, prod prod... http://osdc.com.au/papers/cfp.html
Keep em coming.

This year's Open Source Developers Conference (OSDC) 2007 will be held in sunny Brisbane Australia, 26-29 November. It's by developers, for developers, with of course some modern business mixed in. About applications and languages, tools and strategy... you want to be part of this for sure.

In response to Ronald's challenge in Top 5 wishes for MySQL, here is my top 5 wish list. However, it make sense for me to put a slightly different spin on the top 5 series, and write from a storage engine developers perspective.

1. A generic engine test suite

A set of mysql-test-run test scripts and results that are intended to be run by all engines. The tests will verify basic functionality and compatibility, and form the basis for an engine certification process.

2. Internal APIs

PBXT already has to call into MySQL to open .frm files, and transform path and file names. The BLOB Streaming engine will need to access user privilege information. Other engines use the cross-platform functionality provided by mysys. What we need is a number of official, …

MySQL AB today announced that McGraw-Hill Education, a leading global provider of educational materials, information and solutions, has chosen the MySQL database to power the network version of its widely-used "Breakthrough to Literacy" learning program.

MySQL's high performance, flexibility and small footprint make it an ideal choice for educational software vendors and other ISVs looking to affordably integrate a world-class database into their product offerings. Today, leading educational software vendors using MySQL include American Education Corporation, eduphoria!, eSchool Solutions, LeapFrog Enterprises, Pitsco and Siboney Corporation.

MySQL users often dream about a more powerful yet stable database server. They want a server with more features, like expanding macros, customized logging, access to shell commands, access to live tables from other DBMS. Every feature, given enough development time, can be eventually implemented, but users want them now, with the current GA server.

It can be done. Using a proxy server, some of those dreams come true. Today.

In two separate pieces of news today, EnterpriseDB was selected by FTD to replace Oracle, and Liferay was selected to replace Novell's exteNd portal offering. Both demonstrate the continue value that open source provides (yes, even to EnterpriseDB).

Interestingly, both EnterpriseDB and Liferay have Apache-style licenses at their core. The difference, of course, is what they sell on top: for EnterpriseDB, they add some closed software; for Liferay, they add support. What's exactly the same is dramatic cost savings and improved performance by moving away from 100% proprietary offerings:

On EnterpriseDB's win with FTD, and over Oracle (improving system performance by 400% while dropping the cost by 83%)...

EnterpriseDB, the …

Wow. This post from Glyn Moody just resurfaced memories that should never have been forgotten. Glyn reminds us that IBM made a patent pledge that protects OSI-approved open source projects:

IBM today pledged open access to key innovations covered by 500 IBM software patents to individuals and groups working on open source software. IBM believes this is the largest pledge ever of patents of any kind and represents a major shift in the way IBM manages and deploys its intellectual property (IP) portfolio....

The pledge is applicable to any individual, community, or company working on or using software that meets the Open Source Initiative (OSI) definition of open source software now or in the future.

As Glyn suggests, IBM has …