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2.2 Standard MySQL Installation Using a Binary Distribution »
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2.1.5. Installation Layouts

This section describes the default layout of the directories created by installing binary or source distributions provided by Sun Microsystems, Inc. A distribution provided by another vendor might use a layout different from those shown here.

For MySQL 5.1 on Windows, the default installation directory is C:\Program Files\MySQL\MySQL Server 5.1. (Some Windows users prefer to install in C:\mysql, the directory that formerly was used as the default. However, the layout of the subdirectories remains the same.) The installation directory has the following subdirectories.

Directory Contents of Directory
bin Client programs and the mysqld server
data Log files, databases
Docs Manual in CHM format
examples Example programs and scripts
include Include (header) files
lib Libraries
scripts Utility scripts
share Error message files

Installations created from our Linux RPM distributions result in files under the following system directories.

Directory Contents of Directory
/usr/bin Client programs and scripts
/usr/sbin The mysqld server
/var/lib/mysql Log files, databases
/usr/share/info Manual in Info format
/usr/share/man Unix manual pages
/usr/include/mysql Include (header) files
/usr/lib/mysql Libraries
/usr/share/mysql Error message and character set files
/usr/share/sql-bench Benchmarks

On Unix, a tar file binary distribution is installed by unpacking it at the installation location you choose (typically /usr/local/mysql) and creates the following directories in that location.

Directory Contents of Directory
bin Client programs and the mysqld server
data Log files, databases
docs Manual in Info format
man Unix manual pages
include Include (header) files
lib Libraries
scripts mysql_install_db
share/mysql Error message files
sql-bench Benchmarks

A source distribution is installed after you configure and compile it. By default, the installation step installs files under /usr/local, in the following subdirectories.

Directory Contents of Directory
bin Client programs and scripts
include/mysql Include (header) files
Docs Manual in Info, CHM formats
man Unix manual pages
lib/mysql Libraries
libexec The mysqld server
share/mysql Error message files
sql-bench Benchmarks and crash-me test
var Databases and log files

Within its installation directory, the layout of a source installation differs from that of a binary installation in the following ways:

  • The mysqld server is installed in the libexec directory rather than in the bin directory.

  • The data directory is var rather than data.

  • mysql_install_db is installed in the bin directory rather than in the scripts directory.

  • The header file and library directories are include/mysql and lib/mysql rather than include and lib.

You can create your own binary installation from a compiled source distribution by executing the scripts/make_binary_distribution script from the top directory of the source distribution.


User Comments

Posted by Per Hall on February 7 2006 8:09pm[Delete] [Edit]

The solaris package format (.pkg) distrubution unpacks under /opt/mysql/mysql, and makes a link there from /usr/local/mysql
The layout is as the unix layout above.

To note: There is no libmysqlclient.so.?? file installed, needed for the apache php module.

There is mysql.server start/stop script included, automatically put in /etc/init.d but you'll have to add symlinks from rc3.d etcetera yourself.
Notably on Solaris 10, it does not enter itself in the Services list, which has replaced /etc/init.d - you have to run the conversion yourself to get it to autostart at boot.

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