What Is It?
MariaDB is a fully managed, open-source relational database service that is MySQL-compatible and ACID-compliant. It provides enterprise features including triggers, stored procedures, full-text search, JSON and GIS support, virtual columns, and multiple storage engines (InnoDB, MyISAM, Aria). The service handles provisioning, automated backups with point-in-time recovery, maintenance windows, and monitoring, running on dedicated Enterprise VM infrastructure with SSD storage accessible only via private LANs.
Quick Facts
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Type | Managed relational database (MySQL-compatible, open-source) |
| ACID Compliance | Full atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability guarantees |
| Storage Engines | InnoDB, MyISAM, Aria with multiple index types |
| Data Types | Standard SQL types plus JSON and GIS (spatial data) |
| High Availability | Multi-node clusters with automatic failover and asynchronous replication |
| Scalability | Both Horizontal scaling (number of nodes) & Vertical scaling (CPU, RAM, storage) are possible |
| Encryption | TLS encryption for client-to-server traffic (optional) |
| Network Access | Private LAN only (no direct internet exposure) |
Resource Limits
| Component | Minimum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|
| CPU Cores | 1 core | 16 cores |
| RAM | 2 GB (recommended) | 32 GB |
| Storage | 100 GB (recommended) | 2 TB (SSD Premium only) |
Version Support
- LTS Versions: 10.6 and higher
- Maintenance Windows: User-defined 4-hour window for upgrades and patches
What You Can Do
ACID Transaction Management
Execute reliable transactions with full rollback and commit capabilities. Atomicity, consistency, isolation, and durability guarantees ensure data integrity even during failures or concurrent operations.
Advanced SQL Features
Create triggers to automate actions on database events. Write stored procedures to bundle reusable SQL logic. Use full-text search for efficient text queries on large datasets. Leverage virtual (computed) columns and dynamic columns for flexible schema designs.
JSON and Spatial Data
Store and query JSON documents using native JSON functions. Process spatial data with built-in GIS support including geospatial data types and functions for location-based applications.
Automated Backups and Point-in-Time Recovery
Daily base backups are automatically retained for 7 days with point-in-time recovery (PITR) capability. Restore your cluster to any specific point within the retention window via API or DCD. Backups are created automatically during instance creation and version upgrades.
High Availability Clustering
Deploy multi-node clusters with one primary and multiple standby nodes. Asynchronous replication copies data from primary to standby nodes automatically. Automatic node-failure handling ensures minimal downtime during hardware failures or maintenance.
Note: Replication requires at least 2 nodes. Single-node deployments do not provide high availability.
Vertical Scaling
Add CPU cores, RAM, and storage capacity while the cluster is running. Scale resources up to 16 cores, 32 GB RAM, and 2 TB SSD storage per instance, with minimal downtime on multi-node clusters (secondaries are updated first) but a VM restart and brief application outage on single-node clusters.
Role-Based User Management
Create database users, roles, and fine-grained privileges using standard SQL commands. The initial admin user receives a broad set of MariaDB privileges with GRANT OPTION (no OS-level or replication-superuser access).
Note: Admin username and password can only be set during cluster creation via UI or API. Password resets must be performed by connecting to the cluster and executing SET PASSWORD commands.
Query Optimization and Performance Tuning
Built-in query optimizer analyzes and speeds up query execution. Use performance monitoring tools and query analysis dashboards to identify bottlenecks and optimize database performance.
Programmatic Management
Full lifecycle control via REST API, SDKs, and CLI. Create, modify, delete clusters, manage maintenance windows, configure backups, and monitor resource usage programmatically.
Best For
| Scenario | Why It Fits |
|---|---|
| Web applications | High-traffic sites requiring fast, reliable reads and writes with ACID compliance |
| E-commerce platforms | Transactional integrity for order processing, product catalogs, user accounts, and payment systems |
| Healthcare systems | Secure, scalable storage of patient records with compliance and data protection requirements |
| Data warehousing and analytics | Large-volume storage with point-in-time recovery for analytical workloads |
| Disaster recovery scenarios | Self-restore capability to recover from accidental deletions, data corruption, or security incidents |
| MySQL migration | Drop-in replacement for existing MySQL workloads with enhanced features and performance |
Key Considerations
Billing & Costs
- Main billing: Per hour based on CPU cores, RAM, and storage provisioned per instance
- Additional costs: Storage for log files (included in SSD allocation), backup storage in IONOS S3 Object Storage (7-day retention)
Limitations
- Maximum 16 CPU cores, 32 GB RAM, and 2 TB SSD storage per instance (subject to account quota)
- SSD Premium is the only supported storage type
- Automatic backups retained for 7 days only
- Forbidden private IP ranges: 10.208.0.0/12, 10.233.0.0/18, 192.168.230.0/24, 10.233.64.0/18
- Admin username and password can only be set during cluster creation (cannot be changed afterward via UI/API)
- Password resets require SQL commands executed on the running cluster
- Storage cannot be reduced after creation, only increased
- Maintenance window downtime limited to 4-hour window (actual downtime typically seconds for restarts or replica switches)
- Minimum recommended storage of 100 GB for good performance
Management Options
- IONOS Data Center Designer (DCD) web interface
- IONOS DBaaS REST API
- SDKs (can be generated from OpenAPI specification)
- CLI tools for automation
- Standard MariaDB client tools (mysql CLI, MySQL Workbench, etc.)
- Terraform provider for infrastructure as code