MySQL Sandbox: Treat MySQL Instances like Virtual Machines

“I remember meeting Giuseppe Maxia (aka The Data Charmer),
probably the most famous Italian MySQL enthusiast and hacker, back
at what must have been the first MySQL Conference. At the time
I’d seen him on mailing lists and knew he gave talks from
time to time, but I had no idea of the useful software he’d
be creating. This week, I’d like give you a tour of one of
his projects: MySQL Sandbox.

“I think of it as a sort of virtual server manager for MySQL
instances. In fact, the one-line intro on the project web site
hints at that:

“Quick painless install of side MySQL server in isolation. MySQL
Sandbox is a tool for installing one or more MySQL servers in
isolation, without affecting other servers.

“Isolation tends to be the hardest thing to get right (aside
from the automation itself) when trying to bring up multiple MySQL
instances on a single machine. There are a lot of hard-coded
default paths (and port numbers) that will cause you headaches
unless your track down all the references and override the relevant
settings. MySQL Sandbox takes care of all that work, giving you any
number of totally isolated MySQL servers with their own data
directory, port number, and socket. The severs can all be the same
version, different versions, or a mix. It’s even possible to
create several servers quickly and setup a replication topology to
play with as well.”

Complete
Story