OceanBase Database vs Pgpool-II
OceanBase Database
en.oceanbase.com
Pgpool-II
pgpool.netSide by side
| Figure | OceanBase Database | Pgpool-II |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $2.38/mo | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | Yes | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | — |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 5 | 1 |
| Spec score · Database Proxy Software | 9.1 (#2) | 7.4 (#21) |
| Documentation | Official documentation covers deployment, migration, MySQL and Oracle compatibility, application development, drivers, ORMs, security, backup, monitoring and troubleshooting. | Official documentation is available in English and Japanese, with tutorials for basic configuration, Watchdog, AWS, and Aurora. |
| High availability | OceanBase documents multi-replica availability and disaster recovery from node level through five data centers across three regions. | It provides automatic failover, Watchdog for Pgpool-II high availability, quorum, and split-brain prevention. |
| License | The current OceanBase GitHub repository states Apache License 2.0 for the database project. | The license permits use, copying, modification, and distribution of the software and documentation for any purpose without a fee. |
| Purpose | OceanBase Database is a distributed database for transactional, analytical, and AI workloads. | Pgpool-II is middleware between PostgreSQL servers and database clients that relays PostgreSQL protocol messages transparently. |
| Support | The Trust Center describes an L1–L2–L3 after-sales service system providing 24/7 service. | Community support is provided through mailing lists and GitHub Issues, while SRA OSS K.K. offers commercial technical support, consulting, and system integration. |
Plans
OceanBase Database
- Community EditionFree
- OceanBase Community EditionFree
- OceanBase Cloud Alibaba Cloud pay-as-you-go example$2.38 a month
- EnterprisePriced on request
- OceanBase EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
OceanBase Database
OceanBase Database is a distributed database for transactional, analytical, and AI workloads in one system. Built-in compatibility with Oracle and MySQL is intended to simplify migration. Deployment choices include the open-source Community Edition, self-hosted Enterprise, and fully managed OceanBase Cloud across cloud providers. Documentation describes high availability and disaster recovery at node, data-center, and region levels. Linux installation packages are listed for Alibaba Cloud Linux, CentOS, Red Hat, Ubuntu, Debian, and Anolis OS. Docker deployment can be used on Windows and macOS, though the documentation cautions that this method has not been validated at scale. A standalone instance can be used for learning; production environments require at least three servers. Community Edition is free and includes full kernel capabilities. Enterprise pricing is available on request. Security features include role and permission management, network whitelists, encrypted communication, transparent data encryption, and SQL auditing, but Community Edition does not support security audit.
Pgpool-II
Pgpool-II is free, self-hosted middleware positioned between PostgreSQL servers and database clients. It relays PostgreSQL protocol messages, reuses matching server connections to reduce overhead, and distributes SELECT queries across replicated databases. High-availability functions include automatic failover, Watchdog, quorum, and split-brain prevention. Additional features include replication, online recovery, connection limiting, and an in-memory query cache. The project is available in binary and source formats, including RPM packages for Red Hat Enterprise Linux and compatible distributions; Debian and Ubuntu users are directed to PostgreSQL community packages. Authentication supports trust, clear-text password, MD5, SCRAM-SHA-256, certificates, PAM, and LDAP, but not GSSAPI. SSL can protect frontend and backend traffic when enabled; it is off by default and requires OpenSSL support. Community assistance is available through mailing lists and GitHub Issues, while SRA OSS K.K. offers commercial support, consulting, and integration. The license permits use, modification, copying, and distribution without a fee.