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In the world of database management, ALTER TABLE operations are a crucial part of modifying database structures. MySQL, a popular database management system, offers online operations since version 5.6, providing a convenient way to perform these alterations without locking the table. However, there are caveats. In this blog, we’ll explore the process of altering VARCHAR columns online, delving into insights gained while expanding the size of such columns.

To kick start our journey, let’s consider a table definition that requires the expansion of a VARCHAR column named “_varchar” to accommodate more data. Here’s the original table definition:

DROP TABLE IF EXISTS varchar_alter;
CREATE TABLE `varchar_alter` (
  `id` INT NOT NULL AUTO_INCREMENT PRIMARY KEY,
  `_varchar` VARCHAR(50) NOT NULL
) ENGINE=InnoDB;

We execute the initial ALTER TABLE command:

mysql> ALTER TABLE test.varchar_alter CHANGE COLUMN …

In this blog post, I want to share my experience and learning after challenging myself on my MySQL blog writing spree in recent past. I invite you to comment on…

The post One MySQL blog a day challenge first appeared on Change Is Inevitable.

Dynamic SQL is a desirable feature that allows developers to construct and execute SQL statements dynamically at runtime. While MySQL lacks built-in support for dynamic SQL, this article presents a workaround using prepared statements. We will explore leveraging prepared statements to achieve dynamic query execution, parameterized queries, and dynamic table and column selection.

Understanding prepared statementsMySQL support for server-side prepared statements, leveraging the efficient client/server binary protocol. A prepared statement is a functionality designed to execute identical or similar SQL statements repeatedly, achieving optimal efficiency in database operations.

Advantages of Prepared Statements

1. Reduced Parsing Overhead: Prepared statements minimize the overhead of parsing SQL queries each time they are executed. This is especially advantageous in database applications that …

Drawing nearer to 800 subscribers (mind blown) and issue #89, I’m amazed each week at how much great content is out there for us all to learn from. Let’s learn more in this week’s OpenLampTech issue #89. Thanks for reading!

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In OpenLampTech issue #89, we are …

On July 18th, Oracle released its first pair of MySQL LTS and Innovation releases. (For more, check out A Quick Peek at MySQL 8.0.34 and MySQL 8.1.0.) These releases were announced several months ago and gradually detailed closer to the release date. Today, we know from Oracle’s official blog post what to expect, as well as what the cadence and scope of the upcoming releases will be.

So, the next immediate question that comes to mind is: Is Percona going to follow the same release pattern as “upstream“ MySQL?

The short answer is “yes.”

We are proud to say that over the last several years, Percona delivered on its promise of providing the MySQL community a …

First Principles dives into cloud innovations that power MySQL HeatWave Lakehouse, allowing customers to process and query half a petabyte of data in object storage with record performance and cost savings.

This is a Quick Peek at what Oracle delivered with MySQL 8.0.34 and 8.1.0 on July 17th, 2023. MySQL previously released software quarterly as part of a continuous delivery system where new features were made available. Many people loved access to the new features even if they could be risky, but others wanted stability and bug fixes only. Now there is a long-term support (LTS) version for the more conservative and the risk-averse folk that will have a roughly two-year lifespan between major releases.

The release with the new features will be called the Innovation series, and MySQL 8.1.0 is the first of these releases. And the LTS will be based on 8.0.34. Please note that comments in italics are mine and do not reflect the views of Percona and possibly not anyone else.

Quick reminder

The End of Life for MySQL 8.0 is in April of 2026, and the …

It is necessary to have a reliable and efficient way to transfer data from databases to the BI tool. MySQL, one of the most popular open-source relational database management systems, comes in here. This article will explore how to connect MySQL to Tableau and share data seamlessly between the two.

The post How to Connect MySQL to Tableau: A Guide for BI Professionals appeared first on Devart Blog.

In this blog post, we will describe the improvements to Percona XtraBackup 8.0.33-28 (PXB), which significantly reduces the time to prepare the backups before the restore operation. This improvement in Percona XtraBackup significantly reduces the time required for a new node to join the Percona XtraDB Cluster (PXC).

Percona XtraDB Cluster uses Percona XtraBackup to do SST (State Snapshot Transfer) from one node to another. When a new node joins the cluster, SST is performed to receive the data from DONOR to the JOINER. JOINER uses PXB to stream the data directory from DONOR. JOINER must prepare the backup before using it. It is observed that when the DONOR has a huge number of tablespaces (one million),  XtraBackup on JOINER …