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5.5.4 Connecting to the MySQL Server
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MySQL client programs generally expect you to specify connection
parameters when you want to access a MySQL server:
* The name of the host where the MySQL server is running
* Your username
* Your password
For example, the `mysql' client can be started as follows from a
command-line prompt (indicated here by `shell>'):
shell> mysql -h HOST_NAME -u USER_NAME -pYOUR_PASS
Alternate forms of the `-h', `-u', and `-p' options are
`--host=HOST_NAME', `--user=USER_NAME', and `--password=YOUR_PASS'.
Note that there is _no space_ between `-p' or `--password=' and the
password following it.
If you use a `-p' or `--password' option but do not specify the
password value, the client program will prompt you to enter the
password. The password is not displayed as you enter it. This is more
secure than giving the password on the command line. Any user on your
system may be able to see a password specified on the command line by
executing a command such as `ps auxww'. Password security.
MySQL client programs use default values for any connection parameter
option that you do not specify:
* The default hostname is `localhost'.
* The default username is `ODBC' on Windows and your Unix login name
on Unix.
* No password is supplied if `-p' is missing.
Thus, for a Unix user with a login name of `joe', all of the following
commands are equivalent:
shell> mysql -h localhost -u joe
shell> mysql -h localhost
shell> mysql -u joe
shell> mysql
Other MySQL clients behave similarly.
You can specify different default values to be used when you make a
connection so that you need not enter them on the command line each
time you invoke a client program. This can be done in a couple of ways:
* You can specify connection parameters in the `[client]' section of
an option file. The relevant section of the file might look like
this:
[client]
host=HOST_NAME
user=USER_NAME
password=YOUR_PASS
Option files are discussed further in Option files.
* You can specify some connection parameters using environment
variables. The host can be specified for `mysql' using
`MYSQL_HOST'. The MySQL username can be specified using `USER'
(this is for Windows and NetWare only). The password can be
DONTPRINTYET specified using `MYSQL_PWD', although this is insecure; see
Password security. For a list of variables, see *Note
DONTPRINTYET specified using `MYSQL_PWD', although this is insecure; see
Password security. For a list of variables, see
Environment variables.
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