The MariaDB executables are found in the /usr/local/mysql/bin directory and since this directory has been newly created, it won't be in your PATH variable. Whenever you use any of the utilities in this directory you'll need to specify the full path.

To avoid doing this alter the PATH variable in the .bashrc file in your home directory. If the PATH variable already exists, append /usr/local/mysql/bin: to it. If not, add the following lines to .bashrc:

PATH=$PATH:/usr/local/mysql/bin:
export PATH

The next time you open a terminal window execute echo $PATH and confirm that /usr/local/mysql/bin is now included.

You probably want to start MariaDB automatically whenever your machine boots up. If you look at the INSTALL-BINARY file you'll be referred to Section 2.13.1.2, "Starting and Stopping MariaDB Automatically." You won't find this section in the INSTALL-BINARY file but no matter. The following instructions specify how to do this on Ubuntu 10.10.

To start MariaDB on reboot you need to create an initialization script in the /etc/init.d directory and make sure that it executes at the correct run levels. The script is ready made for you. It's called mysql.server and you'll find it in the /usr/local/mysql/support-files directory.

Here are the commands you need to copy mysql.server to /etc/init.d/mysql and make it executable:

shell> cd /usr/local/mysql/support-files
shell> sudo cp mysql.server /etc/init.d/mysql
shell> sudo chmod +x /etc/init.d/mysql

Next use the update-rc.d command to create the proper symlinks for the different run levels. Do this in the following way:

shell> sudo update-rc.d mysql defaults

If you are successful, you should see output like the following:

  Adding system startup for /etc/init.d/mysql ...
  /etc/rc0.d/K20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc1.d/K20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc6.d/K20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc2.d/S20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc3.d/S20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc4.d/S20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql
  /etc/rc5.d/S20mysql -> ../init.d/mysql

You can test that MariaDB starts automatically by rebooting and then running the client program, mysql—the server must be running in order for the client programme to connect to it. Since /usr/local/mysql/bin has been added to your path, you don't need to specify the full path to start up the client.

At this point the MariaDB server will start automatically on reboot but you still need to install the GRANT tables. To do this run the /usr/local/mysql/bin/mysql_secure_installation script with root privileges. This script requires interaction from the user.

The script first asks for root's password. Note that this is the root password for the database server not the operating system password. Currently there is no password for root so just press the enter key. You will then be asked whether you wish to give the root user a password. Since this is not a production server security considerations aren't paramount but giving the root user a password is a good idea. Make sure that you make note of this password. Allow remote access as you see fit. However, do remove the anonymous user—in some circumstances the existence of this user is not only insecure but confusing.

After running this script you'll find that you can no longer connect to the server by simply entering the command mysql. Try it and you should see output similar to the following:

ERROR 1045 (28000): Access denied for user 'username'@'localhost' ...

You'll have to specify a username and password. Start up the database client by entering: mysql --user root --password. If you created a password for the root user, enter it when prompted.

Once you're logged in enter the following commands.

MariaDB [(none)]> CREATE USER 'your_username'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)
MariaDB [(none)]> GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON *.* TO 'your_username'@'%';
Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.00 sec)

Note that you must have quotation marks around the username, the '%' sign and the password. These commands create a new user with the right to log in from any host. This can be very useful for transferring data from other nodes on your network. However, always specifying a password at the command line can become tedious. Creating a configuration file solves this problem.

You can avoid typing startup parameters by adding a configuration file called .my.conf to your home directory.

Using your favourite text editor, create a file named .my.cnf with the following contents:

#This section applies to all clients
[client]
user=your_name
password=your_password

      

You can now start the client programme by simply typing mysql at the command line. Depending upon your firewall settings, you should also be able to connect to the MariaDB server running on Ubuntu 10.10 from elsewhere on your local area network as long as the client programme, mysql, is installed on the remote system. To connect, go to the command line on your remote computer and enter mysql --host ubuntu1010_host --user username --password. You can use either the IP address or the host name for the host option. Enter your password when prompted.