In an era where online payments dominate the financial landscape, ensuring security, reliability, and compliance is crucial. WePay, the integrated payments arm of JPMorgan Chase, has taken significant strides to enhance its database infrastructure by upgrading to MySQL Enterprise Edition. This transition not only addresses the challenges of operating a robust payment system but also aligns with the company’s commitment to agility and compliance.
Navigating Business Challenges
Founded in 2008, WePay has built a strong foundation providing payments infrastructure for independent software vendors (ISVs) and platforms. As their user base grew, so did their data needs. With a monolithic database ballooning to 250 TB, the company recognized the need for a more flexible and resilient architecture. The imperative for uptime led WePay to adopt microservices running on MySQL database clusters, initiating their journey towards better performance and compliance.
Achievements with MySQL Enterprise Edition
The move to MySQL Enterprise Edition was a game changer for WePay. They gained improved database availability, scalability, and audit compliance. By utilizing global transaction identifiers (GTIDs) and Orchestrator, the team could swiftly detect failures and manage role transitions effectively, enhancing overall observability. This upgrade allowed site reliability engineers, who are restricted from accessing production databases due to PCI-DSS compliance, to monitor database performance without compromising security.
As Rich Steenburg, Senior Director of Engineering at WePay, noted, “If we didn’t have MySQL Enterprise Edition, I don’t think we would be able to satisfy these requirements and change as fast.”
In 2020, WePay embarked on a migration to MySQL Enterprise Edition, driven by the need for even greater security and monitoring capabilities.
Resource management tools in MySQL allowed WePay to optimize CPU utilization and control access based on team roles, ensuring compliance with the stringent separation of duties required in the payments industry. Moreover, MySQL Enterprise Audit’s automated, policy-based auditing features enabled WePay to manage the complex landscape of compliance seamlessly.
Confidence in Partnership
WePay’s choice of MySQL has been foundational to its success. The upgrade to Enterprise Edition, backed by Oracle’s MySQL Premier Support, ensures that WePay continues to offer a highly available and secure online payment infrastructure. Steenburg emphasizes the importance of having direct access to the engineering team responsible for their systems, highlighting that collaboration is critical to maintaining the integrity and reliability of their services.
Conclusion
WePay’s commitment to enhancing its database capabilities with MySQL Enterprise Edition demonstrates a proactive approach to tackling the challenges of the payments industry. As they continue to evolve, WePay stands as a testament to the importance of robust database management in driving business success and compliance in a fast-paced digital environment.
For businesses looking to optimize their payment infrastructure, the journey of WePay serves as an insightful case study on leveraging advanced database solutions for maximum uptime and security.
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