Installing MySQL

1. You need to download MySQL. Go to www.mysql.com and follow the instructions. Read the terms and conditions for downloading the software. You might want to create a Downloads folder (version tested was 3.23.55).

2. You will need to extract the files using WinZip. If you need this program, it can be downloaded from www.winzip.com. You might want to create a new folder for the MySQL files as well. This is not the folder to which you will install MySQL.

3. Double-click to run the file setup.exe. You will be presented with a sequence of windows. You will be asked to confirm or enter a new name for the destination folder for MySQL. The default name is C:\mysql. You also will be asked to choose Typical, Compact, or Custom types of Setup. Choose Typical. Click Next, and then click Finish.

4. The extracted files contain a Windows program to configure MySQL: winmysqladmin.exe. You can find it in the bin subfolder of the MySQL folder. Double-click on the icon. You will see a panel titled WinMySqladmin Quick Setup and textboxes to enter a username and a password. The default user name is root. Since, presumably, this is your home computer, you can use a simple password such as 12345— this choice is up to you. Click OK. This creates a my.ini file. You can examine and change the settings for this as you learn more advanced MySQL.

   Tip

   If you made a mistake or forget the password, you can force WinMySqladmin to show you the Quick Setup window again by finding the my.ini file and renaming it.

5. To test MySQL, click on Start, select Run, and type in a command. You will see the command prompt screen. Change the directory to mysql\bin by entering cd .. twice, and then cd mysql, followed by cd bin.

6. You can now start MySQL by typing in mysql. You will get a greeting, starting with Welcome to MySql monitor… Refer to Chapter 8, “Database Management Systems: MySQL and Access,” for sample commands to create databases, create tables, insert records, and so on. Keep in mind that the practice in the text was to create MySQL databases in command mode and then use PHP scripts to create the tables. You can create the tables in stand-alone mode as well.