Copy mysql_uninstallservice.bat and mysql_installservice.bat from xampp/mysql.old/ into xampp/mysql/.

Copy the xampp/mysql.old/scripts folder to xampp/mysql/.Copy the xampp/mysql.old/backup folder to xampp/mysql/.Copy the xampp/mysql.old/data folder (not just the contents) to xampp/mysql/data.Rename the MariaDB folder, called something like mariadb-5.5.37-win32, to mysql.Unzip the contents of the MariaDB ZIP file into your XAMPP folder.Rename the xampp/mysql folder to mysql.old.Shutdown your XAMPP server if it is running.Download the ZIP version of MariaDB making sure that the version matches as closely as possible to the version of MySQL you currently have installed.You can now exit the command prompt as the rest of the instructions can be done through Windows Explorer. This is the version of MariaDB that you will need. Take note of the version of MySQL you have installed.Enter the following command: mysql/bin/mysql -version.Do not do move instead of copy files in the instructions below as the original files may be required in order to back out and restore the original MySQL environment if it doesn't work out for you.

IMPORTANT: Before you begin, always be sure to make a good backup. No need to panic fellow developer, increased performance is perfectly normal and just one of the great benefits of MariaDB over MySQL. You may even notice a performance increase in your website. After completing this process, MariaDB will look and work just like MySQL. Here are the steps I used to to upgrad MySQL to MariaDB in XAMPP on Windows in about 5 minutes.

Xampp new version