W3cubDocs

/MariaDB

mysql_install_db

mysql_install_db initializes the MariaDB data directory and creates the system tables in the mysql database, if they do not exist. MariaDB uses these tables to manage privileges, roles, and plugins. It also uses them to provide the data for the help command in the mysql client.

mysql_install_db works by starting MariaDB Server's mysqld process in --bootstrap mode and sending commands to create the system tables and their content.

There is a version specifically for Windows, mysql_install_db.exe.

From MariaDB 10.4.6, mariadb-install-db is a symlink to mysql_install_db.

Using mysqld_install_db

To invoke mysql_install_db, use the following syntax:

$ mysql_install_db [options]

Because the MariaDB server, mysqld, needs to access the data directory when it runs later, you should either run mysql_install_db from the same account that will be used for running mysqld or run it as root and use the --user option to indicate the user name that mysqld will run as. It might be necessary to specify other options such as --basedir or --datadir if mysql_install_db does not use the correct locations for the installation directory or data directory. For example:

$ scripts/mysql_install_db --user=mysql \
   --basedir=/opt/mysql/mysql \
   --datadir=/opt/mysql/mysql/data

Options

mysql_install_db supports the following options:

Option	Description
`--auth-root-authentication-method={normal \| socket}`	If set to `normal`, it creates a `root@localhost` account that authenticates with the `mysql_native_password` authentication plugin and that has no initial password set, which can be insecure. If set to `socket`, it creates a `root@localhost` account that authenticates with the `unix_socket` authentication plugin. Set to `socket` by default from MariaDB 10.4 (see Authentication from MariaDB 10.4), or `normal` by default in earlier versions. Available since MariaDB 10.1.
`--auth-root-socket-user=USER`	Used with `--auth-root-authentication-method=socket`. It specifies the name of the second account to create with `SUPER` privileges in addition to `root`, as well as of the system account allowed to access it. Defaults to the value of `--user`.
`--basedir=path`	The path to the MariaDB installation directory.
`--builddir=path`	If using `--srcdir` with out-of-directory builds, you will need to set this to the location of the build directory where built files reside.
`--cross-bootstrap`	For internal use. Used when building the MariaDB system tables on a different host than the target.
`--datadir=path`, `--ldata=path`	The path to the MariaDB data directory.
`--defaults-extra-file=name`	Read this file after the global files are read. Must be given as the first option.
`--defaults-file=name`	Only read default options from the given file name Must be given as the first option.
`--defaults-group-suffix=name`	In addition to the given groups, read also groups with this suffix. From MariaDB 10.1.31, MariaDB 10.2.13 and MariaDB 10.3.5.
`--force`	Causes `mysql_install_db` to run even if DNS does not work. In that case, grant table entries that normally use host names will use IP addresses.
`--no-defaults`	Don't read default options from any option file. Must be given as the first option.
`--print-defaults`	Print the program argument list and exit. Must be given as the first option.
`--rpm`	For internal use. This option is used by RPM files during the MariaDB installation process.
`--skip-auth-anonymous-user`	Do not create the anonymous user.
`--skip-name-resolve`	Uses IP addresses rather than host names when creating grant table entries. This option can be useful if your DNS does not work.
`--skip-test-db`	Don't install the test database.
`--srcdir=path`	For internal use. The path to the MariaDB source directory. This option uses the compiled binaries and support files within the source tree, useful for if you don't want to install MariaDB yet and just want to create the system tables. The directory under which `mysql_install_db` looks for support files such as the error message file and the file for populating the help tables.
`--user=user_name`	The login user name to use for running `mysqld`. Files and directories created by `mysqld` will be owned by this user. You must be `root` to use this option. By default, `mysqld` runs using your current login name and files and directories that it creates will be owned by you.
`--verbose`	Verbose mode. Print more information about what the program does.
`--windows`	For internal use. This option is used for creating Windows distributions.

Option Files

In addition to reading options from the command-line, mysql_install_db can also read options from option files. If an unknown option is provided to mysql_install_db in an option file, then it is ignored.

The following options relate to how MariaDB command-line tools handles option files. They must be given as the first argument on the command-line:

Option	Description
`--print-defaults`	Print the program argument list and exit.
`--no-defaults`	Don't read default options from any option file.
`--defaults-file=#`	Only read default options from the given file #.
`--defaults-extra-file=#`	Read this file after the global files are read.
`--defaults-group-suffix=#`	In addition to the default option groups, also read option groups with this suffix.

Option Groups

mysql_install_db reads options from the following option groups from option files:

Group	Description
`[mysql_install_db]`	Options read by `mysqld_safe`, which includes both MariaDB Server and MySQL Server.

mysql_install_db also reads options from the following server option groups from option files:

Group	Description
`[mysqld]`	Options read by `mysqld`, which includes both MariaDB Server and MySQL Server.
`[server]`	Options read by MariaDB Server.
`[mysqld-X.Y]`	Options read by a specific version of `mysqld`, which includes both MariaDB Server and MySQL Server. For example, `[mysqld-5.5]`.
`[mariadb]`	Options read by MariaDB Server.
`[mariadb-X.Y]`	Options read by a specific version of MariaDB Server.
`[client-server]`	Options read by all MariaDB client programs and the MariaDB Server. This is useful for options like socket and port, which is common between the server and the clients.
`[galera]`	Options read by a galera-capable MariaDB Server. Available on systems compiled with Galera support.

Installing System Tables

Installing System Tables From a Source Tree

If you have just compiled MariaDB from source, and if you want to use mysql_install_db from your source tree, then that can be done without having to actually install MariaDB. This is very useful if you want to test your changes to MariaDB without disturbing any existing installations of MariaDB.

To do so, you would have to provide the --srcdir option. For example:

./scripts/mysql_install_db --srcdir=. --datadir=path-to-temporary-data-dir

Installing System Tables From a Binary Tarball

If you install a binary tarball package in a non standard path, like your home directory, and if you already have a MariaDB / MySQL package installed, then you may get conflicts with the default /etc/my.cnf. This often results in permissions errors.

One possible solution is to use the --no-defaults option, so that it does not read any option files. For example:

./scripts/mysql_install_db --no-defaults --basedir=. --datadir=data

Another possible solution is to use the defaults-file option, so that you can specify your own option file. For example:

./scripts/mysql_install_db --defaults-file=~/.my.cnf

User Accounts Created by Default

MariaDB starting with 10.4

In MariaDB 10.4 and later, mysql_install_db sets --auth-root-authentication-method=socket by default. When this is set, the default root@localhost user account is created with the ability to use two authentication plugins:

First, it is configured to try to use the unix_socket authentication plugin. This allows the the root@localhost user to login without a password via the local Unix socket file defined by the socket system variable, as long as the login is attempted from a process owned by the operating system root user account.
Second, if authentication fails with the unix_socket authentication plugin, then it is configured to try to use the mysql_native_password authentication plugin.

The definition of the default root@localhost user account is:

CREATE USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED VIA unix_socket OR mysql_native_password USING 'invalid';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON *.* TO 'root'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;
GRANT PROXY ON ''@'%' TO 'root'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;

Since mysql_install_db sets --auth-root-authentication-method=socket by default, the following additional user accounts are not created by default:

[email protected]
root@::1
root@${current_hostname}

However, an additional user account that is defined by the --auth-root-socket-user option is created. If this option is not set, then the value defaults to the value of the --user option. On most systems, the --user option will use the value of mysql by default, so this additional user account would be called mysql@localhost.

The definition of this mysql@localhost user account is similar to the root@localhost user account:

CREATE USER 'mysql'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED VIA unix_socket OR mysql_native_password USING 'invalid';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON *.* TO 'mysql'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;

An invalid password is initially set for both of these user accounts. This means that before a password can be used to authenticate as either of these user accounts, the accounts must first be given a valid password by executing the SET PASSWORD statement.

For example, here is an example of setting the password for the root@localhost user account immediately after installation:

$ sudo yum install MariaDB-server
$ sudo systemctl start mariadb
$ sudo mysql
...
MariaDB> SET PASSWORD = PASSWORD('XH4VmT3_jt');

You may notice in the above example that the mysql command-line client is executed via sudo. This allows the root@localhost user account to successfully authenticate via the unix_socket authentication plugin.

MariaDB until 10.3

In MariaDB 10.3 and before, mysql_install_db sets --auth-root-authentication-method=normal by default. When this is set, the following default accounts are created with no password:

root@localhost
[email protected]
root@::1
root@${current_hostname}

The definition of the default root@localhost user account is:

CREATE USER 'root'@'localhost';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON *.* TO 'root'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;
GRANT PROXY ON ''@'%' TO 'root'@'localhost' WITH GRANT OPTION;

The definition of the other default root accounts is similar.

A password should be set for these user accounts immediately after installation. This can be done either by executing the SET PASSWORD statement or by running mysql_secure_installation.

For example, here is an example of setting the password for the root@localhost user account immediately after installation:

$ sudo yum install MariaDB-server
$ sudo systemctl start mariadb
$ mysql -u root
...
MariaDB> SET PASSWORD = PASSWORD('XH4VmT3_jt');

Since mysql_install_db sets --auth-root-authentication-method=normal by default, the --auth-root-socket-user option is ignored by default.

Troubleshooting Issues

Checking the Error Log

If mysql_install_db fails, you should examine the error log in the data directory, which is the directory specified with --datadir option. This should provide a clue about what went wrong.

Testing With mysqld

You can also test that this is not a general fault of MariaDB Server by trying to start the mysqld process. The -skip-grant-tables option will tell it to ignore the system tables. Enabling the general query log can help you determine what queries are being run on the server. For example:

mysqld --skip-grant-tables --general-log

At this point, you can use the mysql client to connect to the mysql database and look at the system tables. For example:

$ /usr/local/mysql/bin/mysql -u root mysql
MariaDB [mysql]> show tables

Using a Server Compiled With --disable-grant-options

The following only apply in the exceptional case that you are using a mysqld server which is configured with the --disable-grant-options option:

mysql_install_db needs to invoke mysqld with the --bootstrap and --skip-grant-tables options. A MariaDB configured with the --disable-grant-options option has --bootstrap and --skip-grant-tables disabled. To handle this case, set the MYSQLD_BOOTSTRAP environment variable to the full path name of a mysqld server that is configured without --disable-grant-options. mysql_install_db will use that server.