Thanks mainly to the rise of DevOps, the number of open-source database deployments in the enterprise has risen sharply in the last two years. The driving force behind those deployments has been developers that have shown a marked preference for downloading an open-source database instead of requesting access to a commercial database from a database administrator (DBA) working in an IT department. As more of those applications get deployed, however, either the developer or a DBA still needs to find a way to manage those open-source databases.
To address that issue, Quest Software is now making available its Toad Edge tools for managing databases available for IT organizations that have deployed MySQL databases. Greg Davoll, executive director of product management and marketing, says Quest Software already supports open-source Postgres databases and will be adding support for other open-source databases.
In a lot of instances Davoll says the same DBA that is being tasked with managing IBM DB2 or Oracle databases is being tasked to manage MySQL databases. Most of them are already familiar with Toad database tools that are already widely used by internal IT organizations. Davoll says Quest Software is well aware there are a variety of open-source tools available for managing open-source databases. But Davoli says most of those offerings are not nearly as rich in terms of features as Toad database management tools that have been continually enhanced now for the better part of a decade.
For example, Toad Edge can be used to identify and manage schema differences and initiate changes in real time. Toad Edge can also be used to explore and edit JSON data as well as keeping all the scripts being employed to manage databases up to date.
Davoll notes that Toad Edge has also been integrated with Jenkins Continuous Integration server to allow databases to better facilitate continuous integration/continuous deployment (CI/CD) processes.
Most DBAs have come to terms with the fact they are being required to support multiple databases. They don’t always appreciate the extra work that involves. But as the number of applications deployed across the enterprise dramatically increases, the cost of employing commercial databases to support them all would be prohibitively expensive. Developers often download an open-source database on their own because they don’t want to spend time participating in an extended procurement process involving salespeople and purchasing managers.
Developers don’t always appreciate what’s required to keep the databases their applications up and running. Many of them initially believed they would be able to eliminate the need for a DBA altogether. But developers soon discover how much time is required to do routine database maintenance. DBAs may not always get the respect they deserve. But as most developers have come to appreciate, it’s difficult to have a truly integrated DevOps process that doesn’t include at the very least someone willing to manage those tasks.