MySQL 5.6 Hits First Development Milestone Release

MySQL 5.6's new features focus on increased performance, scalability and flexibility. In this first development milestone release, they include an improved optimizer, enabling better performance; more partitioning options, giving you faster access to relevant data; and an enhanced PERFORMANCE_SCHEMA for better monitoring and tuning of your database's performance.

MySQL 5.6's improved InnoDB storage engine features a multi-threaded purge, which increases the efficiency of purge operations. Users will also find new INFORMATION_SCHEMA tables, from which they'll receive more comprehensive information on resources. This information should greatly assist with performance tuning and troubleshooting. Database administrators will also be pleased to note the configurable data dictionary cache, which should help in the deployment of systems with a huge number of tables.
 
Conscientious database administrators care about database replication to back up important systems. Oracle did not disappoint with this milestone MySQL 5.6 release, as it included enhancements to this key ability as well. Users will find new crash-safe slaves and replication checksums, both designed to increase data integrity and improve detection of errors. DBAs will also appreciate the flexibility afforded by the release's ability to perform time-delayed replication, among other features.

More milestone development releases of MySQL 5.6 are in the works. Each one will include a new set of stable features. Anyone in the MySQL community can test these new features by visiting http://labs.mysql.com/. One of these exciting new capabilities is the ability to use replication multi-threaded slaves. These new slaves improve replication performance via the use of multiple execution threads, which apply replication events to slave servers. Another feature available for early testing is high performance NoSQL access to InnoDB from Memcached. Users of this feature will be able to take advantage of NoSQL techniques to access InnoDB data, giving busy DBAs a little more flexibility in how they accomplish their goals.

"From significantly investing in the technology, to working closely with the community, Oracle continues to make MySQL better," said Tomas Ulin, Oracle's MySQL vice president of Engineering. "With this first MySQL 5.6 development milestone release, we are offering early access to new stable features for testing. Oracle continues to innovate and enhance the MySQL Database, delivering a higher performing, more scalable, reliable, and easier to use MySQL."