If you have spent any time learning about the backend of your website, you must have heard of the MySQL database. This is by far the most popular choice of web hosting companies and understanding it can help you make the most of it.
Today I’m here to explain what it is and how it will affect web design.
What is a MySQL Database?
By definition, MySQL is an open-source SQL relational database management system from Oracle. In a relational database, data is stored in small storage areas called tables. This makes it easier to find the data you need, but more importantly, it helps to organize the data.
For example, let’s say you store what your customer has recently purchased as well as their contact information. These are pretty simple things that you should keep. In MySQL, each of these parts will be stored in a separate table.
This way you can examine the table you want to get to get the information you need. If it weren’t a relational database, then both pieces of data would be stored in the same place.
First, it makes it very difficult to find the right data.
And secondly, there will be a lot of duplicate information taking up space. This makes relational databases like MySQL very efficient overall.
You can also view multiple pieces of data with a key. This allows you to take the data associated with that key from multiple tables. The key is a unique identifier assigned to this piece of data.
For example, let’s say you want to view John Doe’s contact information and purchase history. You would take its unique ID number and pull all the data associated with it into another table.
How do I interact with a MySQL Database?
Knowing the MySQL database is only half the battle. The other half are actually using it.
This database uses a client-server model. This means that the user will interact with the client to access the server where the data is stored. It’s pretty simple and it’s the main reason why MySQL is widely used in the industry.
So how does it work?
Simply put, the user will send a query to the database (server). For example, in WordPress, if a visitor clicks on a blog, they are actually sending a request to the server to display a specific message.
And that pretty much applies to everything in WordPress. Whenever you try to view any information, a query is made to the database.
The other main way to interact with the database through the client is through scripts.
Learn More about WordPress Click here
What is a MySQL Script?
MySQL scripts allow the user to send direct commands to the database.
Instead of a standard request, such as clicking on a post to view it, you write a direct command. This can be used to perform various actions on the database.
For example, perhaps you are creating a script that replaces or inserts new information into multiple files at once. This can save you a lot of time, as opposed to doing it manually for each file.
However, the question is, do I need MySQL scripts?
Not really, everything can be done in other ways that beginners may find easier. However, experienced web developers can use scripts to save a lot of time.
The problem is that you need a basic understanding of MySQL scripting to use them. Otherwise, you can easily send the wrong command and cause serious damage to the database.
So while they are a powerful tool to take advantage of, they are not for everyone.
Why Is This Important For Web Design?
It should be relatively clear why MySQL is important when building a website.
MySQL determines the speed at which things load on your site and the speed at which stored data is accessed. It directly affects the performance of the site, making it an integral part of web design.
After all, speed is king.
If your database is not optimized, it makes it harder to find the information you need, takes up more space due to data duplication, and ultimately slows down your website.
In many cases, you won’t need to do much to keep the database up and running. However, being able to spot when something is going wrong can help you troubleshoot instantly.
This is why many developers will use a tool that will allow them to see all database queries in real-time. This way, the moment the request fails, the developer can see what is causing the problem.
To sum up, MySQL allows users to diagnose problems in the database and reduce the loading time of their websites.
FAQ
What Happens If I Can’t Connect To The Database?
You will encounter a “Database connection failed” error that will prevent you from seeing the requested information.
This can happen for a variety of reasons, but the most common one is that you entered the wrong database credentials. Basically, the login information is wrong and you can’t access the database because of it.
If you are using a shared web hosting environment, this error may occur due to a spike in traffic that the server cannot handle. Basically, one of your digital neighbors is eating up resources, which affects your experience.
This is why shared hosting is only for beginner sites. Having your own dedicated server ensures that you always get the resources you pay for.
Other reasons may be related to file corruption in the database. Sometimes this can happen naturally, and using a backup to restore your files can solve the problem. In other cases, the hackers may have done it on purpose to cover their tracks.
How does phpMyAdmin fit in?
phpMyAdmin is a free tool that uses the PHP language (same as WordPress) to manage the MySQL database.
By default, MySQL does not have a graphical interface that most users are familiar with. This is where phpMyAdmin comes to the rescue. It provides an interface that makes it easier for web developers to interact with the database.
When I mentioned MySQL scripts earlier, I didn’t mention that these queries are actually done using phpMyAdmin. Essentially, this tool is an interface that you will use to manage your database and submit manual queries.
What Is A MySQL Fork?
MySQL has had several forks over the years. Essentially, these are copies of MySQL created at specific points in time. Then these copies were optimized in a certain way and developed in a direction different from the main one.
The most famous forks include MariaDB and Percona Server.
MariaDB is often referred to as an improved version of MySQL. It has more storage engines and a larger connection pool than MySQL, making MariaDB faster than MySQL.
This is for users who are looking for a faster experience.
Percona Server is a complete replacement for MySQL. He paid a lot of attention to the improvement of InnoDB and succeeded in this. You can see a lot more of what’s going on in the workflow, which will help you spot errors.
How To View Every Database Query Made?
If you are trying to troubleshoot issues, viewing the actual query list for the database will be helpful. And in WordPress, this is easy to do.
Like most things in WordPress, all you have to do is install the right plugin for the job. In this case, this plugin is Query Monitor. Query Monitor is a free debugging tool for WordPress that allows you to see all database queries.
Basically, it keeps track of every request made on page load and the time it takes to complete that request. As a result, you can pinpoint what is slowing your page down and fix it accordingly.
It’s a powerful tool that’s active on over 100,000 WordPress websites, so be sure to give it a try.
How Can I Optimize A MySQL Database?
You might think that optimizing a database is very difficult, but you are wrong. Actually, there is a built-in optimization command.
All you have to do is enter and execute the following SQL query:
OPTIMIZE TABLE ‘wp_posts’
However, this is not the only built-in method. Actually, there is an optimized option that you can use by selecting all items in the database. It’s more beginner-friendly since it doesn’t require lines of code, but there’s an even easier way: WordPress plugins.
That’s right, you can actually optimize the database from your website without any coding. In this case, you have several options, but I can recommend one of them — WP-Optimize.
As the name suggests, WP-Optimize is an optimization plugin for WordPress. It can be used to optimize a database with just a few clicks, but it goes beyond just a database. It also optimizes things like images, allows pages to be cached for speed, and more.
If you want to optimize WordPress, this plugin is one of the best ways to do it.
How To Keep A Small MySQLDatabase?
Another way to optimize a database is to make it small, but how do you do that?
Well, it’s actually quite simple. You need to get rid of what you don’t need.
This can help not only reduce the size of your database but also reduce your web hosting costs. After all, you pay for this place.
So where to start?
The first thing I would recommend is to limit the WordPress revisions feature. By default, WordPress saves any changes you make to a post or page. While it’s a great recovery tool, there’s no reason to hold on to versions released years ago.
Instead, limit the number of revisions to 3 or more than a reasonable number. You also have the option to disable this feature entirely.
If you have a ton of comments that have piled up but never been reviewed, this is another great place to clean up. Delete spam comments and approve the rest. Large websites can generate thousands of spam comments a day. It folds up quickly.
Remove any plugins or themes that are not currently in use. They can take up a surprising amount of space. Sometimes you may want to uninstall plugins because the feature is available in another one you’re already using.
This not only helps the MYSQL Database but is good practice in general.
Can’t Escape MySQL
MySQL is the most widely used database engine in the world and almost every web hosting company uses it. There are a few exceptions, but even in those cases they just use a fork of MySQL like MariaDB.
While you can certainly limit the direct use of the database, it exists and will have a huge impact on your website. Spend time researching and optimizing the database for your website is a sure way to improve site performance.
As such, every website owner should strive to understand the basics of the MySQL database.
What steps have you taken to optimize your MySQL database? Do you use any database management plugins in WordPress?
