MySQL To Use Open-Source Microsoft Toolset

The upcoming MySQL 4.1 release will, according to documentation on the group's Web site, use the latest version of the Microsoft Windows Installer available for the Windows 200 and XP operating systems. As part of the installation package, MySQL will make use of the Windows Installer XML (WiX) toolset, released as Microsoft's first open-source contribution earlier this year.

The WiX toolset is currently available on the SourceForge Web site for free download, using the Open Source Initiative-approved CPL license. Microsoft has also contributed two other open-source projects: the Windows Template Library and FlexWiki.

"We switched to WiX for two reasons," wrote Michael Zinner, lead developer of the MySQL GUI team. "First, it is an open-source project and second, it allows us to handle the complete Windows engineering process in a flexible way with scripts."

According to Zinner, the new installation package will create what he describes as an "essential" MySQL installation package, featuring the basic components required to run the database server on a Windows machine. The package, which includes the optimized server binaries, command line tools and C developer files, is slated to become MySQL's "recommended" Windows package.

The MySQL 4.1 database server is expected to be available as a production release within the next month.

For more on MySQL see CRN.

This story courtesy of TechWeb.