MySQL 4.1 Stable Enough?

MySQL, the most famous Open Source Database application around the world has accounced that MySQL 4.1 is ready for production application, the same level as MySQL 4.0. MySQL 4.1 has included some new features. You can see them all in MySQL Documentation section 1.5.2.1. If you used MySQL 4.0, then you should also read MySQL Documentation section 2.5.2 for an instruction on "Upgrading from Version 4.0 to 4.1".

Microsoft has included an improved version of their Microsoft Windows Installer (MSI) in the recent versions of Windows. Using the MSI has become the de-facto standard for application installations on Windows 2000 and Windows XP. The new MySQL server installer now also makes use of this technology to provide a smoother and more flexible installation progress. Further, Microsoft has introduced the WiX (Windows Installer XML) toolset recently. It is the first, highly acknowledged Open Source project from Microsoft. MySQL switched to WiX for two reasons. First, it is an Open Source project and second, it allows MySQL developers to handle the complete Windows engineering process in a flexible way with scripts.

As the result, there will be 3 installer files on the download page. Two of them are the original installer, and the new one is called essential package. It is called the "essential" package (e.g. mysql-4.1.7-essential-win.msi) since it features only the essential components one needs to run the MySQL server on a Windows machine. These include the optimized server binaries for Windows 9x/ME and Windows NT based systems, the command line tools, and the C developer files without debug information. This "essential" package is now becoming the recommended package because it has a reduced file size and contains everything needed in a standard setup.

Since MySQL often used on a busy websites, upgrading is an important process, but do you need an upgrade rather than updates to MySQL 4.0.22? Please refer to MySQL Documentation section C.2 for an overview about "Changes in release 4.1.x (Production)". Decide it wisely, since you need some extra process before the new MySQL will works on your system.

If you used GNU/Linux, maybe the process will be much much simpler than in Windows, but who knows until someone try the new MySQL and give their reviews.