Before we can start using MariaDB, we have to install it. The MariaDB source code can be compiled to run on a wide variety of different platforms and system architectures, but there are pre-compiled packages available for Windows and Linux, which make the process easier.
In addition to the source code, there are several other package types, such as:
- Windows MSI packages
- Linux YUM packages
- Linux APT packages
- Linux and Windows binaries
The Windows MSI packages are for computers and servers running from Windows XP to Windows 8. The Linux .rpm packages are used with distributions such as Fedora, CentOS, and Red Hat that use the Yellow Dog Updater modified (YUM) package manager. Linux .deb packages are used with distributions such as Debian and Ubuntu, which use the Advanced Packaging Tool (APT) package manager. We will cover how to install all these types in this chapter.
We will cover the fourth type, the Linux and Windows binaries, only briefly. These packages are mainly useful to experienced users of MariaDB who have non-standard custom setups on their database servers. The Windows binaries come in a ZIP file (.zip) and the Linux binaries in a gzipped tar file (.tar.gz), sometimes called a binary tarball.
Even though the MariaDB binaries are recommended for more experienced users, installing them is not especially difficult. Check the following links for the official instructions to install the Linux and Windows binary packages, respectively:
We will also cover how to install MariaDB on Mac OS X. Packages for this operating system supplied by a third party, not by the MariaDB developers.
The choice of which MariaDB package to install is an easy one—just use whichever one is appropriate for your system. If you are using Windows, use the MSI package, for Ubuntu or Debian, use the APT packages, and for Red Hat, Fedora, or CentOS, use the YUM packages.
The rest of this chapter contains instructions for each type but before we get to that, we need to talk about series. And no, it has nothing to do with baseball, but it does lend itself to a baseball analogy.
So in short, the topics of the remaining sections in this chapter are as follows:
- Choosing a MariaDB series
- Installing MariaDB on Windows
- Installing MariaDB on Mac OS X
- Installing MariaDB on Debian, Ubuntu, and Linux Mint
- Installing MariaDB on Fedora, Red Hat, and CentOS
- Installing MariaDB on other Linux distributions
- MariaDB package security
- After the installation
- Troubleshooting installation issues
Feel free to jump around and only read the sections that directly pertain to you and your chosen operating system.
The development of MariaDB proceeds along multiple development tracks, called series. There is a stable series and several maintenance series. Often, there is also a development series. This is similar to the Debian GNU/Linux practice of having stable, testing, and unstable versions.
The development series of MariaDB is where the major new features and capabilities are introduced. Think of this like minor league baseball where the upcoming future stars are introduced and are improved and honed to perfection. At any given time, the quality of the current development release could range from Alpha (which has no guarantees that it will even work reliably) to Beta (which is feature-complete but generally needs a lot of bug fixing and testing) to Release Candidate (which is ready for general use except for some additional testing and minor bug fixing).
During the development cycle, there will generally be several Alpha releases, where new features are introduced, followed by a couple of Beta releases where the code is refined and polished, followed by one or two Release Candidate releases where the final fixes and polishing take place. The final step for any development series is when it is declared stable and moves into the major league stable series.
For most users just starting out, whatever series is marked stable is the one to use. This is the major league series, the best and most complete version currently available. After a development series has reached a sufficient level of quality to be considered stable, it is promoted to this series and becomes the recommended version of MariaDB.
After being marked as stable, the MariaDB Foundation has a policy that the series will be well supported with bug and security fixes for a period of at least 5 years. This is regardless of whether it is the current stable series or if it is one of the maintenance series. It all depends on when it first becomes stable.
When a series moves from development to stable, the series that was the current stable one is moved to become a maintenance series. This means that it will still receive bug fixes for the rest of its 5-year maintenance period but it is no longer the recommended or preferred release of MariaDB. Think of it as the hall of fame—full of great previous releases of MariaDB, which while still excellent, have been replaced by a new generation. At any given time, there may be three, four, or more MariaDB major versions in the maintenance series.
Tip
Most Linux distributions include MariaDB in their package repositories, either as the default MySQL-compatible database, or as an alternative choice. The version of MariaDB that they include is up to them, and while it is sometimes the most recent stable version of MariaDB, it is often one of the more recent major versions in the maintenance series.
We'll now go through the installation of MariaDB for each of the major operating systems. First Windows, then Mac OS X, then Debian GNU/Linux and Ubuntu Linux, followed by Fedora, Red Hat, and CentOS Linux, and lastly, other Linux distributions.