Your DB needs sound more hardware intensive than anything. Your queries
sound simple and I would bet you would never need to use anything but
mysql. Also keep in mind that mysql/php/apache etc run on more than just
PC's. There is some serious hardware out there that can handle
unbelieveable amounts of traffic....of course non of it is intel based
:) If an Intel box can no longer handle the load, you can split your
servers so you have one running a web server and another handling the
DB, or simply move to some real hardware. (ie HP/Sun/IBM unix boxes).

Larry H.

Doug Schasteen wrote:
> 
> I've been programming PHP w/ mysql for almost 2 years now for my company. We develop 
>online testing and surveying software. We are currently running operations for a few 
>specific companies where maybe 20-30 tests will be taken online per day (it requires 
>pulling the test questions out of the database in random order, and then putting all 
>of their answers into the database at the end of the test.) This is currently running 
>on a shared webserver using php3 and mysql. Recently we've been talking about some 
>projects that will require a lot more use. (Could be 100 people taking a test at once 
>or it could be 1000 people taking a test at once. We don't know yet.)
> 
> If anyone has had some experience with upgrading as your operations grow, I'd 
>appreciate if you could answer ANY of the following questions:
> 
> 1. At what point will mysql blow up (how many tests could be taken at once? How many 
>rows of results could be stored in a table before it bogs down?)
> 
> 2. At what point will we need a dedicated server instead of shared-hosting?
> 
> 3. How fast of a server do we need? Will a 1ghz server outperform a 500mhz server 
>when using apache-php-mysql?
> 
> 4. If we need a new database, what is the next step above mysql? I have some 
>experience with Oracle but it is too expensive. Is there anything inbetween that is 
>friendly to PHP?
> 
> 5. If MS-SQL is an option for a database-upgrade. What are the implications of 
>switching our server to a win32-based server? Will we have problems with PHP on 
>windows when all of our scripts were programmed for unix?
> 
> I realize these are a lot of questions and that we probably need some consulting 
>work done, but if any of you could share your knowledge on any one of those topics I 
>would really appreciate it. I just need something to give me a head start in my 
>research. Point me in the right direction!
> 
> - Doug Schasteen
>   [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> 
> P.S. - if you know of any good articles online that compare different servers or 
>databases please share.

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