MariaDB uses the same MySQL SQL syntax with additional features like common table expressions.
Row data along with indexes are stored directly in database files on disk for high performance.
Engines like InnoDB and Aria provide transaction support while MyISAM is optimized for selects.
MariaDB aims to increase standard compliance while MySQL focuses more on closed-source features.
Galera enables multi-master active-active replication across nodes for continuous availability.
Yes, JSON documents and other complex datatypes are now directly supported.
