[Brass]

MySQL Workbench is supposed to be available for Mac OS X, however it appears to be missing from the official .dmg download. I can download the source code, but am not having any luck building it.

Has anyone ever got MySQL Workbench installed and running on Mac OS X? Any tips and tricks I should be aware of? (such as where do I actually get it from?).


Footnote: 'Workbench' is the official MySQL tool for designing and creating databases using a GUI. The Mac OS X version has a Cocoa front end. It's like the CoreData equivalent of the data modelling tool in XCode.

[besson3c]

Just out of curiosity, what do these sorts of GUI tools do that phpMyAdmin won't? Are they actual MySQL clients, or do they work via ODBC? Do most hosting providers allow connections outside of localhost? Or, is a tool like this designed for local MySQL connections?

[Brass]

I assume these tools are designed for people who control their own MySQL servers, whether local or otherwise. Wouldn't be a lot of use for remote hosts on an ISP that didn't allow anything other than local connections, except that you could do everything on your local TEST system, then export/import to your remote production system, I suppose.

I don't think phpMyAdmin has anything like MySQL Workbench at all. Completely different. Workbench is for designing a data model (like an ERD) and then creating a database directly from that ERD-style model. (Like what you do with data modelling in XCode/CoreData.

[besson3c]

Originally Posted by Brass 

I assume these tools are designed for people who control their own MySQL servers, whether local or otherwise. Wouldn't be a lot of use for remote hosts on an ISP that didn't allow anything other than local connections, except that you could do everything on your local TEST system, then export/import to your remote production system, I suppose.

I don't think phpMyAdmin has anything like MySQL Workbench at all. Completely different. Workbench is for designing a data model (like an ERD) and then creating a database directly from that ERD-style model. (Like what you do with data modelling in XCode/CoreData.

Ahh.. I'm not really much of a database geek outside of administration and working with relational databases and their basic functions (i.e. I haven't really gotten into views, subselects, indexes, and some of the more advanced databasey things yet). What is an ERD-style model and how does that differ from devising schema?

If you don't feel like a mini lesson, no biggy, I will probably research this myself anyway once I finish this post, as my time permits

[Brass]

ERD = "Entity Relationship Diagram"

Essentially it is a standard way of modelling a database graphically, by showing relationships between entities (relations/tables).

They are used by a lot of data modelling applications as the basis from which database can be created (obviously, you'd also have to define more than just the basic ERD, which is purely entities and relationships).

See the MySQL Workbench image at: http://www.mysql.com/products/tools/...ench_model.png

The main image on that screen is essentially an ERD, but the application is using for more than just a diagram, it is using it (and other data) to define a schema, graphically, and textually, and can then create a database from that.

Here's a similar thing using XCode and CoreData data modelling: http://interspatial.com/images/coredata.gif

Again the image is basically an ERD, plus list of relationships and fields ('attributes' in CoreData speak) in each entity.

Even FileMaker makes good use of ERD style diagrams for the "Define Relationships" feature: http://edge.macworld.com/images/cont...workingmac.gif



I reeeeeeeaaaaally want to be able to design and build MySQL databases this way and MySQL Workbench is the official tool for the job. Workbench appears to be available for Mac OS X, but I can't get it. It is supposed to be on the GUI tools .dmg, but it ain't. I can download the source, but can't get it to build yet.

[Brass]

Modellin' man, I'm a modellin' man
they say 'are you in modelling?'
I say, 'oh yes I am'

[besson3c]

Ahhh..

I always used to use a pad and paper for devising schema and relating keys together. Perhaps I should take a look at this.

Thanks for the little lesson Brass!

[besson3c]

Brass, did you know that I play you? I'm a trumpet player... Do you feel played?


P.S. was that funny?

[Brass]

I've got a sheet of paper in front of me right now with a messy ERD scribbled on it. If I can't get Workbench working, I'll have to code it in the long-hand way, as have done before. The other advantage is that I can avoid all the scribbling out and re-drawing by hand that I usually get (currently on my 3rd hand-drawn scribble sheet now).

I'm not a Brass player myself, but I do play with wood from time to time... (saxophone is kind of brass, kind of wood).

[bluedog]

MySQL Lists: announce: ANNC: MySQL Workbench 1.0.5 beta released

Looks like its not yet available as an OSX binary. Should be soon according to this post from back in March. It would be great to have this available as a development tool when constructing the relations between tables.

[Brass]

I've just tried the Windows binary, and it it horribly buggy, to the extent that I cannot trust it to do any real work on it.

Shame. I hope they get a full release out soon. Will be a great tool.

[djs6000]

Hi,

Back to the original topic. Has anyone discovered where MySQL Workbench for Mac OS went? Currently, MySQL appears to be only distributing the Windows version, but there is documenation and discussion of the MacOS version.

If the MacOS version is gone, does anyone know of any alternative visual tools that will generate a ERD diagram from MacOS schema? Or do I need to jump over to Windows :-(

Thanks!

[Aspyr]

I have version 1.2.9 alpha of the osx workbench. (from earliers this year)

You can still get if from one of the mirror sites. Try ftp mirrors.24-7-solutions.net

pub/mysql/Downloads/MySQLGUITools/mysql-gui-tools-5.0-r9-osx10.4-universal.dmg

I believe this is the last version with the workbench included.

[M.J. Washburn]

Originally Posted by Brass 

I've just tried the Windows binary, and it it horribly buggy, to the extent that I cannot trust it to do any real work on it.

Shame. I hope they get a full release out soon. Will be a great tool.

I tried the Workbench earlier this year (when it was included in the Mac GUI tools download) and had much the same experience as Brass. It was VERY buggy (averaged about 1 crash every 5 min).

As someone who designs in MySQL on Mac every day, I really wish there were better graphical tools to handle ERD's. The product horizon is pretty bleak. The only solid program I have found to date is Malcom Hardie's SQLEditor. SQLEditor for Mac OS X
It is a solid, stable program that works as advertised. At $80 US the price is pretty steep, but it allows you to intuitively design your ERD's and upload, download, or sync the ERD with a local or remote MySQL DB.

Hope this helps!

[M.J. Washburn]

I had been using Malcom Hardie's SQL Editor exclusively, but it was broken by Snow Leopard, and appears to have no fix in the near future. I just downloaded v. 5.1.18 of MySQL Workbench and it seems to be stable now. I am hoping to find the import / export tools soon, but so far so good!