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Two of the reasons to deploy an open source database are cost and philosophy. Philosophically, the open source movement subscribes to the notion that having community-developed product creates a better product, and/or “contributes to the world in a better way.” The other reason is cost, which usually means “free,” or at least no-charge for the software database license.
Putting aside the philosophical discussion, that leaves cost. And at first that seems like a silly question. Why would you ever not want free? But it turns out it’s not so simple. Of the top 5 databases deployed–Oracle, MySQL, Microsoft SQL Server, MongoDB, and PostgreSQL–two are commercial, and the other three open source. But the two commercial databases represent the vast bulk of deployments, especially for mission critical deployments. Why is that?
Once an enterprise deploys an application that becomes mission critical, e.g., significant money starts changing hands, the requirements for the database underlying that application become a lot more robust, and scrutinized.
Click here to read five reasons commercial databases are the best fit for mission critical applications!