Migrating MySQL 8 Databases to VMware PostgreSQL: Tools and Workarounds

Products

• VMware Tanzu Data Suite
• VMware Tanzu for Postgres

Issue/Introduction

Customers using VMware PostgreSQL seek guidance on migrating application databases from MySQL version 8 to VMware PostgreSQL.​

Environment

• Target: All supported versions of VMware PostgreSQL.​
• Source: MySQL version 8.x.

Cause

Currently, Broadcom provides no official, supported tool for direct MySQL-to-VMware PostgreSQL migration.​

Resolution

Broadcom plans to include the pgloader tool in future VMware PostgreSQL releases for streamlined MySQL migrations.​ Subscribe to this KB for updates on official support and release timelines.

Workarounds

• Primary Option: Deploy open-source pgloader, which automates MySQL-to-PostgreSQL migration, including schema creation, data loading, indexes, and constraints via a single configuration file.​
• Example command: pgloader mysql://user:pass@mysqlhost/dbname postgresql://user:pass@postgreshost/dbname
• Handles common MySQL-to-Postgres type mappings (e.g., TINYINT to BOOLEAN, ENUM to TEXT).
• Commercial Alternatives: Migrate MySQL to PostgreSQL
• Manual Approach: Export MySQL schema/data via mysqldump, convert DDL manually or with pg_dump compatible scripts, then load into PostgreSQL using COPY or psql
• Before proceeding, test in a non-production environment and validate application compatibility post-migration.​

Additional Information

References

Tanzu for Postgres Documentation

pgloader’s documentation