title: Good method for archiving MYSQL table data?
body: <p>I recently inherited a website and they have a simple back-end area which was created using phpmaker. The back-end displays various MYSQL database tables.</p>
  
  <p>There are two tables which hold registration information related to promotions/contests the company runs online. The client wants to begin archiving the registration data monthly, but still have the data accessible for future export or review.</p>
  
  <p>So, can anyone tell me what the best approach would be to achieve this? I read about partitioning and <a href="http://www.maatkit.org/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Maatkit</a>, but I'm not sure which - if either - would be a smart choice.</p>
  
  <p>I would prefer to keep the table names the same because the table name is referenced in several instances within the PHP code running the promo/contest applications. I would also like for everything to be 'automatic' or at least executed at the click of a button; though I realize that might not be completely realistic.</p>
  
  <p>I should note that I <strong>do not</strong> have the phpmaker project file and have been unable to obtain it.</p>
  
  <p>Any help on this matter would be a great help.  </p>