MariaDB is a database that was created as a community fork of the popular MySQL relational database management system, started by the founders of MySQL.

MariaDB products include the widely adopted open source MariaDB Server and It has always been free to use under the GNU General Public License.

If you use MariaDB community version for a small-scale project, it’s fine but if you use it for a product in large, mission-critical environments, it’s recommended to use the MariaDB Enterprise, a complementary product line (MariaDB TX and MariaDB AX). It is not a single piece of software, but a solution, a service, which is comparable to MySQL Enterprise.

Perhaps the difference between free MariaDB and enterprise MariaDB is solely around certification, support, and plugins. MariaDB Enterprise Subscription includes a number of other features, and is priced per server:

  • MariaDB MaxScale
  • MariaDB ColumnStore
  • Management and monitoring tools
  • Notification services for security alerts and bug fixes
  • The technical and consultative support which includes 24x7 support coverage as well as performance tuning, best practice recommendations, and code review.

For a more detailed feature list, go to MariaDB’s Pricing page.

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TablePlus GUI Tool MariaDB