Original php mysql extension for php56

Solution 1:

I've tried a few of the original mysql repos (remi, webtatic) and they install PDO (the new mysql module).

Looks like you have not checked properly.

With a proper configuration, following the Wizard you can install the mysql extension, and most existing extensions:

yum install php-mysql

The package name is php-mysqlnd and provides

• mysqlnd the MySQL Native driver
• mysql, the old deprecated extension
• mysqli, the new improved extension
• pdo_mysql, the PDO driver

You can check using:

$ php --modules | grep -i mysql
mysql
mysqli
mysqlnd
pdo_mysql

Of course I recommend to switch as soon as possible to mysqli to avoid being blocked to 5.6 which have reached its end of life, even if "remi" repository have some security backports.