Galera, continuity, and responsibility: how the Foundation and MariaDB plc move forward
Introduction
Over the past weeks, questions around Galera, high availability, and continuity have generated understandable concern within parts of the MariaDB community.
Clarity matters in moments like this.That is also why this response was unfortunately not immediate. It was important to understand the full picture and ensure that what we communicate reflects the actual state of responsibilities and decisions.
This post explains where things stand today, what has changed, and how the MariaDB Foundation views its role going forward. Directly. Transparently. With responsibility.
Galera and the community: acknowledging the reality
High availability has always mattered.
For many users, Galera has been central to making MySQL-compatible databases viable at scale. That remains true. The community expects predictability when it comes to HA, and that expectation is legitimate.
It is equally important to be precise about responsibilities and boundaries.
Galera is a trademarked technology owned by MariaDB plc, since they acquired Codership in 2025. MariaDB plc controls the Galera roadmap, the naming, and the development resources behind it. This has consistently been the structural reality. It defines what the Foundation can influence and what it does not control.
Serving the community well requires making those boundaries visible.
MariaDB plc reaching out to the community
Alongside the discussions within the MariaDB Foundation, we welcome the recent public communication from MariaDB plc regarding the future of Galera Cluster.
In its announcement that MariaDB Community Server 12.3 will include the same Galera Cluster functionality as in MariaDB Server 11.8, MariaDB plc addressed the immediate questions raised by the community: continuity, predictability, and operational safety for existing deployments. From the Foundation’s perspective, this clarification was constructive and important.
For the sake of readability in the remainder of this post, we refer to this Galera Cluster functionality simply as “Galera”.
We are particularly encouraged that MariaDB plc engaged with input from multiple directions and responded with a concrete statement that reduces near-term uncertainty for users relying on Galera today.
The plc blog also outlines how MariaDB Foundation views the broader clustering landscape going forward. Galera remains a stable and proven basis for high-availability deployments in the community server. At the same time, MariaDB plc intends to concentrate new development efforts on its Enterprise Cluster and the newly developed Advanced Cluster. These plans, and the relationship between the respective clustering technologies, are described in detail in MariaDB plc’s communication, which we encourage readers to review.
From the Foundation’s perspective, this public clarification serves two essential purposes. It reassures users that existing Galera-based deployments remain supported and viable. It also makes the division of roles transparent: the Foundation focuses on continuity, clarity, and trust within the community, while MariaDB plc makes and communicates its product and investment decisions.
Open dialogue, explicit statements, and responsiveness are signs of a functioning ecosystem. Even when roles differ, collaboration remains possible.
The Foundation’s role — and its limits
The MariaDB Foundation exists to support adoption, openness, and continuity of MariaDB as an open-source database. That mission remains unchanged.
Continuity does not always require ownership. In areas such as Galera, it depends on coordination, transparency, and stability within clearly defined roles.
Concretely:
- The MariaDB Foundation considers Galera a proven, stable, and well-understood technology for achieving high availability. Over more than a decade, changes have been measured and deliberate, reflecting maturity. For the foreseeable future, Galera remains a solid foundation for HA deployments, and the Foundation focuses on supporting its safe and secure use within the community.
- The Foundation supports adoption, understanding, and confidence in the use of Galera. Decisions regarding future development and allocation of engineering resources belong to MariaDB plc. Maintenance and engineering work remain the responsibility of MariaDB plc.
- Thus the Foundation does not see a need for forking Galera and does not support or encourage such action.
Responsible stewardship requires acknowledging structural realities. Continuity must be built on what is durable and sustainable over time.
Looking forward: continuity through collaboration
The Foundation will continue to:
- Listen carefully to community concerns around high availability.
- Raise those concerns openly with MariaDB plc.
- Advocate for solutions that serve users while preserving coherence in the ecosystem.
- Communicate decisions and boundaries clearly, so expectations align with the actual structure of responsibilities.
Continuity grows from transparency, coordination, and realistic expectations. When roles are clear, trust becomes possible.
Closing
The MariaDB ecosystem has always been shaped by collaboration between actors with distinct responsibilities. That remains true today.
The Foundation believes clarity strengthens the community. We remain committed to openness, to continuity, and to working constructively with MariaDB plc in the interest of users.
