About Vitess
Vitess is a clustering system for MySQL that spreads data across many servers. It is open source under the Apache-2.0 license and is a graduated project of the Cloud Native Computing Foundation.
What it does
Vitess sits in front of MySQL and handles splitting data into shards, so an application can grow without adding sharding logic of its own. It also rewrites queries, caches results and pools connections, which allows a much higher number of concurrent client connections than a plain MySQL setup. Schema changes run in the background while the database keeps serving traffic.
Key features
- Built-in sharding that stays out of application code
- Query rewriting, caching and connection pooling
- Automatic detection and repair of primary failures
- Live resharding with minimal read-only downtime
- Background schema changes with monitoring controls
Who it's for
Teams running MySQL that have outgrown a single server and want to shard without rewriting their application. It also fits platform teams who run Kubernetes, since the project documents a Kubernetes quickstart.
Pricing and good to know
Vitess is free to use under its Apache-2.0 license, and you run it on your own infrastructure. Operating a sharded MySQL cluster takes database experience, because you manage the topology, failover settings and schema changes yourself.
Highlights
- Built-in sharding without changes to application code
- Query rewriting, caching and connection pooling
- Automatic detection and repair of primary failures
- Live resharding with minimal read-only downtime
- Background schema changes with monitoring controls
