22.5. MySQL Connector/C

22.5.1. MySQL Connector/C Versions
22.5.2. MySQL Connector/C Supported Platforms
22.5.3. MySQL Connector/C Distribution Contents
22.5.4. Installing MySQL Connector/C
22.5.5. Building MySQL Connector/C Applications

MySQL Connector/C is a client library that implements the C API for client/server communication. It is a standalone replacement for the MySQL client library shipped with MySQL Server distributions. See Section 22.8.1, "MySQL C API Implementations".

Reasons to use MySQL Connector/C:

If you need only the client library, MySQL Connector/C provides everything required. There is no need to compile or install the MySQL Server package, which is much larger.
MySQL Connector/C does not rely on the MySQL Server release cycle. Bug fixes and new features can be distributed independently of MySQL Server releases.

For documentation of the C API implemented by MySQL Connector/C, see Section 22.8, "MySQL C API".

For release notes detailing the changes in each release of MySQL Connector/C, see MySQL Connector/C Release Notes.

The following discussion covers these topics:

MySQL Connector/C versions and supported platforms
MySQL Connector/C distribution contents
Obtaining and installing MySQL Connector/C
Building client programs that use MySQL Connector/C