Unit-1

Concepts

Client/Server

1- Explain the General MySQL

Client Server Architecture.
Answer- MySQL operates in a
networked environment using
client/server architecture. In
other words, a central program
acts as a server, and various
client programs connect to the
server to make requests. A MySQL
installation has the following
major
components:
MySQL
Server, Client programs and
MySQL non client utilities.
MySQL Server

MySQL Server, or mysqld, is the

database server program. The
server manages access to the
actual database (schema) on disk
and in memory. MySQL Server is
multi-threaded and supports
many
simultaneous
client
connections. Clients can connect
via several connection protocols.
For managing database contents,
the MySQL server features a
modular architecture.
Client Programs
These are programs that are used
for communicating with the
server
to
manipulate
the
databases. MySQL AB provides

following client programs:

MySQL Query Browser
and
MySQL
Administrator
are
graphical interfaces to
the server.
mysql is a commandline program that acts
as a text-based front
end for the server.
Other command-line
clients include mysql
import for importing
data files, mysqldump
for making backups,
mysql admin for server
administration,
and

mysqlcheck
for
checking the integrity
of the database files.

MySQL Client/Server Model

MySQL runs on many varieties of
Windows, Unix, and Linux. But
client/server communication is

not limited to environments

where all computers run the
same operating system. Client
programs can connect to a server
running on the same host or a
different host, and the client and
server host need not have the
same operating system. For
example, client programs can be
used on Windows to connect to a
server that is running on Linux.
2- What are MySQL client
programs and how to run
them? Explain with suitable
examples.
Answer-

Client Programs
These are programs that are used
for communicating with the
server
to
manipulate
the
databases. MySQL AB provides
following client programs:
MySQL Query Browser
and
MySQL
Administrator: MySQL
Workbench provides
DBAs and developers
an integrated tools
environment for:
Database Design
&Modeling
SQL Development

Database
Administration
Database
Migration
mysql:mysql is one of
the
MySQL
client
programs. It is a
command-line program
that acts as a textbased front end for the
MySQL Server. It's used
for issuing queries and
viewing the results
interactively from a
terminal window.
To determine the options
supported by a MySQL

program, invoke it with the

--help option.
shell>mysql help
to connect to the server use
the default hostname and
username values with no
password as follows:
shell>mysql
After successful connection,
you can select or change
the default database while
running mysql, issue a USE
db_name statement, where
db_name is the name of
the database you'd like to
use.
The

following

statement

makes world the default

database:
mysql> USE world;
You can get current
database name like below:
mysql>
SELECT
database();
To
get
all
available
databases,
run
the
following command:
mysql>
SHOW
databases;
Other
clients

command-line

mysql import for

importing
files

data

mysqldump for
making backups
mysql admin for
server
administration,
and
mysqlcheck for
checking
the
integrity of the
database files.

Unit-2
MySQL
Program

Client

1- What are the two modes of

interaction of MySQL Client
Program? Write down the
differences between the two
modes.
Answer- mysql is a generalpurpose client program for
issuing queries and retrieving
their results. It can be used
interactively or in batch mode to
read queries from a file.
To invoke mysql interactively
from the command line, specify
any
necessary
connection

parameters after the command

name:
shell>mysql
user_name
host_name

-p

-u
-h

You can also provide a database

name to select that database as
the default database:
shell>mysql
user_name
-p
host_namedb_name

-u
-h

Batch mode is useful for running

queries
that
have
been
prewritten and stored in a file
called script file. Its especially
valuable for issuing a complex
series of queries thats difficult to

enter manually, or queries that

need to be run automatically by a
job scheduler without user
intervention.
To process a script file is by
executing
it
with
a SOURCE command from
within mysql:
mysql>
input_file;

SOURCE

Notice that there are no quotes

around the name of the file.
mysql executes the queries in the
file and displays any output
produced.
The file must be located on the

client
host
where
youre
running mysql. The filename
must either be an absolute
pathname listing the full name of
the file For example, if you
started mysql on a Windows
machine in the C:\mysql directory
and
your
script
file
is
my_commands.sql
in
the C:\scripts directory, both of
the following SOURCE commands
tell mysql to execute the SQL
statements in the file:

mysql>
SOURCE
C:\scripts\my_commands.sq

mysql>
SOURCE
..\scripts\my_commands.sq

2- What
are
statement
terminators in MySQL? Explain
various options for statement
terminators in MySQL with
suitable examples.
A terminator is necessary after
each
statement
because mysql allows several
queries to be entered on a single
input line. There are several
terminators to end a statement.
Two
terminators
are
the
semicolon character (;) and
the
\g
sequence.
Theyre
equivalent and may be used
interchangeably:
mysql>
SELECT
VERSION(), DATABASE();

+----------------+------------+
| VERSION()
DATABASE() |

+----------------+------------+
|
5.0.10-beta-log
world
|

+----------------+------------+
mysql>
SELECT
VERSION(), DATABASE()\g
+----------------+------------+
| VERSION()
DATABASE() |

+----------------+------------+
|
5.0.10-beta-log
world
|

+----------------+------------+
The \G sequence also terminates
queries, but causes mysql to
display query results in a vertical
style that shows each output row
with each column value on a
separate line:
mysql>
SELECT
VERSION(), DATABASE()\G

*************************
1.
row

*************************
VERSION():
log

5.0.10-beta-

DATABASE(): world
The \G terminator is especially
useful if a query produces very
wide output lines because
vertical format can make the
result much easier to read.
If you are using mysql to define a
stored routine or a trigger that
uses compound statement syntax
and
consists
of
multiple
statements, the definition will
contain semicolons internally. In
this case, it is necessary to
redefine the ; terminator to

cause mysql to pass semicolons

in the definition to the server
rather than interpreting them
itself.

3- What
are
MySQL(Client)
Commands? What are long
form and short form for them?.
Answer- When you issue an SQL
statement while running mysql,
the program sends the statement
to the MySQL server to be
executed. SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE,
and DELETE are examples of this
type of input. mysql also
understands a number of its own
commands that arent SQL
statements.
The
QUIT
and SOURCE commands that

have already been discussed are

examples of mysql commands.
Another example is STATUS,
which displays information about
the current connection to the
server, as well as status
information about the server
itself. Here is what a status
display might look like:
mysql>

STATUS;

A full list of mysql commands can

be
obtained
using
the HELP command.mysql comman
have both a long form and a
short form. The long form is a full
word (such as SOURCE, STATUS,
or HELP). The short form consists

of a backslash followed by a
single character (such as \., \s,
or \h). The long forms may be
given in any lettercase. The short
forms are case sensitive.
4- What are the different types of
Output Formats in MySQL?
How will you change your
output from default format to
another format?
AnswerBy
default, mysql produces output
in one of two formats, depending
on whether you use it in
interactive or batch mode:

1. When
invoked
interactively, mysql displ

query output in a
tabular format that
uses bars and dashes
to display values lined
up in boxed columns.
2. When
you
invoke mysql with a
file as its input source
on
the
command
line, mysql runs in
batch mode with query
output displayed using
tab
characters
between data values.
To override the default output
format, use these options:
a. --batch or -B

Produce batch mode (tabdelimited) output, even

when running interactively.
b. --table or -t
Produce tabular output
format, even when running
in batch mode.
In batch mode, you can use the -raw or -r option to suppress
conversion of characters such as
newline and carriage return to
escape-sequences
such
as \n or \r. In raw mode, the
characters are printed literally.
To select an output format
different from either of the
default formats, use these

options:
c. --html or -H
Produce output in HTML
format.
d. --xml or -X
Produce output
format.

in

XML

5- What is -safe--update option

MySQL? What are its effects on
MySQL statements?
AnswerIts
possible
to
inadvertently issue statements
that modify many rows in a table
or that return extremely large
result
sets.
The
--safeupdates option helps prevent

these problems. The option is

particularly useful for people who
are just learning to use MySQL. -safe-updates has the following
effects:
UPDATE and DELETE stat
are allowed only if
they
include
a WHERE clause that
specifically identifies
which
records
to
update or delete by
means of a key value,
or if they include
a LIMIT clause.
Output from singletable SELECT statements
is restricted to no

more than 1,000 rows

unless the statement
includes a LIMIT clause.
Multipletable SELECT statements
are allowed only if
MySQL will examine no
more than 1,000,000
rows to process the
query.
The --i-am-a-dummy option is
a synonym for --safe-updates.

Unit-3
Architecture

MySQL

1- What is difference among

mysqld,
mysqladmin,
mysqldump, mysqlimport and
mysqlcheck?
Answermysqld
"mysqld" is MySQL server
daemon program which runs
quietly in background on your
computer
system.
Invoking
"mysqld" will start the MySQL
server
on
your
system.
Terminating
"mysqld"
will
shutdown the MySQL server. Here

is an example of invoking
"mysqld" with the "--console"
option:
>cd \mysql\bin
>mysqld --console

mysqladmin
mysqladmin is a client tool
program for database server
administrators to manage a
MySQL server remotely. The
syntax to run mysqladmin is:
\mysql\bin\mysqladmin
[options]
command
[command-arg]
It support a number of commonly
used commands like:

"mysqladmin shutdown"
Shuts down the server.

"mysqladmin
ping"
Checks if the server
alive or not.

is

"mysqladmin
status"
Displays
several
important server status
values.
"mysqladmin
Displays
information
server.

version"
version
of
the

"mysqladmin
create
databaseName" - Creates a
new database.
"mysqladmin
drop
databaseName" - Drops an
existing database.

Mysqldump
Mysqldump is part of the mysql
relational database package
which allows you to "dump" a
database, or a collection of
databases,
for
backup
or
transferral to another SQL server.
The server that imports the
databases does not have to be
mysql.
The typical way to
mysqldump is one of
following commands:

use
the

mysqldump
[options]
db_name [tables]
mysqldump

[options]

--

databases
DB3...]

DB1

mysqldump
[options]
all-databases

[DB2
--

mysqlimport
"mysqlimport" - A command-line
interface for administrators or
end users to load data files into
tables program tool to load data
into tables. Here is a sample
commands
supported
by
"mysqlimport":
"mysqlimport
databaseName
fileName" - Imports the data
from the specified file to the
specified database. The data will

be loaded into the table who's

name matches the specified file
name.
mysqlcheck
"mysqlcheck" is a command-line
interface for administrators to
check and repair tables. Here are
some
sample
commands
supported by "mysqlcheck":
"mysqlcheck
databaseName
tableName"
Checks
the
specified table in the specified
database.
"mysqlcheck databaseName" Checks all tables in the specified
database.

"mysqlcheck --all-databases" Checks all tables in all databases.

"mysqlcheck
--analyze
databaseName tableName" Analyzes the specified table in
the specified database.
"mysqlcheck
--repair
databaseName tableName" Repairs the specified table in the
specified database.
2- What
are
different
communication protocols in
MySQL? Explain them in brief.
Answer- A MySQL client program
can connect to a server running
on the same machine. This is a
local connection. A client can also

connect to a server running on

another machine, which is a
remote connection.
MySQL supports connections
between clients and the server
using
several
networking
protocols, as shown in the
following table.

Protocol Types
of Supporte
Connections Operatin
Systems
TCP/IP

Local,
remote

All

Unix
socket

Local only

Unix only

file
Named
pipe

Local only

Windows
only

Shared Local only

memory

Windows
only

Protocols are used for connecting

to either local or remote servers.
TCP/IP connections are
supported
by any
MySQL server.
Unix
socket
file
connections
are
supported by all Unix
servers.
Named-pipe
connections
are

supported only
Windows.
Shared-memory
connections
supported
by
Windows servers.

on

are
all

MySQL communication protocols

are implemented by various
libraries and program drivers.
Client programs included with
MySQL
distributions
(mysql, mysqladmin, and so
forth) establish connections to
the server using the native C
client library.
3- How is MySQL data stored on
disk? Brief various directory

(ies) and file(s) created mainly

for MyISAM and InnoDB
storage engines.
Answer- MySQL Server uses disk
space in several ways, primarily
for directories and files that are
found under a single location
known as the server's data
directory. The server uses its data
directory to store all the
following:
Database
directories.
Each
database corresponds to a single
directory
under
the
data
directory, regardless of what
types of tables you create in the
database. For example, a given
database is represented by one

directory whether it contains

MyISAM tables, InnoDB tables, or
a mix of the two.
Table format files (.frm files) that
contains a description of table
structure. Every table has its own
.frm file, located in the
appropriate database directory.
This is true no matter which
storage engine manages the
table.
Data and index files are created
for each table by some storage
engines and placed in the
appropriate database directory.
For example, the MyISAM storage
engine creates a data file and an

index file for each table.

The InnoDB storage engine has
its own tablespace and log files.
The tablespace contains data and
index information for all InnoDB
tables, as well as the undo logs
that are needed if a transaction
must be rolled back. The log files
record
information
about
committed transactions and are
used to ensure that no data loss
occurs. By default, the tablespace
and log files are located in the
data directory. The default
tablespace file is named ibdata1
and the default log files are
named ib_logfile0 and ib_logfile1.
(It is also possible to configure

InnoDB to use one tablespace file

per table. In this case, InnoDB
creates the tablespace file for a
given table in the table's
database directory.)
Server log files and status files.
These files contain information
about the statements that the
server has been processing. Logs
are used for replication and data
recovery, to obtain information
for use in optimizing query
performance, and to determine
whether operational problems
are occurring.
4- MySQL
Server
allocates
memory for what kinds of

information?
Explain
the
various types of buffers
(caches) used by MySQL to
hold information in memory.
Answer- MySQL Server memory
use includes data structures that
the server sets up to manage
communication with clients and
to process the contents of
databases. The server allocates
memory for many kinds of
information as it runs:
Thread handlers. The server is
multi-threaded, and a thread is
like a small process running
inside the server. For each client
that
connects,
the
server
allocates a thread to it to handle

the connection. For performance

reasons, the server maintains a
small cache of thread handlers.
The server uses several buffers
(caches) to hold information in
memory for the purpose of
avoiding disk access when
possible:
a. Grant table buffers.
The grant tables store
information
about
MySQL user accounts
and the privileges they
have. The server loads
a copy of the grant
tables into memory for
fast
access-control
checking.

b. A key buffer holds

index
blocks
for MyISAM tables. By
caching index blocks in
memory, the server
often
can
avoid
reading index contents
repeatedly from disk
for
index-based
retrievals and other
index-related
operations such as
sorts.
c. The table cache holds
descriptors for open
tables. For frequently
used tables, keeping
the descriptors in the

cache avoids having to

open the tables again
and again.
d. The server supports a
query
cache
that
speeds up processing
of queries that are
issued repeatedly.
e. The host cache holds
the
results
of
hostname resolution
lookups. These results
are cached to minimize
the number of calls to
the hostname resolver.
f. The InnoDB storage
engine
logs
information
about

current transactions in
a
memory
buffer.
When a transaction
commits, the log buffer
is
flushed
to
the InnoDB log files,
providing a record on
disk that can be used
to
recommit
the
transaction if it is lost
due to a crash. If the
transaction rolls back
instead, the flush to
disk need not be done
at all

Unit-5 Locking
1- What is locking? Explain its
importance in MySQL with
suitable examples.
Answer-Locking is a mechanism
that prevents problems from
occurring with simultaneous data
access by multiple clients. Locks
are managed by the server: It
places a lock on data on behalf of
one client to restrict access by
other clients to the data until the
lock has been released. The lock
allows access to data by the
client that holds the lock, but
places limitations on what
operations can be done by other

clients that are contending for

access. The effect of the locking
mechanism is to serialize access
to data so that when multiple
clients
want
to
perform
conflicting operations, each must
wait its turn.
Not all types of concurrent access
produce conflicts, so the type of
locking that is necessary to allow
a client access to data depends
on whether the client wants to
read or write:
If a client wants to
read data, other clients
that want to read the
same data do not
produce a conflict, and

they all can read at the

same time. However,
another client that
wants to write (modify)
data must wait until
the read has finished.
If a client wants to
write data, all other
clients must wait until
the write has finished,
regardless of whether
those clients want to
read or write.
A lock on data can be acquired
implicitly or explicitly:
For a client that does
nothing special to
acquire
locks,
the

MySQL server implicitly

acquires
locks
as
necessary to process
the clients statements
safely. For example,
the server acquires a
read lock when the
client
issues
a SELECT statement
and a write lock when
the
client
issues
an INSERT statement.
Explicit locking may be
necessary when
a
client
needs
to
perform an operation
that spans multiple
statements and that

must
not
be
interrupted by other
clients. For example,
an application might
select a value from one
table and then use it
to determine which
records to update in a
set of other tables.
2- What are the levels at which
data locking occurs in MySQL?
Explain their characteritics.
Answer-Data locking in MySQL
occurs at different levels. Explicit
locks
acquired
with
LOCK
TABLES are table locks. For
implicit locks, the lock level that
MySQL uses depends on the

storage engine:
MyISAM,
MEMORY,
and MERGE tables are
locked at the table
level.
BDB tables are locked
at the page level.
InnoDB tables are
locked at the row level.
The different levels of locking
granularity
have
different
concurrency characteristics:
Table locking is not as
desirable as page or
row
locking
for
concurrency in a mixed
read/write
environment. A table

lock prevents other

clients from making
any changes to the
table, even if the client
that holds the lock is
not accessing the parts
of the table that other
clients want to modify.
With page and row
locks, a client that
locks a page or row
does
not
prevent
changes
by
other
clients to other pages
or rows.
Deadlock cannot occur
with table locking as it
can with page or row

locking. For example,

with row-level locking,
two clients might each
acquire a lock on
different rows. If each
then tries to modify
the row that the other
has locked, neither
client can proceed.
This
is
called
deadlock.
With table locking, the
server can determine
what locks are needed
and acquire them
before executing a
statement, so deadlock
never occurs.

3- What are Implicit and Explicit

locking? Explain them with
suitable
commands
and
examples.
Answer-

Implicit Locking:
For a client that does nothing
special to acquire locks, the
server implicitly acquires locks as
necessary to process the client's
statement safely. For example,
the server acquires a read lock
when the client issues a SELECT
statement, and a write lock when
the client issues an INSERT
statement.
Implicit locks are acquired only
for the duration of a single
statement.
Explicit Locking:
If implicit locking is not sufficient
for a client's purposes, it can

manage locks explicitly by

acquiring them with LOCK TABLES
and releasing them with UNLOCK
TABLES.
Explicit locking may be necessary
when a client needs to perform
an operation that spans multiple
statements that must not be
interrupted by other clients. For
example, an application might
select a value from one table and
then use it to determine which
records to update in a set of
other tables. With implicit locking
Explicit locking can improve
performance
for
multiple
statements executed as a group

while the lock is in effect.

The LOCK TABLES statement
names each table to be locked
and the type of lock to be
acquired.
The
following
statement acquires a read lock on
the Country table and a write
lock on the City table:
LOCK
TABLES
Country
READ, City WRITE;
To use LOCK TABLES, you must
have the LOCK TABLES privilege,
and the SELECT privilege for each
table to be locked.
To release explicit locks, issue
an UNLOCK TABLES statement.
This statement names no tables,

because it releases all explicit

locks held by the issuing client.
4- What is Explicit locking?
Explain the various lock types
available in Explicit Locking?
AnswerExplicit Locking:
If implicit locking is not sufficient
for a client's purposes, it can
manage locks explicitly by
acquiring them with LOCK TABLES
and releasing them with UNLOCK
TABLES.
Explicit locking may be necessary
when a client needs to perform
an operation that spans multiple
statements that must not be

interrupted by other clients. For

example, an application might
select a value from one table and
then use it to determine which
records to update in a set of
other tables. With implicit locking
The following statement acquires
a read lock on the Country table
and a write lock on the City table:
LOCK
TABLES
Country
READ, City WRITE;
The following list describes the
available lock types and their
effects:
READ
A READ lock locks a table for read

queries such as SELECT that

retrieve data from the table. It
does not allow write operations
even for the client that holds the
lock. A client that wants to write
to a table that is read-locked
must wait until all clients
currently reading from it have
finished and released their locks.
WRITE
A WRITE lock is an exclusive lock.
It can be acquired only when a
table is not being used. Once
acquired, only the client holding
the write lock can read from or
write to the table. Other clients
can neither read from nor write

to it.
READ LOCAL
Locks a table for reading, but
allows concurrent inserts. A
concurrent insert is an exception
to the readers block writers
principle.
It
applies
only
to
MyISAM
tables.
If
a MyISAM table has no holes in
the middle resulting from deleted
or updated records, inserts
always take place at the end of
the table. In that case, a client
that is reading from a table can
lock it with a READ LOCAL lock to
allow other clients to insert into
the table while the client holding

the read lock reads from it. If

a MyISAM table does have holes,
you can remove them by
using
OPTIMIZE
TABLE
to
defragment the table.
LOW_PRIORITY WRITE
Locks a table for writing, but
acquires the lock with a lower
priority. That is, if the client must
wait for the lock, other clients
that request read locks during
the wait are allowed to get their
locks first. A normal write lock
request is satisfied when no
other clients are using the table.
5- What is Advisory locking? How
are they implemented, explain

with examples?
AnswerAdvisory Locking
An advisory lock is a cooperative
lock. That is, an advisory lock has
no power to prevent data access
by other clients, but instead is
based on the concept that all
clients will use an agreed-upon
convention to cooperate for use
of a resource.
Advisory locks are implemented
using a set of function calls. To
acquire
a
lock,
use
the GET_LOCK()function:
mysql>
SELECT
GET_LOCK('my lock', 5);
+----------------------

-- +
| GET_LOCK('my lock',
5) |
+----------------------- +
|
1
|
+----------------------- +
The first argument is a string that
specifies the name to be locked,
and the second argument is a
timeout value in seconds that
indicates how long to wait for the
lock if it cannot be acquired
immediately. GET_LOCK() returns
1 for success, 0 if a timeout
occurs and the lock cannot be

acquired, or NULL if an error

occurs.
A client that has acquired an
advisory lock can release it by
calling RELEASE_LOCK():
mysql>
SELECT
RELEASE_LOCK('my
lock');
+------------------------ +
|
RELEASE_LOCK('my
lock') |
+------------------------ +
|
+------------------------ +
RELEASE_LOCK() returns 1 if the

lock was released successfully, 0 if

the name was locked but not by
the client requesting the release,
and NULL if the name was not
locked.
An advisory lock also is released
if the client makes another call
to GET_LOCK() or closes its
connection to the server.
Two other functions are available
for checking the status of
advisory locks:
IS_FREE_LOCK(lock_name) returns
1 if the name is not locked, 0 if it
is locked, and NULL if an error
occurs.
IS_USED_LOCK(lock_name) returns
the connection ID of the client

that holds the lock on the name,

or NULL if the name is not locked.

Unit-6 Storage Engines

1- Explain the concept storage
engine in MySQL. Which are
the most common storage
engines in MySQL?
AnswerMySQL Storage Engines
All tables managed by MySQL
Server have certain similarities.
For example, every table in a
database has a format (.frm) file
in the database directory. This
file, which stores the definition of

the tables structure, is created

by the server. Tables have
differences as well, which are tied
to the storage engines that the
server uses to manage table
contents. Each storage engine has
a particular set of operational
characteristics. For example,
engines may create additional
disk
files
to
accompany
the .frm files, but the types of
files that they create to manage
data and index storage vary per
engine.
When you create a table, you can
choose what storage engine to
use. Typically, this choice is made
according to which storage

engine offers features that best

fit the needs of your application.
MyISAM
table-level
locking works best for
a query mix that is
heavily skewed toward
retrievals and includes
few
updates.
Use InnoDB if you must
process a query mix
containing
many
updates.
InnoDBs use of rowlevel locking and multiversioning
provides
good concurrency for a
mix of retrievals and

updates.
To specify a storage engine
explicitly
in
a
CREATE
TABLE
statement,
use
an ENGINE option. The following
statement
creates
t
as
an InnoDB table:
CREATE TABLE t (i INT) ENGINE =
InnoDB;
To determine which storage
engine is used for a given table;
you can use the SHOW CREATE
TABLE or the SHOW TABLE
STATUS statement:
mysql> SHOW CREATE TABLE
City\G

The

INFORMATION_SCHEMA

TABLES table contains storage

engine information as well:
mysql> SELECT TABLE_NAME,
ENGINE
FROM
INFORMATION_SCHEMA.TABLES
-> WHERE TABLE_SCHEMA
= 'world';

To reduce memory use, dont

configure unneeded
storage
engines into the server. This
requires that you compile MySQL
from source rather than using a
precompiled binary distribution.
To see what storage engines are
compiled into your server and
whether they are available at
runtime,
use
the
SHOW
ENGINES statement

mysql> SHOW ENGINES\G

2- What are characteristics of

MyISAM storage engines?
What
are
the
features
supported by MyISAM which
will be used by MySQL in
future?
The following characteristics of
the MyISAM storage engine are
improvements over the older
ISAM engine:
All data values are
stored with the low
byte first. This makes
the data machine and
operating
system
independent.
Large files (up to 63-bit

file
length)
are
supported
on
filesystems
and
operating systems that
support large files.
Dynamic-sized rows are
much less fragmented
when mixing deletes
with
updates and
inserts. This is done by
automatically
combining
adjacent
deleted blocks and by
extending blocks if the
next block is deleted.
The maximum number
of indexes per table is
64 (32 before MySQL

4.1.2)..
The maximum key
length is 1000 bytes
(500 before MySQL
4.1.2).
BLOB
and
TEXT
columns
can
be
indexed.
NULL
values
are
allowed in indexed
columns. This takes 0-1
bytes per key.
All numeric key values
are stored with the
high byte first to allow
better
index
compression.
Index files are usually

much smaller with

MyISAM than with
ISAM.
Internal handling of
one AUTO_INCREMENT
column per table.
MyISAM automatically
updates this column
for
INSERT/UPDATE.
This
makes
AUTO_INCREMENT
columns faster (at least
10%)..
If a table doesn't have
free blocks in the
middle of the data file,
you can INSERT new
rows into it at the

same time that other

threads are reading
from the table. (These
are
known
as
concurrent inserts.)
You can put the data
file and index file on
different directories to
get more speed with
the DATA DIRECTORY
and INDEX DIRECTORY
table
options
to
CREATE TABLE.
There is a flag in the
MyISAM index file that
indicates whether the
table
was
closed
correctly. If mysqld is

started with the -myisam-recover

option, MyISAM tables
are
automatically
checked
(and
optionally
repaired)
when opened if the
table wasn't closed
properly.
myisamchk
marks
tables as checked if
you run it with the -update-state option.
myisamchk
--fast
checks only those
tables that don't have
this mark.
myisamchk --analyze

stores statistics for key

parts, not only for
whole keys as in ISAM.
myisampack can pack
BLOB and VARCHAR
columns;
pack_isam
cannot.
MyISAM also supports the
following features, which MySQL
will be able to use in the near
future:
Support for a true
VARCHAR
type;
a
VARCHAR
column
starts with a length
stored in two bytes.
Tables with VARCHAR

may have fixed or

dynamic record length.
VARCHAR and CHAR
columns may be up to
64KB.
A hashed computed
index can be used for
UNIQUE. This will allow
you to have UNIQUE
on any combination of
columns in a table.
(You can't search on a
UNIQUE
computed
index, however.)
3- Explain advantages of MyISAM
over InnoDB?
Answer- The following are the
advantages of MyISAM over

InnoDB:
MyISAM tables are stored
in separate files in
compressed
mode,
whereas InnoDB tables
are stored in table space.
More options for further
optimization in MyISAM,
whereas there is no
further
optimization
possible with InnoDB.
Data except for TEXT and
BLOB can occupy at most
8000 bytes in InnoDB.
Full
text
indexing
available in MyISAM,
whereas no full text
indexing is available for

InnoDB.
Count
(*)
functions
execution is slower in
InnoDB because of table
space complexity.
4- When is InnoDB engine
preferred
over
MyISAM?
Explain the transaction model
of InnoDB engine.
5- Differentiate MyISAM and
InnoDB storage engines? How
they differ in their locking
mechanism?
6- What is Merge table? When
are they used? What are their
disadvantages?
7- Write short notes oni) Heap
(Memory)

Engine
ii) Federated Engine
iii) Cluster Engine

Unit-8
Backup
Recovery

and

1- What are the principles of

backup?
AnswerPrinciples of backup
Make
backups
regularly.
Enable the binary log
so that we have a
record of changes
made after a given
backup.
Flush the logs when
backing up so that the
server will begin a new

binary log file.

Store
the
data
directory and backups
on different physical
devices so that a
device failure cannot
destroy both.
Include the backups in
the regular filesystem
backup procedures.
2- Write difference between
Binary and Textual backups.
AnswerBinary Backup
A copy of the files in
which
database
contents are stored.

Preserves
the
databases in exactly
the same format in
which MySQL itself
stores them on disk.
To restore copy the
files back to their
original locations.
Techniques
copy commands
(such as cp or
tar)
mysqlhotcopy
InnoDB
Hot
Backup
Its faster to make a
binary backup.
For
transferring

databases to another
machine that uses a
different architecture,
the files must be
binary portable.
With binary backup
methods, its necessary
to make sure that the
server does not modify
the files while the
backup is in progress.
Binary
backups
depends on which
storage engine created
the tables
Text Backup
A text backup is a

dump of database
contents into text files.
Restoration
involves
loading
the
file
contents back into
databases
by
processing
them
through the server.
Techniques
SELECT ... INTO
OUTFILE
SQL
statement
Mysqldump
MySQL
Administrator.
Its slower to make a
text backup because
the server must read

tables
Text
backups
are
portable
and
independent
of
machine architecture.
With
text
backup
methods, the server
must
be
running
because it must read
the files that are to be
backed up.
Text
backup
procedures are more
general and can be
used for tables created
by any storage engine.
3- What are the steps involved in
making
Binary
MyISAM

Backups?
AnswerMaking Binary MyISAM Backups
To make a binary
backup of a MyISAM
table, copy the .frm,
.MYD, and .MYI files.
While copying the
table must not be in
use so:
Either stop the server
while copying the table
Use an appropriate
locking protocol to
prevent server access
to the table.
For example:
mysql>

USE

world;
mysql>
LOCK
TABLES
Country READ;
mysql>
FLUSH
TABLES
Country;

After backup release

the lock on the table:
mysql> UNLOCK
TABLES;

To recover a MyISAM
table from a binary
backup,
stop
the
server,
copy
the
backup table files into
the
appropriate
database
directory,
and restart the server.

4- What are the conditions for

Binary backup? Brief them for
MyISAM and InnoDB tables.
AnswerConditions for Binary Portability
For MyISAM, binary
portability means that
one can directly copy
the files for a MyISAM
table from one MySQL
server to another on a
different machine and
the second server will
be able to access the
table.
For InnoDB, binary
portability means that
one can directly copy

the tablespace files

from a MySQL server
on one machine to
another server on a
different machine and
the second server will
be able to access the
tablespace.
MyISAM tables and
InnoDB tablespaces are
binary portable if two
conditions are met:
Both M/Cs must
use
2scomplement
integer
arithmetic.
Both M/Cs must

use IEEE floatingpoint format, or

else the tables
must contain no
floating-point
columns.
We should use
lowercase names
for
databases
and tables. Using
lowercase names
allows
binary
portability
between
Windows
and
Unix.
To force lowercase
names, put following

in an option file:
[mysqld]
lower_case_table_
5- How MySQL Administrator
helps in Making Text Backups?
Explain the procedure.
AnswerMaking Text Backups with MySQL
Administrator
GUI
program
to
provide backup and
restore capabilities.
It generates backup
files containing SQL
statements that can be
reloaded into your
MySQL server to re-

create databases and

tables.
These files are similar
to the SQL-format
backup files generated
bymysqldump.
MySQL Administrator
stores
backup
configuration options
as projects.
One can select and
execute these projects
later to perform a
backup
operation
based on a given set of
specifications.
The project approach
enables us to easily

select from among

multiple
types
of
backups.
We can select backup
projects on demand or
schedule them for
periodic execution.
6- What is the big ibdata file that
is in all the backups?
Answer- You might find your
backup data taking more space
than expected because of a large
file with a name such as ibdata1.
This file represents the InnoDB
system tablespace, which grows
but never shrinks, and is included
in every full and incremental
backup. To reduce the space

taken up by this file in your

backup data:
After doing a full backup, do a
succession
of
incremental
backups, which take up less
space. The ibdata1 file in the
incremental backups is typically
much smaller, containing only the
portions of the system tablespace
that changed since the full
backup.
Set the configuration option
innodb_file_per_table=1 before
creating your biggest or most
active InnoDB tables. Those
tables are split off from the
system tablespaces into separate

.ibd files, which are more flexible

in terms of freeing disk space
when dropped or truncated, and
can be individually included or
excluded from backups.
If your system tablespace is very
large because you created a high
volume of InnoDB data before
turning
on
the
innodb_file_per_table
setting,
you might use mysqldump to
dump the entire instance, then
turn on innodb_file_per_table
before re-creating it, so that all
the table data is kept outside the
system tablespace.
7- Write short notes on-

i) Mysqlhtocopy
Answermysqlhotcopy
A Perl script,
requires the
DBI module to
be installed.
It runs on Unix
and NetWare.
Works
for
MyISAM
tables but not
InnoDB tables.
Operation of
mysqlhotcopy
is fast
Steps
involved:

mysqlhotc
connects
to
the
local
MySQL
server
locks the
tables so
that the
server
will not
change
them,
flushes
the
tables to
make
sure that

any
pending
changes
are
written
to disk
Copies
the table
files.
When it
has
finished
the copy
operation
it
unlocks
the
tables.

Many options,
invoke it with
the
--help
option.
Some
examples:
Back up the
world
database to a
directory
named world
in
the
/var/archive
directory:

shell>
mysqlhot
world
/var/arc

Back up only

the tables in
the
world
database
whose name
contains
Country:

shell>
mysqlhot
world./C
/var/arc

ii) InnoDB Hot Backup

AnswerInnoDB Hot Backup
The
InnoDB
Hot
Backup
program
(ibbackup) is a
commercial
product

available from
Innobase Oy.
It can back up
InnoDB tables
while
the
server
is
running
without
disturbing
normal
database
activity.
Its available
for Unix and
Windows.
iii) Mysqldump
AnswerMysqldump

It can dump
all databases,
specific
databases, or
specific tables.
mysqldump
can back up
local
or
remote
servers,
although the
destination
for the dump
files depends
on how you
invoke it.
It works for
tables created

by any storage
engine.
Output
files
are written in
text
format
and
are
portable.
Three general
modes
of
operation:
Default:

shell>
mysqldum
world
>
world.sq
shell>
mysqldum
world

City
Country
>
city_cou

--databases
option

shell>
mysqldum
-database
world
test>
world_an

--all-databases
option

shell>
mysqldum
--alldatabase
>

alldb.sq

iv) Backing Up Log and

Status Files
AnswerBacking Up Log and
Status Files
In addition to backing up
the
databases,
we
should also back up the
following files:
Binary
log
files.
Necessary
because the
binary
logs
store updates
that
have
been
made

after
the
backup
was
made.
Option
files
used by the
server (my.cnf
and
my.ini
files).
These
files contain
configuration
information
that must be
restored after
a crash.
Replication
slave servers
create
a
master.info

file
that
contains
information
needed
for
connecting to
the
master
server, and a
relay-log.info
file
that
indicates the
current
progress
in
processing the
relay logs.
Replication
slaves create
data files for
processing

LOAD
DATA
INFILE
statements.
These files are
located in the
directory
named by the
slave_load_tmp
system
variable,
which can be
set by starting
the
server
with the -slave-loadtmpdir option.
If
slave_load_tmp

is not set, the

value of the
tmpdir system
variable
applies. The
data files to
back up have
names
beginning
withSQL_LOAD-.
To back up the
preceding
files, you can
use
normal
file
system
operation.
Static
files
such as option

files can be
backed
up
with
no
special
precautions.
Dynamic files
such as logs
that the server
changes as it
runs are best
backed
up
with
the
server
stopped.