Accessing mysql from Adobe flex/AIR

Question

Is it possible to directly access MySql databases through an Adobe AIR/Flex application?
If not, what is the next best alternative?

Answer 1

I'd have to disagree (though respectfully!) with Abdullah that building an ODBC client into AIR would "cause wierd problems and open up security issues" -- that's often how it's done (e.g., Java and .NET, both of whose runtimes package various ODBC clients) -- but both posters are right: the only way's coding some sort of a service interface into your AIR application (using Flex classes like WebService, HTTPService, and so on) and a complementary server-side interface (e.g., REST via PHP, which would then connect up with your MySQL database). For simple apps, it can be a bit of a pain, but for the moment, that's all we gots. :)

Best of luck!

Answer 2

I haven't tried yes but there are some projects to implement a native driver in AS3 to connect to mysql server. In the end it's just a socket connection and AIR applications are allowed to open socket. Have a look at http://code.google.com/p/assql/