Query runs slow, all threads are stacking for ages during peak time, application suddenly started run slower than before, ... This is long and not complete list of performance issues you can experiment. Are you curious why your MySQL installation does not work so fast as you wish to? I will discuss methods which help to find why this happens and give you direction how to solve one or another problem. I will prefer applications which come together with MySQL distribution as higher available, but don't stack with them and also discuss those great third-party tools which have not analogues. You will learn how to choose a method best suited for particular problem and effectively use it.