Choosing a library

The mysqli, PDO_MySQL and mysql PHP extensions are lightweight wrappers on top of a C client library. The extensions can either use the mysqlnd library or the libmysqlclient library. Choosing a library is a compile time decision.

The mysqlnd library is part of the PHP distribution since 5.3.0. It offers features like lazy connections and query caching, features that are not available with libmysqlclient, so using the built-in mysqlnd library is highly recommended. See the mysqlnd documentation for additional details, and a listing of features and functionality that it offers.

Example #1 Configure commands for using mysqlnd or libmysqlclient

// Recommended, compiles with mysqlnd
$ ./configure --with-mysqli=mysqlnd --with-pdo-mysql=mysqlnd --with-mysql=mysqlnd

// Alternatively recommended, compiles with mysqlnd as of PHP 5.4
$ ./configure --with-mysqli --with-pdo-mysql --with-mysql

// Not recommended, compiles with libmysqlclient
$ ./configure --with-mysqli=/path/to/mysql_config --with-pdo-mysql=/path/to/mysql_config --with-mysql=/path/to/mysql_config

Library feature comparison

It is recommended to use the mysqlnd library instead of the MySQL Client Server library (libmysqlclient). Both libraries are supported and constantly being improved.

	MySQL native driver (mysqlnd)	MySQL client server library (libmysqlclient)
Part of the PHP distribution	Yes	No
PHP version introduced	5.3.0	N/A
License	PHP License 3.01	Dual-License
Development status	Active	Active
Lifecycle	No end announced	No end announced
PHP 5.4 and above; compile default (for all MySQL extensions)	Yes	No
PHP 5.3; compile default (for all MySQL extensions)	No	Yes
Compression protocol support	Yes (5.3.1+)	Yes
SSL support	Yes (5.3.3+)	Yes
Named pipe support	Yes (5.3.4+)	Yes
Non-blocking, asynchronous queries	Yes	No
Performance statistics	Yes	No
LOAD LOCAL INFILE respects the open_basedir directive	Yes	No
Uses PHP's native memory management system (e.g., follows PHP memory limits)	Yes	No
Return numeric column as double (COM_QUERY)	Yes	No
Return numeric column as string (COM_QUERY)	Yes	Yes
Plugin API	Yes	Limited
Read/Write splitting for MySQL Replication	Yes, with plugin	No
Load Balancing	Yes, with plugin	No
Fail over	Yes, with plugin	No
Lazy connections	Yes, with plugin	No
Query caching	Yes, with plugin	No
Transparent query manipulations (E.g., auto-EXPLAIN or monitoring)	Yes, with plugin	No