Question

Which one is better? MySQL or Berkeley DB?

Answer

If Movable Type has been installed, Berkeley DB will be used by default. This product is not a real SQL database, such as MySQL, or MS SQL Server or Oracle. It is not managed by a separate process. The client application - in our case this is Movable Type - will access the data by means of functions running in its own address space.

I have no detailed knowledge about Berkeley DB, but regarding architectural questions it might be compared to MS Access.

MySQL is a true database. A separate process will be executed on the server. All data access will not be done by reading and writing the data files directly. Instead, SQL will be used.

So if you have just installed Movable Type on your own server, it is perfectly ok, if you start playing and learning with Berkeley DB. After some time you should switch to MySQL. If you need some help installing MySQL, please have a look at Migrating to MySQL. Of course, if MySQL has already been installed on your server, you should use it right from the beginning.

With MySQL you will have a stable platform for your data. It is faster. You will not have to fear data inconsistency. Moreover, backup and restore will be easy.

There is a document describing the process of moving all data from Berkley DB to MySQL.

mgs

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