MySQL develops new graphical admin tool

MySQL AB has developed the first graphical administration tool for its open source database, the company plans to announce at the LinuxWorld Expo in New York on Wednesday.

Previously, the vendor provided command-line interface administration tools for its database, which are less intuitive and harder to use than the new graphical MySQL Administrator console, said Zack Urlocker, MySQL's marketing vice president.

The vendor will be showing the new management, monitoring and maintenance tool at its LinuxWorld Expo booth and plans to make it generally available in the second quarter, he said. The company is providing no pricing information yet.

MySQL Administrator provides all the capabilities of the old command-line tools and adds new features, Urlocker said. Some of the tasks that database administrators can perform with the new console are: server configuration, user administration, database monitoring, backup and restore, and log management.

The vendor plans to offer MySQL Administrator under its dual license model: at no cost under the GNU General Public License (GPL) and under a commercial license.

MySQL also plans to announce Wednesday:

-- An alliance with JBoss Group LLC to integrate the JBoss application server with MySQL's database servers, to improve the way the products work together;

-- a partnership with Zend Technologies Ltd., a maker of development tools for the PHP scripting language, to improve compatibility and integration between the companies' products.