MySQL Database Hosting: Service Guide

The MySQL Database Hosting Service provides professionally-managed database environments for University academic, research and administrative units. These services are provided in a shared hosting environment (referred to as 'hotels') where the databases of multiple University units are run in a secure and isolated fashion on several large, redundant MySQL hosts.

Customers may have databases in both the Production and Development environments. Test databases can be deployed in either of these environments.

Support Services Provided

The back-end database support services provided to MySQL Database Hosting customers include:

MySQL Server Host Configuration and Management

MySQL is configured by the database administrators for high-performance and redundant operation.

Backup and Recovery

  • Backups are available for database DR scenarios.
  • Full backups are taken daily.
  • Backups are retained for 14 days.

Monitoring

  • Zabbix is used to monitor the health and availability of each database instance.
  • Splunk provides continuous collection of database logs and monitors for security-related events.
  • The database admins are alerted automatically for service-impacting and other critical system-wide events, according to the following service level availability schedule:
    • Production: 24x7x365 with scheduled maintenance windows as detailed below in the patching section.
    • Development: available M-F 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
  • Database auditing is configured in compliance with University auditing policy.

Patching

  • Security patching is performed within 30 days of security patch release date, as per University security policy.
  • Customers are notified via email prior to patch install date.
  • Patch and upgrade planning is regulated by the standard University change approval process.
  • OIT's established maintenance window is used for patching production systems.

User Account Management

  • The hotel database support team creates and manages MySQL user accounts.

Getting Started

  1. Comply with University Policy: Customers interested in hosting their data in the hotel databases must adhere to the Acceptable Use of Information Technology Resources policy.
     
  2. Determine Data Security Classification: Customers should review the Data Security Classification and determine the security level of their data. Customers may host data classified as private-highly restricted in the database hotel but PCI and PHI (HIPAA-regulated) data are excluded from this service.
     
  3. Review Your Responsibilities
    Database Hosting customers are responsible for:
    • Maintaining and supporting their applications, application servers and other client computers that connect to the database instance.
    • Importing and exporting data to and from the hotel databases as well as migrating data between the development and production environments.
    • Maintaining security and validity of data and access control for users and applications accessing the data.
    • Providing application administration and end users customer support.
       
  4. Request Hosting Services (new customers): Units must go through an onboarding process in order to use the service. To get started, the local IT or business unit director should contact the Service Owner for Hosting Services or fill out the Database Hosting Request Form.
     
  5. Request Hosting Support (existing customers): Existing customers can reach database support via the Database Support Request form.

Additional information

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