Linux vendor serves MySQL in a box

Pogo Linux and MySQL AB have partnered to deliver an open-source database appliance running MySQL on Linux in a bid to deliver an alternative to expensive products based on proprietary database software, the companies said Monday.

The DataWare 2600 is a 2U (8.9 centimeter-high) rack-mountable appliance equipped with two Intel Xeon processors, six 15,000-rpm SCSI hard disk drives and a RAID controller. It runs MySQL on Red Hat Linux 9 and will come fully configured, Pogo Linux Chief Technology Officer Erik Logan said.

Details such as processor speed and hard disk drive size have yet to be finalized. The appliance will be officially announced at the LinuxWorld conference to be held in San Francisco next month and cost between $10,000 and $11,000, Logan said. The price includes a MySQL license, support, and the hardware, he said.

By offering an appliance, Pogo Linux of Redmond, Wash., and MySQL of Uppsala, Sweden, hope to relieve users of the burden of setting up and installing the software, Logan said.

“The MySQL database can be very fast, but there are many different ways in which it can be configured,” Logan said. The two companies had tested the hardware and software together, he said.

Web hosting farms and transaction-heavy environments such as financial institutions are potential DataWare 2600 users, according to Logan. Initially, buyers will likely use the appliance for Web hosting or electronic commerce, rather than as a replacement for heavy-duty Oracle databases in enterprise applications, he said.

Pogo Linux will build the appliance to order and plans to offer it worldwide, but with a focus on the U.S. market. The company has not worked out support agreements for international sales, according to Logan.