2.9. Post-Installation Setup and Testing
After installing MySQL, there are some issues that you should
address. For example, on Unix, you should initialize the data
directory and create the MySQL grant tables. On all platforms, an
important security concern is that the initial accounts in the
grant tables have no passwords. You should assign passwords to
prevent unauthorized access to the MySQL server. Optionally, you
can create time zone tables to enable recognition of named time
zones.
The following sections include post-installation procedures that
are specific to Windows systems and to Unix systems. Another
section, Section 2.9.2.3, “Starting and Troubleshooting the MySQL Server”, applies to all
platforms; it describes what to do if you have trouble getting the
server to start. Section 2.9.3, “Securing the Initial MySQL Accounts”, also
applies to all platforms. You should follow its instructions to
make sure that you have properly protected your MySQL accounts by
assigning passwords to them.
When you are ready to create additional user accounts, you can
find information on the MySQL access control system and account
management in Section 5.7, “The MySQL Access Privilege System”, and
Section 5.8, “MySQL User Account Management”.
