Percona DB Server for MySQL is an open-sourced database management system that is meant to replace MySQL. It offers everything in MySQL but includes additional tools for diagnostics, performance enhancement, and DB administrators/developers. Many of these features are not available with standard MySQL, or are only available on MySQL Enterprise Edition.
What are the Benefits of Managing my DB with Percona
Percona allows you to have a greater level of control over your databases. Some of the features included in Percona are TokuDB, extra hash/digest functions, advanced performance counters, global query response time statistics, improved memory storage Engine, Configurable Fast Index Creation, PAM Authentication, Improved Handling of Corrupted Tables, Ability to Kill Idle Transactions, Special Utility User and Expanded Program Option Modifiers among many other features. See Percona’s full MySQL comparison chart here.
Are there Disadvantages to Using Percona for my Databases?
While replacing MySQL with Percona may have many benefits, simply installing it may not speed up your database performance. You will need a DB administrator to look at your specific site and utilize the tools and features included in Percona Server. So, you essentially have to determine how important it is for you to have greater control of your databases and whether you have the resources and personnel available to take advantage of Percona Server.
Can I use Percona DB Server with InMotion Hosting?
You can use Percona DB Server with InMotion Hosting, but it will require a VPS , or Dedicated server.
Additional Information
Here are additional Percona documentation links if you are interested in reading further.
