Installing MySQL on macOS with Homebrew

MySQL, macOS, Homebrew, Database, Installation, Configuration

Mon Mar 11 2024

Introduction

MySQL is a popular open-source relational database management system (RDBMS). It is widely used for web applications, data analysis, and other database-driven tasks. This blog post will guide you through the steps on how to install MySQL on macOS using Homebrew, a package manager for macOS.

Prerequisites

Before you begin, ensure you have the following:

macOS 10.15 or later
Homebrew installed. If you don't have Homebrew, you can install it by running the following command in Terminal:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Installing MySQL with Homebrew

To install MySQL using Homebrew, run the following command in Terminal:

brew install mysql

This command will install the MySQL server and client.

Starting the MySQL Service

Once MySQL is installed, you need to start the service. Run the following command in Terminal:

brew services start mysql

Setting the MySQL Password

By default, MySQL does not have a password set. To set a password, run the following command in Terminal:

mysql -u root -p

You will be prompted to enter the current password. Since you have not set a password yet, press Enter.

Next, you will be prompted to enter a new password. Enter a strong password and press Enter.

Confirm the password by entering it again and pressing Enter.

Testing the MySQL Installation

To test if MySQL is installed and running correctly, run the following command in Terminal:

mysql -u root -p

Enter the password you set earlier.

If you are able to connect to the MySQL server, you will see the MySQL prompt:

mysql>

You can now run MySQL commands to create databases, tables, and perform other database operations.

Configuring MySQL with Configuration File

Before starting the MySQL service, you can optionally configure MySQL using the configuration file. The configuration file is located at /usr/local/etc/my.cnf.

To edit the configuration file, run the following command in Terminal:

sudo nano /usr/local/etc/my.cnf

In the configuration file, you can set various options to customize MySQL's behavior. For example, you can change the default port, set the maximum number of connections, or enable slow query logging.

Here is an example configuration file:

[mysqld]
bind-address = 127.0.0.1
port = 3306
max_connections = 100
slow_query_log = 1
slow_query_log_file = /var/log/mysql/slow.log

In this example, we have set the following options:

bind-address: The IP address that MySQL will listen on.
port: The port that MySQL will listen on.
max_connections: The maximum number of connections that MySQL will allow.
slow_query_log: Enable slow query logging.
slow_query_log_file: The file where slow queries will be logged.

Once you have made your changes to the configuration file, save and close the file.

Conclusion

You have successfully installed MySQL on macOS using Homebrew. You have also started the MySQL service and set a password. Now you can start using MySQL to manage your databases.

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