Galera Cluster
Disaster recovery software
Data recovery software
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What is Galera Cluster
Galera Cluster is a synchronous multi-primary replication technology used to build highly available MySQL/MariaDB database clusters. It targets teams that need database-level resilience and fast failover for transactional applications, typically across multiple nodes and sometimes across sites. It differentiates from backup-centric recovery tools by focusing on continuous replication and automatic membership/quorum behavior rather than point-in-time restore workflows.
Synchronous multi-primary replication
Galera Cluster replicates transactions synchronously across nodes, which can reduce data loss during node failures compared with asynchronous replication. It supports multi-primary writes, enabling applications to continue operating when a single node becomes unavailable. This design aligns well with high-availability and disaster-resilience objectives for database workloads.
Automatic cluster membership control
The cluster uses quorum-based membership to help prevent split-brain scenarios when nodes lose connectivity. Nodes that fall out of sync can be automatically excluded until they rejoin safely. This provides operational safeguards that are typically separate from traditional backup and recovery products.
Works with MySQL variants
Galera is commonly deployed with MariaDB and MySQL-compatible distributions, allowing organizations to add clustering without changing application SQL behavior. It supports standard database clients and typical operational tooling around these databases. This can simplify adoption for teams already standardized on MySQL-family databases.
Not a backup solution
Galera Cluster is designed for high availability, not for long-term retention, point-in-time recovery, or protection from logical corruption (for example, accidental deletes replicated to all nodes). Organizations still need backups and restore processes to meet common recovery objectives. This limits its fit when the primary requirement is data recovery rather than service continuity.
Latency-sensitive across sites
Because commits require synchronous replication, write performance can degrade as network latency increases between nodes or sites. Multi-site disaster recovery designs often require careful topology planning and may trade off performance for resilience. This can be a constraint compared with approaches that decouple recovery from real-time commit paths.
Operational complexity and tuning
Cluster sizing, quorum design, flow control, and node state transfers introduce operational considerations beyond a single-instance database. Maintenance activities (schema changes, node rebuilds, upgrades) require disciplined procedures to avoid availability or performance impacts. Teams without database clustering experience may face a steeper learning curve.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Galera Cluster (Community) | Free | Open-source Galera Cluster (galera replication library + mysql-wsrep). Downloadable binaries and source; no vendor support required. |
| Galera Cluster Support — Basic (via MariaDB/Codership) | Contact sales / Request a quote | Basic support tier (example: 12 tickets/year, 24-hour first response SLA). Available as a paid support subscription; contact sales for pricing. |
| Galera Cluster Support — Standard | Contact sales / Request a quote | 24×7 technical support, long-term releases, available for production deployments. |
| Galera Cluster Support — Premium | Contact sales / Request a quote | Aggressive SLAs, telephone & real-time chat, dedicated Premium Support Engineer; intended for mission-critical workloads. |
| MariaDB Enterprise Platform (includes MariaDB Enterprise Cluster / Galera integration) | Contact sales / Request a quote | Enterprise bundle that includes MariaDB Enterprise Cluster (Galera-based), optional add-ons and support levels. |
Usage-based (MariaDB Cloud / SkySQL — can run Galera Cluster in cloud): Pricing model: Pay-as-you-go (usage-based compute & storage). Free tier/trial: MariaDB Cloud offers a forever-free serverless tier for experimenting; SkySQL promotional credits (e.g., $500 credit for new SkySQL accounts) are offered on MariaDB SkySQL landing pages. Example costs (listed on MariaDB Cloud pricing page):
- Sky-2×4 (AWS): 0.13182 (Cloud/Foundation/Power columns shown on provider pricing table).
- Sky-4×16 (AWS, GCP, Azure): 0.34047 (Cloud) / 0.4256 (Power). Discount options: Not publicly listed; contact sales for volume/commitment discounts and enterprise quotes.
Seller details
Codership Oy
Helsinki, Finland
2008
Private
https://codership.com/
https://x.com/codership
https://www.linkedin.com/company/codership-oy/
