CloudSQL GUI client plugin for web application?

[Anna Nevison]

Hi everyone,

Looking for some recommendations. I created a web application and it runs using a CloudSQL database. I wanted to add to the web application an admin screen that would allow for an admin to have direct access to alter, view, download, etc. the raw database information. I was looking into some GUIs that are available for SQL and RazorSQL is a pretty good idea of what I was hoping to have embedded in my application. RazorSQL is pricey though, I am not sure if I can use it on GAE as a plugin, and my CloudSQL database needs to be HIPPA compliant so I do not want anything that would connect to my database and send the info elsewhere.. Does anyone have any recommendations on (preferably open source) plugins or codes that I could put in my app to allow me to do something like this?

Thanks for any help!

[Harmit Rishi (Cloud Platform Support)]

Hi, 

Based on what you have described, it seems you are looking for some admin / reporting tools. As far Cloud SQL is concerned, I was able to find a third party application called MySQL Workbench. You may find the official guide for using this tool with Cloud SQL here. I am not sure if the MySQL workbench is open sourced. However, it is one of the tools listed on our documentation for administration operations. You may feel free to explore the possibility of embedding this application into your code.  

In regards to your concerns with HIPAA, there is a Enterprise Edition of the workbench called: MySQL Enterprise Edition. My research into the MySQL documentation indicates that this edition has a Enterprise Audit feature. You may find further information about this third party product here. 

Lastly, it would be a good idea to check our documentation for best practices regarding securing cloud databases here. Also, there is some HIPAA compliance documentation provided to our customers that could be of some use to you.

I hope this helps!

[David Skinner]

My experience is more with GLBA compliance than HIPAA, but I must respectfully suggest that direct access to the database could violate the integrity of the database. perhaps what you need is an admin directory with restricted access which contains simple custom forms for browsing and editing records that maintains logs, version history. and referential integrity. I know that with Go, it is fairly simple to create a dynamic form based upon the current structure of a table that uses RPC for updates. I would be glad to assist if need be.