MySQLi
Encyclopedia
The MySQLi Extension is a relational database management system that runs as a server providing multi-user access to a number of databases. It is named after developer Michael Widenius' daughter, My...
Improved) is a relational database
Relational database
A relational database is a database that conforms to relational model theory. The software used in a relational database is called a relational database management system . Colloquial use of the term "relational database" may refer to the RDBMS software, or the relational database itself...
driver used in the PHP
PHP
PHP is a general-purpose server-side scripting language originally designed for web development to produce dynamic web pages. For this purpose, PHP code is embedded into the HTML source document and interpreted by a web server with a PHP processor module, which generates the web page document...
programming language
Programming language
A programming language is an artificial language designed to communicate instructions to a machine, particularly a computer. Programming languages can be used to create programs that control the behavior of a machine and/or to express algorithms precisely....
to provide an interface with MySQL
MySQL
MySQL officially, but also commonly "My Sequel") is a relational database management system that runs as a server providing multi-user access to a number of databases. It is named after developer Michael Widenius' daughter, My...
database
Database
A database is an organized collection of data for one or more purposes, usually in digital form. The data are typically organized to model relevant aspects of reality , in a way that supports processes requiring this information...
s. MySQLi is an improved version of the older PHP MySQL driver, offering various benefits. The developers of the PHP programming language recommend using MySQLi when dealing with MySQL server versions 4.1.3 and newer (takes advantage of new functionality).
Technical details
The MySQLi extension provides various benefits with respect to its predecessor, the most prominent of which, according to the PHP website, are:- An object-oriented interface
- Support for prepared statements
- Support for multiple statements
- Support for transactions
- Enhanced debuggingDebuggingDebugging is a methodical process of finding and reducing the number of bugs, or defects, in a computer program or a piece of electronic hardware, thus making it behave as expected. Debugging tends to be harder when various subsystems are tightly coupled, as changes in one may cause bugs to emerge...
support - Embedded server support