Specifications

Using MySQL
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ART II
246
In this chapter, we’ll cover some more advanced MySQL topics including advanced privileges,
security, and optimization.
The topics we’ll cover are
• Understanding the privilege system in detail
• Making your MySQL database secure
• Getting more information about databases
• Speeding things up with indexes
• Optimization tips
• Different table types
Understanding the Privilege System in Detail
Previously (in Chapter 8, “Creating Your Web Database”) we looked at setting up users and
granting them privileges. We did this with the GRANT command. If you’re going to administer a
MySQL database, it can be useful to understand exactly what GRANT does and how it works.
When you issue a GRANT statement, it affects tables in the special database called mysql.
Privilege information is stored in five tables in this database. Given this, when granting privi-
leges on databases, you should be cautious about granting access to the mysql database.
One side note is that the GRANT command is only available from MySQL version 3.22.11
onward.
We can look at what’s in the mysql database by logging in as an administrator and typing
use mysql;
If you do this, you can then view the tables in this database by typing
show tables;
as usual.
The results you get will look something like this:
+-----------------+
| Tables in mysql |
+-----------------+
| columns_priv |
| db |
| host |
| tables_priv |
| user |
+-----------------+
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