Documentation: MySQL 5.5 switched to InnoDB as default storage engine

[Lenz Hirsch <hirsch@…>]

The Django documentation states here ​https://docs.djangoproject.com/en/1.0/ref/databases/#storage-engines "The default engine is MyISAM ...". This is not true since MySQL Version 5.5. InnoDB is the default now. See: ​http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.5/en/innodb-default-se.html

In consequence also manage.py syndb creates InnoDB tables by default.
This can lead to misleading error messages of manage.py (which is not the fault of manage.py) like:

Failed to install index for ... model: Specified key was too long; max key length is 767 bytes

Although this messages indicates the index could not be installed it is!
The index gets automatically shortened to 255 bytes and is therefore no full "covering index" but a "prefix index" which seams not to be a real performance issue.

Maybe some of these facts could be incorporated to the django documentation to help MySQL users that will tend to stumble about this error more often the more MySQL 5.5 is used.

[Nate Bragg]

Indeed, the dev docs say the same. The mysql docs say:

InnoDB is the default storage engine as of MySQL 5.5.5.
[...]
MyISAM is supported in all MySQL configurations, and is the default storage engine prior to MySQL 5.5.5. 

This ought to be updated.

[Claude Paroz]

I also fixed the section about not supporting fixtures, as the issue has been fixed for the InnoDB storage engine in 1.4.

[Nate Bragg]

Although perhaps a fine patch, it looks like you might have intended to upload a different one, as this one doesn't appear to address the problem.

[Claude Paroz]

Updated documentation

[Claude Paroz]

Wow :-( Sorry, now hopefully it is the good one!

[Nate Bragg]

Now we're talking. :)

[Aymeric Augustin]

In [17552]:

Fixed #17573 -- Documented MySQL's switch to InnoDB as default storage engine. Thanks Lenz Hirsch for the report and Claude Paroz for the patch.

[Aymeric Augustin]

In [17553]:

[1.3.X] Fixed #17573 -- Documented MySQL's switch to InnoDB as default storage engine. Backport of r17552 from trunk.