Percona Technology Intelligence

What is Percona?

Percona is a company specializing in open-source database software and services, best known for its enhanced distributions of MySQL, MongoDB, and PostgreSQL. Percona Server for MySQL is a drop-in replacement for MySQL that provides improved performance, diagnostics, and enterprise features.

Founded in 2006 by Peter Zaitsev and Vadim Tkachenko, former MySQL AB employees, Percona has become a leading authority on database performance optimization. Their products include Percona Server, Percona XtraDB Cluster (Galera-based clustering), Percona XtraBackup (hot backup solution), and Percona Monitoring and Management (PMM). The company contributes significantly to the MySQL ecosystem while offering free alternatives to Oracle's commercial MySQL Enterprise features.

Products and Features

Percona Server for MySQL

• XtraDB Engine: Enhanced InnoDB with better scalability
• Thread Pool: Improved connection handling
• Audit Log: Comprehensive query logging
• PAM Authentication: System-level authentication
• Data Masking: Sensitive data protection

Percona XtraDB Cluster

• Synchronous Replication: Galera-based multi-master
• Automatic Node Provisioning: SST and IST methods
• Geographic Distribution: WAN-optimized replication
• Conflict Resolution: Automatic write conflict handling

Percona XtraBackup

• Hot Backups: Non-blocking InnoDB backups
• Incremental Backups: Efficient delta backups
• Compression: Reduce backup storage size
• Encryption: Secure backup files

Percona Monitoring and Management (PMM)

• Query analytics and slow query identification
• Real-time performance metrics
• Database advisors and recommendations
• Cross-platform monitoring (MySQL, MongoDB, PostgreSQL)

Use Cases

High-Performance MySQL

Organizations requiring better MySQL performance migrate to Percona Server. The enhanced InnoDB (XtraDB) provides better throughput for write-heavy workloads and improved concurrency handling.

Enterprise MySQL Without Oracle

Companies wanting enterprise features without Oracle licensing use Percona's free alternatives. Thread pool, audit logging, and authentication plugins match Oracle Enterprise functionality.

Mission-Critical Clustering

Businesses requiring zero-downtime deployments use Percona XtraDB Cluster. Synchronous replication ensures no data loss during failover, meeting strict availability requirements.

Database Operations

DevOps teams use Percona tools for database management. XtraBackup handles production backups without downtime, while PMM provides comprehensive monitoring across database fleets.

Performance Consulting

Organizations facing database performance issues engage Percona's consulting services. Expert analysis identifies bottlenecks, recommends optimizations, and implements improvements.

Cloud Database Management

Companies running databases on cloud infrastructure use Percona tools for consistent management. PMM monitors across cloud providers, while XtraBackup handles backup strategies.

Usage Examples

XtraBackup Full Backup

# Full backup
xtrabackup --backup --target-dir=/backup/full \
    --user=backup_user --password=secure_pass

# Prepare the backup
xtrabackup --prepare --target-dir=/backup/full

# Restore (after stopping MySQL)
xtrabackup --copy-back --target-dir=/backup/full
chown -R mysql:mysql /var/lib/mysql

Incremental Backup

# Incremental backup based on full
xtrabackup --backup --target-dir=/backup/inc1 \
    --incremental-basedir=/backup/full

# Prepare full backup
xtrabackup --prepare --apply-log-only --target-dir=/backup/full

# Apply incremental
xtrabackup --prepare --apply-log-only --target-dir=/backup/full \
    --incremental-dir=/backup/inc1

XtraDB Cluster Bootstrap

# /etc/mysql/conf.d/wsrep.cnf
[mysqld]
wsrep_on=ON
wsrep_provider=/usr/lib/galera4/libgalera_smm.so
wsrep_cluster_name="pxc-cluster"
wsrep_cluster_address="gcomm://node1,node2,node3"
wsrep_node_name="node1"
wsrep_node_address="192.168.1.10"
wsrep_sst_method=xtrabackup-v2
wsrep_sst_auth="sst_user:password"
pxc_strict_mode=ENFORCING

PMM Client Setup

# Install PMM client
yum install pmm2-client

# Configure PMM server connection
pmm-admin config --server-url=https://admin:[email protected]

# Add MySQL monitoring
pmm-admin add mysql --username=pmm --password=pass \
    --query-source=perfschema mysql-server-01

Comparison and Support

Percona Server vs MySQL

• Performance: Better scalability on multi-core systems
• Diagnostics: Enhanced slow query logging and statistics
• Features: Thread pool, audit log included free
• Compatibility: 100% MySQL compatible drop-in replacement
• Updates: Faster security patch releases

Percona vs MariaDB

• Focus: Percona focuses on MySQL compatibility
• Clustering: Both use Galera, similar capabilities
• Ecosystem: Percona has more operational tools
• Features: MariaDB adds more SQL extensions

Support Options

• Community: Free forums, documentation, bug tracking
• Percona Care: Basic production support
• Percona Premium: 24/7 support with faster SLAs
• Consulting: Performance audits and optimization

Best For

• MySQL deployments needing performance improvements
• Organizations avoiding Oracle licensing
• Teams requiring enterprise features without cost
• DevOps seeking comprehensive database tooling
• High-availability requirements with Galera clustering