MySQL Workbench Ubuntu

Introduction to MySQL Workbench

MySQL Workbench is a consolidated visual tool for database developers, DBAs, and architects. It facilitates SQL development, data modeling, and extensive tools of administration for backup, user administration, server configuration, and much more. It is available on Mac OS X, and LINUX, and Windows.

The functionality of MySQL Workbench covers five primary topics:

• SQL Development: It enables us to create and handle connections to many database servers. MySQL Workbench gives the capability to run SQL queries over database connections using a built-in SQL editor with enables us to construct connecting parameters.
• Data Modelling: It enables us to graphically establish models of our database schema, forward and reverse engineer among a live database and schema, and edit every aspect of our database with an extensive Table editor. This table editor gives easy-to-use features to edit Tables, Views, Routines, Privileges, Inserts, Options, Partitions, Triggers, Indexes, and Columns.
• Server administration: It enables us to administer instances of MySQL server by monitoring the performance of MySQL server, viewing the health of the database, checking audit data, and performing recovery and backup.
• Data migration: It permits us to migrate from PostgreSQL, SQL Anywhere, SQLite, Sybase ASE, Microsoft Access, Microsoft SQL Server, and other tables, data, and objects of RDBMS to MySQL. Also, migration supports migrating through previous MySQL versions to the latest versions.
• MySQL Enterprise support: It supports the products of an Enterprise such as MySQL Audit, MySQL Firewall, and MySQL Enterprise Backup.

History of MySQL Workbench

fabFORCE.net DBDesigner4

DBDesigner4 can be described as an open-source visual database design. It can query tool for MySQL database published upon GPL. In 2002/2003, it was written by Michael G (Australian programmer).

DBDesigner4 provides an extensive feature set with MySQL database reverse engineering, model poster printing, model-to-database synchronization, SQL query builder, and basic version schema model control while being only a physical-modeling tool. It is available for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows.

Tools bundle of MySQL GUI

It is an open-source and cross-platform suite of desktop apps for the MySQL database server administration and to build and manipulate the data in MySQL databases. MySQL GUI tools bundle was integrated by MySQL AB and by Sun Microsystems later and published under GPL. On the GUI tools bundle, the development has stopped, it is now preserved upon the MySQL site's Download Archives only.

It has been antiquated by MySQL Workbench. Also, it has been reached its End-of-life phase with the MySQL Workbench 5.2 beta releases. Although, the support team of Microsoft continued to offer assistance for this bundle until 30 June 2010.

Releases of MySQL Workbench

In September 2005, the initial preview MySQL workbench version was published and it was not contained in the MySQL GUI Tools Bundle. This development was begun in 2007 again and MySQL Workbench was fixed to become the flagship product of the MySQL GUI. The numbering of the version was begun at 5.0 for emphasizing that MySQL Workbench was integrated as a successor to DBDesigner4.

Some of the releases of MySQL Workbench are listed and discussed below:

MySQL Workbench 5.1 and 5.0 Versions

MySQL Workbench 5.1 and 5.0 are specially designed visual tools of database design for MySQL databases. While the 5.0 version of MySQL Workbench was a Microsoft Windows-only product, the support of cross-platform was included in the 5.1 or later versions of MySQL Workbench.

MySQL Workbench 5.2 Version

Beginning with the 5.2 version of MySQL Workbench, the application has derived a basic database GUI application. It offers an SQL editor, a database server administration interface, and database migration tools, substituting the previous MySQL GUI Tools Bundle apart from environmental database modeling.

MySQL Workbench 6.0 Version

The team of MySQL Workbench announced that they're working on the 6.0 version on 22 May 2013. On 14 June 2013, the initial public beta, labeled 6.0.2 version was published, and the initial general-availability version was made on 12 August 2013.

MySQL Workbench 6.1 Version

The team of MySQL Workbench announced its initial public beta publication of Version 6.1 on 23 January 2014. On 31 March 2014, the initial general-availability version was made. Many new features like MSAA support, additional query output views, support for Performance Schema, a Performance dashboard, and integrated Visual Explain result.

MySQL Workbench 6.2 Version

The team of MySQL Workbench announced its initial public beta publication of Version 6.2 on 19 August 2014. On 23 September 2014, the initial general-availability version was made.

New aspects are shortcut buttons for basic operations, Microsoft Access Migration, result tab "pinning", MySQL Fabric Integration, Geometry Data Viewer, Spatial View Panel for visualizing geometry and spatial data, Result Set Width, Shared Snippets, SQL editor tabs are saved properly, Model Script Attachments, a fresh Run SQL Script Dialog, the management of Client Connections has a "Show Details" window in which more details about connections, attributes, and locks is shown, performance columns can show the size in GB, MB, or KB, the migration wizard can continue data copying operations if interrupted, the connection password of MySQL is remembered around the session of MySQL Workbench.

MySQL Workbench 6.3 Version

The team of MySQL Workbench announced its initial public beta publication of Version 6.3 on 5 March 2015. On 23 April 2015, the initial general-availability version was made. New aspects contain an option, i.e., "fast migration" for migrating the data using the command-line rather than GUI, developed SQL auto-completion, a generator of SSL certificate, a new table data export and import wizard, and support for MySQL Enterprise Firewall.

For MacOS, MySQL Workbench contains conflicts with MacOS Sierra in the 6.3.8 version. The 6.3.9 version is consistent with MacOS Sierra, although, it does not operate on MacOS High Sierra. The users of MacOS High Sierra require to run the 6.3.10 version.

MySQL Workbench 8.0 Version

The team of MySQL Workbench announced its initial public beta publication of Version 8.0.11 as the Release Candidate together with the 8.0.11 version of MySQL Community Server on 5 April 2018. On 27 July 2018, the initial general-availability version was occurred again together with a server below the new policy to align the number of the version around most of the products of MySQL.

Now, MySQL workbench uses ANTLR4 as a backend parser and includes a fresh auto-completion engine that implements with object editors (functions, stored procedures, views, and triggers) in the models and visual SQL editor. The support and new versions for new language aspects in the 8.0 version of MySQL such as common-table roles and expressions. Also, there is support for concealed indexes and continuing global system variables.

Features of MySQL Workbench

The following are some prominent aspects of MySQL Workbench:

1. General

1. Supports features of MySQL Enterprise (Enterprise Backup, Firewall, and Audit Log)
2. MSAA compliant
3. Supports custom plugins
4. Completely scriptable with Lua and Python
5. Wizard driven operation items
6. Instant Management and Database Connection

2. SQL Editor

1. Unicode support
2. SSH connection tunnelling
3. SQL snippets collections
4. Visual EXPLAIN
5. Editable and multiple result sets
6. SQL context-sensitive help and code completion
7. SQL statement parser and syntax highlighter
8. Schema object search, inspection, and browsing

3. Data Modeling

1. Import through fabFORCE.net DBDesigner4
2. Model printing
3. Schema synchronization
4. Forward engineering live database and SQL Scripts
5. Reverse engineering from a live database and SQL Scripts
6. Drag and drop visual modelling
7. ER diagramming

4. Database Administration

1. Data dump import/export
2. Log file browsing
3. Instance variables browsing
4. Database account management
5. Instance configuration
6. Stop and start of database instances

5. Performance Monitoring

1. Query statistics
2. MySQL instance dashboard
3. Performance Schema metrics

6. Database Migration

1. Native support: Sybase ASE, SQLite, SQL Anywhere, PostgreSQL, and Microsoft SQL server
2. OBDC compliant database

Editions and Licensing

MySQL Workbench is the initial MySQL products family that provides two editions: a proprietary and an open-source edition. The "Community Edition" is a completely featured product that's not damaged in any way. It will profit from every effort of future development being the foundation for every other edition. The proprietary "Standard Edition" increases the Community Edition along with a series of plugins and modules.

It has caused opinions in the press about the MySQL database's future licensing because this business decision was declared after the MySQL takeover by Sun Microsystems.

Reviews and community reception

MySQL workbench has become famous within the community of MySQL from its introduction. Now, it is the second most installed and downloaded product from the website of MySQL with 250000+ downloads per month. It was also selected as a Database Tool of 2009 on the Developer.com website. MySQL workbench has been analyzed by the print magazines and open-source community.