Trust & Technical Transparency

Security, Backups, Data Retention & Support

Developers need to know exactly how their database host handles security, backups, storage quotas, and retention before committing a project. Below is our exact production architecture—publishing only capabilities that are actively implemented.

1. Database Security & Isolation

  • Strict Per-Database User Isolation: Every database is provisioned with its own dedicated MySQL 8.0 user granted privileges exclusively on `your_db_name`.*. Cross-database access is blocked at the MySQL privilege layer.
  • TLS / SSL Encrypted Connections: Port 3306 supports TLS encryption with MySQL 8 caching_sha2_password authentication. Authenticated users can download our ca.pem Certificate Authority bundle from the dashboard.
  • Encrypted Control Plane Storage: Database passwords stored in the FreeDB dashboard database are encrypted at rest using Laravel's AES-256-CBC encryption cast.
  • Separated Host Infrastructure: Pro Persistent databases run on pro.freedb.tech, isolated from Free Sandbox workloads on sql.freedb.tech.

2. Backup & Recovery Policy

  • Daily Automated Backups (Pro & Dedicated): Every day at 02:00 UTC, our scheduler runs mysqldump --single-transaction --quick across all non-empty Pro and Dedicated databases and compresses each snapshot with gzip -9.
  • 5-Day Rolling Retention: Up to 5 automated daily .sql.gz backups are retained per database and can be downloaded anytime from your dashboard.
  • On-Demand Manual Snapshots: Pro users can trigger an immediate snapshot before schema changes using the Take Backup Now button in the dashboard.
  • Pre-Deletion Safety Snapshot: When a Pro user deletes a non-empty database from the dashboard, a final .sql.gz backup is automatically captured and kept in your Backups list.
  • Free Sandbox Tier: Automated backups are not included on the Free Sandbox plan; Free users can export manually via phpMyAdmin or mysqldump.

3. Data Retention & Lifecycle

  • Pro & Dedicated Databases: Never expire while your subscription is active (expires_at = NULL).
  • Free Sandbox Databases: Automatically expire and are dropped 30 days after creation. Automated email reminders are sent before deletion, and an urgent banner appears in your dashboard 24 hours prior.
  • Subscription Cancellation Grace Period: If you cancel a Pro subscription, your databases remain persistent until the end of your paid billing period. After the billing period ends, databases receive a 30-day expiration timer rather than immediate deletion.
  • Over-Quota Protection (Non-Destructive): Exceeding 100 MB (Free) or 1 GB (Pro) never triggers automatic data deletion. Write privileges (INSERT/UPDATE/CREATE) are paused hourly while SELECT/DELETE/DROP remain enabled until usage is back under quota.

4. Service Availability & Support

  • 24/7 Automated Monitoring: Storage enforcement, expired sandbox cleanup, and daily backup jobs run on automated schedules with failure logging.
  • Built-In Diagnostics: Every database card in the dashboard includes a live Test Connection button that performs a real TCP + MySQL authentication handshake and reports latency in milliseconds.
  • Web & Direct Management: Manage schemas via phpMyAdmin, the built-in dashboard SQL Console, or any standard MySQL 8 client.
  • Direct Engineering Support: Reach our team via our support form or support@freedb.tech. Pro and Dedicated subscribers receive prioritized response handling.
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