Oracle threw its own punches at Red Hat and Microsoft today by detailing expanding integration of its MySQL with Windows and Oracle's heftier databases in the 2011-12 timeframe.

In a webcast today, executives noted the expanded integration of the recently released MySQL 5.5 with Windows and outlined future plans for tighter integration with Windows installation and authentication systems as well as improved support for the Entity framework and tighter integration between the MySQL editor and Visual Studio GUI.

Windows -- not Linux -- is the No 1. MySQL platform, several execs said, noting that enterprises can leverage the LAMP [Linux-Apache-MySQL-PHP/Perl] stack for web applications across any application platform -- but Oracle chose to highlight Windows on this day.

Oracle execs, for example, pointed out that the performance of MySQL on Windows is now on par with MySQL on Linux. That can't be good news for the Red Hat clan.

"Windows is and will continue to be No. 1 for developers and deployment so we want to stay focused and make sure performance and scalability is top notch," said Tomas Ulin, MySQL vice president of engineering at Oracle, noting that both capabilities were improved in MySQL 5.5 but faster read/writes are planned over the next 12 to 18 months.

But even as it extolled Windows as an ideal platform for MySQL, and identified plans to increase integration between the two, Oracle also simultaneously took aim at Microsoft's SQL Server and Access databases.

Oracle plans to offer support for native Windows authentication to extend single sign-on to MySQL users and implement a Universal Windows Installer that offers a nice point-and-click GUI and speedier installation.

Authentication is coming soon and the Windows Unified Installer --which will allow users to download MySQL in four minutes -- is ready to release into beta testing, execs said. It currently takes about 15 minutes to download MySQL on Windows.

Oracle also plasn tighter integration with Microsoft's Entity frameworks and better ODBC driver connectors in 2011.

Oracle's homegrown Connector/Net 6.3 includes support for Visual Studio 2010 but the next version -- Connector/Net 6.4 -- will add the aforementioned capabilities to make integration with Microsoft's systems and tools seamless to end customers, Ulin said.

Oracle will also continue working on its Golden Gate technology, which will make it easier for users to exchange data quickly between MySQL and Oracle's higher-end databases. Oracle cited Ticketmaster as a customer that switched out its SQl Server databases for MySQL for lighter front end tasks, and kept its existing Oracle back end databases for fulfillment.

Some of the MySQL product integration with Oracle's products is done but much more is planned for Oracle's Fusion middleware suite, Oracle's Secure Backup and the Oracle Audit Vault, company execs said.

On the longer horizon, Oracle plans tight integration between MySQL and Oracle Enterprise Manager so that managing all of Oracle's products from one console is a "no brainer.

Ulin also said customers will also enjoy increased benefit of all-in-one 24 by 7 support from one vendor -- yet made no mention of some price increases that miffed some in the MySQL community.