Re: [Windows] Feedback on PG? - Mailing list pgsql-general

Gilles wrote:
> Hello
>
>     I'm looking for an open-source DBMS that runs on Linux and Windows.
> In order to make an informed choice, I would like some feedback on the
> Windows port of PostgreSQL, as compared to MySQL and Firebird (if you
> know of yet other solutions, I'm also interested.)

You'll probably need to give some details of how you intend to use it.
One-off on large server hardware? Hundreds of copies deployed around the
world on XP machines 5 years old?

> Is the Windows port on par with the *nix version, and with those other
> alternatives?

It's feature-compatible. I'm not sure Windows would be the platform of
choice for most PG users out here (there are a lot of people who do, but
not because they thought Windows was the best platform for PG). If you
want to squeeze every last drop of performance from your database you'll
want a unix-based system.

The main Windows problems we see on the mailing lists all revolve around
(1) installation and (2) anti-virus. PostgreSQL runs as a "unprivileged"
user in unix terms, and given the complex permissions model on Windows
and the wide variety of setups on machines that's not always proved easy
to get right.

The second problem is with anti-virus scanners locking the database
files for a fraction of a second - that doesn't help the smooth running
of any system. Once the scanner is told to ignore PG / switched off the
problems go away, so it's easy enough to diagnose.

 > Apart from the fact that, unlike MySQL, PostgreSQL doesn't
> require buying a license when developping commercial applications, are
> there technical reasons why I should choose PostgreSQL instead of MySQL
> or Firebird?

PG has a long track-record of trying to get things correct first time
and then improve performance. MySQL has traditionally approached things
from the opposite end. We have excellent GIS support, a wide range of
procedural languages and custom type support. The community support on
these mailing lists is world-class and there are several independent
commercial companies with intimate knowledge of the internals should you
ever want paid support. User groups are based around the world, with
mailing lists in a variety of languages. You are joining a community
here rather than buying a product from one supplier.

I'm not sure MySQL does require a commercial licence. If you're
referring to the GPL'ed connection libraries then there are exceptions
for PHP etc and I'm not sure it applies if you connect via ODBC or some
other wrapper (but speak to a lawyer). MySQL's big win is it's
ubiquitous in the open-source web-developer world. It's easy to find
people who know it (and even easier to find people who only think they do).

Firebird is less well known than either PG or MySQL but is based on a
product that has a long track record. It is supposed to be quite good at
being embedded in part of another product.

--
   Richard Huxton
   Archonet Ltd