MariaDB is a popular open-source relational database management system (RDBMS) that is a fork of the MySQL database. It was created by the original developers of MySQL, after the acquisition of MySQL by Oracle Corporation.
MariaDB is designed to be fully compatible with MySQL and it has many of the same features as MySQL, such as support for SQL, a wide range of data types, and a large number of storage engines. However, it also includes additional features and improvements that are not available in MySQL, such as improved performance, more robust security, and better scalability.
One of the main differences between MariaDB and MySQL is the licensing. MySQL is proprietary software and requires a commercial license, while MariaDB is open-source and is available under the GNU General Public License (GPL).
MariaDB is widely used in web applications, and it is particularly popular in the LAMP (Linux, Apache, MySQL, and PHP) and LEMP (Linux, Nginx, MySQL, and PHP) stacks. It is also supported by many hosting providers and is included in many Linux distributions by default.
MariaDB is known for its high performance, reliability, and scalability, making it suitable for use in small to large-scale web applications and high-traffic websites.
Also, See: Enterprise Applications