In addition to the latest set of System i announcements, IBM last week announced a joint technology and reseller agreement to bring support for the MySQL open source database to the platform.

Big Blue will work together with Swedish firm MySQL AB to offer the MySQL Server for i5/OS and plan to deliver DB2 for i5/OS as a certified MySQL storage engine on the System i platform. This will allow System i customers to implement online and transactional MySQL applications while storing all data in a single, easy-to-manage DB2 database. In addition, MySQL Enterprise subscriptions -- a comprehensive offering of MySQL database software, services and support -- will be made available to IBM clients worldwide through IBM's reseller network and System i sales team.

At first sight, this announcement may come as a bit of a surprise. After all, DB2, a preloaded and integral part of the System i architecture, is an extremely mature enterprise class database used by midrange and blue chip corporations all over the world. DB2/400 (as it used to be called) is easily one of the most widely used multi-user databases.

In contrast, MySQL is a relative upstart. Its first Windows version didn’t appear on the scene until 1998. However, its creator, MySQL AB claim that it now runs at more than 10 million installations. It is also popular for creating web applications and acts as the database component of the PHP scripting language that IBM and PHP vendor Zend have done so much to promote on System i of late. Hence the synergy.

Indeed, at the announcement at the MySQL Conference & Expo 2007 in Santa Clara, California, Mark Shearer, general manager IBM System i, said: “Today's news will make thousands of open source MySQL and PHP applications available to System i clients, helping them respond more quickly to business needs as they arise.”

In a separate announcement on Monday at the COMMON 2007 Conference in Anaheim, California, Zend announced that over 5,000 individuals in 150 countries have downloaded Zend Core for i5/OS, Zend Platform for i5/OS and Zend Studio for i5/OS. It highlighted a number of U.S. firms that had already created business-critical applications with PHP as well as a few ISVs that had done the same with their offerings. Most notably, BCD Software has created a new version of its flagship product, WebSmart PHP, for building web-based applications.

As it happens, MySQL has been quietly been available for a while in the PASE environment on the System i and my sources tell me that some UK firms are already using MySQL and PHP for developing web front ends for applications.

However, what about the DB2 diehards? Jimmy Cooper of Surrey-based ATS Automated Training Systems says that it is too early to tell how DB2 customers may decide to take advantage of using MySQL on the iSeries.

“However, having expanded our training offerings considerably and with also getting involved with Linux training over the last four years we have seen a large increase in Linux training, especially over the last year, which also includes a number of iSeries customers. Having said that, we have tended to find the majority of iSeries customers that are taking advantage of Linux tend to run this on separate PC servers rather than the iSeries although some are considering this whilst taking advantage of the i5 processor capabilities.

“We have recently added classroom-based course offerings on MySQL within our portfolio of Linux -- in varying flavours -- offerings. What has been quite noticeable is a number of financial institutions that are taking advantage of Linux are now also now making extensive use of MySQL within the Linux environment. Cost saving as well as standardisation seems to be the big thing everyone is looking for these days with the amount of globalisation and centralisation in the era we find ourselves in.”

Seamus Quinn