How To Install MySQL on CentOS

MySQL is an open-source database management system, commonly installed as part of the popular LEMP (Linux, Nginx, MySQL/MariaDB, PHP/Python/Perl) stack. It uses a relational database and SQL (Structured Query Language) to manage its data.

CentOS prefers MariaDB by default, a fork of MySQL managed by the original MySQL developers and designed as a replacement for MySQL. If you run yum install mysql (or dnf install mysql on newer versions), it is MariaDB that is installed rather than MySQL. If you’re wondering about MySQL vs. MariaDB, MariaDB will generally work seamlessly in place of MySQL, so unless you have a specific use-case for MySQL, see the How To Install MariaDB on Centos 7 guide.

This tutorial will explain how to install MySQL version 8 on a CentOS or compatible RHEL-based server.

• MariaDB is the default database on CentOS. Installing MySQL via yum or dnf will install MariaDB by default, not Oracle MySQL.
• To install Oracle MySQL, use the official MySQL repository. Download and enable the MySQL Community Yum Repository to access official MySQL packages.
• Package managers differ by CentOS version. Use yum on CentOS 7 and dnf on CentOS 8/Stream 9 and newer RHEL-based distributions.
• Secure your installation. Run mysql_secure_installation after installation to set a root password and secure your MySQL server.

To follow this tutorial, you will need:

• A CentOS or RHEL-based server with a non-root user with sudo privileges. You can learn more about how to set up a user with these privileges in the Initial Server Setup with CentOS 7 guide for CentOS and other RHEL-based systems.

As mentioned in the introduction, running the Yum command to install MySQL will actually install MariaDB, not Oracle MySQL.

To install MySQL, you’ll need to visit the MySQL Community Yum Repository which provides the official MySQL packages.

CentOS 7 uses yum; CentOS Stream 9 and later use dnf. On newer CentOS versions, replace yum with dnf in the commands below. The repository package must match your system’s RHEL version (el7, el8, or el9).

In a web browser, visit:

https://dev.mysql.com/downloads/repo/yum/

Note that the prominent Download links don’t lead directly to the files. Instead, they lead to a subsequent page where you’re invited to log in or sign up for an account. If you don’t want to create an account, you can locate the text “No thanks, just start my download”, then right-click and copy the link location, or you can edit the version number in the commands below.

Locate the desired version, and update it as needed in the link below. The repository designation (el7, el8, or el9) corresponds to your OS: el7 for CentOS 7, el8 and el9 for newer releases. Select the matching repository for your system. Verify your release before selecting the repository package:

cat /etc/os-release

The example below uses an el7 package; on el8 or el9, download the matching repository package for your system.

curl -sSLO https://dev.mysql.com/get/mysql80-community-release-el7-5.noarch.rpm

Once the rpm file is saved, we will verify the integrity of the download by running md5sum and comparing it with the corresponding MD5 value listed on the site:

md5sum mysql80-community-release-el7-5.noarch.rpm

Output
e2bd920ba15cd3d651c1547661c60c7c  mysql80-community-release-el7-5.noarch.rpm

Compare this output with the appropriate MD5 value on the site:

Now that we’ve verified that the file wasn’t corrupted or changed, we’ll install the package:

sudo rpm -ivh mysql80-community-release-el7-5.noarch.rpm

This adds two new MySQL yum repositories, and we can now use them to install MySQL server:

sudo yum install mysql-server

sudo dnf install mysql-server

Press y to confirm that you want to proceed. Since we’ve just added the package, we’ll also be prompted to accept its GPG key. Press y to download it and complete the install.

We’ll start the daemon with the following command:

sudo systemctl start mysqld

systemctl doesn’t display the outcome of all service management commands, so to be sure we succeeded, we’ll use the following command:

sudo systemctl status mysqld

If MySQL has successfully started, the output should contain Active: active (running) and the final line should look something like:

Dec 01 19:02:20 centos-512mb-sfo2-02 systemd[1]: Started MySQL Server.

During the installation process, a temporary password is generated for the MySQL root user. Locate it in the mysqld.log with this command:

sudo grep 'temporary password' /var/log/mysqld.log

Output
2022-01-24T19:54:46.313728Z 6 [Note] [MY-010454] [Server] A temporary password is generated for root@localhost: mqRfBU_3Xk>r

Make note of the password, which you will need in the next step to secure the installation and where you will be forced to change it. The default password policy requires 12 characters, with at least one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one special character.

MySQL includes a security script to change some of the less secure default options for things like remote root logins and sample users.

Use this command to run the security script.

sudo mysql_secure_installation

This will prompt you for the default root password. As soon as you enter it, you will be required to change it.

Output
The existing password for the user account root has expired. Please set a new password.

New password:

Enter a new 12-character password that contains at least one uppercase letter, one lowercase letter, one number and one special character. Re-enter it when prompted.

You’ll receive feedback on the strength of your new password, and then you’ll be immediately prompted to change it again. Since you just did, you can confidently say No:

Output
Estimated strength of the password: 100
Change the password for root ? (Press y|Y for Yes, any other key for No) :

After we decline the prompt to change the password again, we’ll press Y and then ENTER to all the subsequent questions in order to remove anonymous users, disallow remote root login, remove the test database and access to it, and reload the privilege tables.

Now that we’ve secured the installation, let’s test it.

We can verify our installation and get information about it by connecting with the mysqladmin tool, a client that lets you run administrative commands. Use the following command to connect to MySQL as root (-u root), prompt for a password (-p), and return the version.

mysqladmin -u root -p version

You should see output similar to this:

mysqladmin  Ver 8.0.28 for Linux on x86_64 (MySQL Community Server - GPL)
Copyright (c) 2000, 2022, Oracle and/or its affiliates.

Oracle is a registered trademark of Oracle Corporation and/or its
affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective
owners.

Server version  8.0.28
Protocol version 10
Connection  Localhost via UNIX socket
UNIX socket   /var/lib/mysql/mysql.sock
Uptime:   3 min 2 sec

Threads: 2  Questions: 14  Slow queries: 0  Opens: 133  Flush tables: 3  Open tables: 49  Queries per second avg: 0.076

This indicates your installation has been successful.

Why does yum install MariaDB?
CentOS and other RHEL-based distributions ship the mysql package as a compatibility alias for MariaDB. Installing Oracle MySQL requires adding the official MySQL repository.

Can I use this tutorial on CentOS Stream?
Yes. Use dnf instead of yum and choose the repository package that matches your release (el8 or el9).

How do I check my CentOS version?
Run cat /etc/os-release to see your version and pick the correct el7, el8, or el9 repository.

Can MySQL and MariaDB run on the same server?
Running both on the same host is not recommended. They use the same client tools and port (3306) and can conflict; use one or the other per server.

In this tutorial, we’ve installed and secured MySQL on a CentOS server. To learn more about using MySQL, this guide to learning more about MySQL commands can help. You might also consider implementing some additional security measures.