# mariadb

## NAME



           mariadb - the MariaDB command-line tool (mysql is now a symlink to
           mariadb)
    


## SYNOPSIS



    
           **mariadb [**_options_**]**_db_name_
    


## DESCRIPTION



           **mariadb** is a simple SQL shell (with GNU readline capabilities). It
           supports interactive and non-interactive use. When used
           interactively, query results are presented in an ASCII-table
           format. When used non-interactively (for example, as a filter),
           the result is presented in tab-separated format. The output format
           can be changed using command options.
    
           If you have problems due to insufficient memory for large result
           sets, use the **--quick** option. This forces **mariadb** to retrieve
           results from the server a row at a time rather than retrieving the
           entire result set and buffering it in memory before displaying it.
           This is done by returning the result set using the
           mariadb_use_result() C API function in the client/server library
           rather than mysql_store_result().
    
           Using **mariadb** is very easy. Invoke it from the prompt of your
           command interpreter as follows:
    
               shell> **mariadb** _db_name_
    
           Or:
    
               shell> **mariadb --user=**_user_name_ **--password=**_your_password db_name_
    
           Then type an SQL statement, end it with “;”, \g, or \G and press
           Enter.
    
           Typing Control-C causes **mariadb** to attempt to kill the current
           statement. If this cannot be done, or Control-C is typed again
           before the statement is killed, **mariadb** exits.
    
           You can execute SQL statements in a script file (batch file) like
           this:
    
               shell> **mariadb** _db_name_ **< **_script.sql_ **> **_output.tab_
    


## MARIADB OPTIONS



           **mariadb** supports the following options, which can be specified on
           the command line or in the [mariadb], [client], [client-server] or
           [client-mariadb] option file groups.  **mariadb** also supports the
           options for processing option files.
    
           •   **--help** , **-?** , **-I**
    
               Display a help message and exit.
    
           •   **--abort-source-on-error**
    
               Abort 'source filename' operations in case of errors.
    
           •   **--auto-rehash**
    
               Enable automatic rehashing. This option is on by default,
               which enables database, table, and column name completion. Use
               **--disable-auto-rehash** , **--no-auto-rehash** ,  or
               **--skip-auto-rehash** to disable rehashing. That causes **mariadb**
               to start faster, but you must issue the rehash command if you
               want to use name completion.
    
               To complete a name, enter the first part and press Tab. If the
               name is unambiguous, **mariadb** completes it. Otherwise, you can
               press Tab again to see the possible names that begin with what
               you have typed so far. Completion does not occur if there is
               no default database.
    
           •   **--auto-vertical-output**
    
               Automatically switch to vertical output mode if the result is
               wider than the terminal width.
    
           •   **--batch** , **-B**
    
               Print results using tab as the column separator, with each row
               on a new line. With this option, **mariadb** does not use the
               history file.
    
               Batch mode results in nontabular output format and escaping of
               special characters. Escaping may be disabled by using raw
               mode; see the description for the **--raw** option.
    
           •   **--binary-mode**
    
               Binary mode allows certain character sequences to be processed
               as data that would otherwise be treated with a special meaning
               by the parser.  Specifically, this switch turns off parsing of
               all client commands except \C and DELIMITER in non-interactive
               mode (i.e., when binary mode is combined with either 1) piped
               input, 2) the --batch mariadb option, or 3) the 'source'
               command). Also, in binary mode, occurrences of '\r\n' and
               ASCII '\0' are preserved within strings, whereas by default,
               '\r\n' is translated to '\n' and '\0' is disallowed in user
               input.
    
           •   **--character-sets-dir=**_path_
    
               The directory where character sets are installed.
    
           •   **--column-names**
    
               Write column names in results.
    
           •   **--column-type-info** , **-m**
    
               Display result set metadata.
    
           •   **--comments** , **-c**
    
               Whether to preserve comments in statements sent to the server.
               The default is --skip-comments (discard comments), enable with
               --comments (preserve comments).
    
           •   **--compress** , **-C**
    
               Compress all information sent between the client and the
               server if both support compression.
    
           •   **--connect-timeout=**_seconds_
    
               Set the number of seconds before connection timeout. (Default
               value is 0.)
    
           •   **--database=**_db_name_ , **-D** _db_name_
    
               The database to use.
    
           •   **--debug[=**_debug_options_**]** , **-# [**_debug_options_**]**
    
               Write a debugging log. A typical _debug_options_ string is
               'd:t:o,_file_name_ '. The default is 'd:t:o,/tmp/mysql.trace'.
    
           •   **--debug-check**
    
               Print some debugging information when the program exits.
    
           •   **--debug-info** , **-T**
    
               Prints debugging information and memory and CPU usage
               statistics when the program exits.
    
           •   **--default-auth=**_name_
    
               Default authentication client-side plugin to use.
    
           •   **--default-character-set=**_charset_name_
    
               Use _charset_name_ as the default character set for the client
               and connection.
    
               A common issue that can occur when the operating system uses
               utf8 or another multi-byte character set is that output from
               the **mariadb** client is formatted incorrectly, due to the fact
               that the MariaDB client uses the latin1 character set by
               default. You can usually fix such issues by using this option
               to force the client to use the system character set instead.
    
           •   **--defaults-extra-file=**_filename_
    
               Set _filename_ as the file to read default options from after
               the global defaults files has been read.  Must be given as
               first option.
    
           •   **--defaults-file=**_filename_
    
               Set _filename_ as the file to read default options from,
               override global defaults files. Must be given as first option.
    
           •   **--defaults-group-suffix=**_suffix_
    
               In addition to the groups named on the command line, read
               groups that have the given suffix.
    
           •   **--delimiter=**_str_
    
               Set the statement delimiter. The default is the semicolon
               character (“;”).
    
           •   **--disable-named-commands**
    
               Disable named commands. Use the \* form only, or use named
               commands only at the beginning of a line ending with a
               semicolon (“;”).  **mariadb** starts with this option _enabled_ by
               default. However, even with this option, long-format commands
               still work from the first line. See the section called
               “MARIADB COMMANDS”.
    
           •   **--enable-cleartext-plugin**
    
               Obsolete option. Exists only for MySQL compatibility.
    
           •   **--execute=**_statement_ , **-e** _statement_
    
               Execute the statement and quit. Disables **--force** and history
               file. The default output format is like that produced with
               **--batch**.
    
           •   **--force** , **-f**
    
               Continue even if an SQL error occurs. Sets **--abort-source-on-**
               **error** to 0.
    
           •   **--host=**_host_name_ , **-h** _host_name_
    
               Connect to the MariaDB server on the given host.
    
           •   **--html** , **-H**
    
               Produce HTML output.
    
           •   **--ignore-spaces** , **-i**
    
               Ignore spaces after function names. Allows one to have spaces
               (including tab characters and new line characters) between
               function name and '('. The drawback is that this causes built
               in functions to become reserved words.
    
           •   **--init-command=**_str_
    
               SQL Command to execute when connecting to the MariaDB server.
               Will automatically be re-executed when reconnecting.
    
           •   **--line-numbers**
    
               Write line numbers for errors. Disable this with
               **--skip-line-numbers**.
    
           •   **--local-infile[={0|1}]**
    
               Enable or disable LOCAL capability for LOAD DATA INFILE. With
               no value, the option enables LOCAL. The option may be given as
               **--local-infile=0** or **--local-infile=1** to explicitly disable or
               enable LOCAL. Enabling LOCAL has no effect if the server does
               not also support it.
    
           •   **--max-allowed-packet=**_num_
    
               Set the maximum packet length to send to or receive from the
               server. (Default value is 16MB, largest 1GB.)
    
           •   **--max-join-size=**_num_
    
               Set the automatic limit for rows in a join when using
               **--safe-updates**. (Default value is 1,000,000.)
    
           •   **--named-commands** , **-G**
    
               Enable named **mariadb** commands. Long-format commands are
               allowed, not just short-format commands. For example, quit and
               \q both are recognized. Use **--skip-named-commands** to disable
               named commands. See the section called “MARIADB COMMANDS”.
               Disabled by default.
    
           ••   **--net-buffer-length=**_size_
    
               Set the buffer size for TCP/IP and socket communication.
               (Default value is 16KB.)
    
           •   **--no-auto-rehash** , **-A**
    
               This has the same effect as **--skip-auto-rehash**. See the
               description for **--auto-rehash**.
    
           •   **--no-beep** , **-b**
    
               Do not beep when errors occur.
    
           •   **--no-defaults**
    
               Do not read default options from any option file. This must be
               given as the first argument.
    
           •   **--one-database** , **-o**
    
               Ignore statements except those those that occur while the
               default database is the one named on the command line. This
               filtering is limited, and based only on USE statements. This
               is useful for skipping updates to other databases in the
               binary log.
    
           •   **--pager[=**_command_**]**
    
               Use the given command for paging query output. If the command
               is omitted, the default pager is the value of your PAGER
               environment variable. Valid pagers are **less** , **more** , **cat [ >**
               **filename]** , and so forth. This option works only on Unix and
               only in interactive mode. To disable paging, use **--skip-pager**.
               the section called “MARIADB COMMANDS”, discusses output paging
               further.
    
           •   **--password[=**_password_**]** , **-p[**_password_**]**
    
               The password to use when connecting to the server. If you use
               the short option form (**-p**), you _cannot_ have a space between
               the option and the password. If you omit the _password_ value
               following the **--password** or **-p** option on the command line,
               **mariadb** prompts for one.
    
               Specifying a password on the command line should be considered
               insecure. You can use an option file to avoid giving the
               password on the command line.
    
           •   **--pipe** , **-W**
    
               On Windows, connect to the server via a named pipe. This
               option applies only if the server supports named-pipe
               connections.
    
           •   **--plugin-dir=**_dir_name_
    
               Directory for client-side plugins.
    
           •   **--port=**_port_num_ , **-P** _port_num_
    
               The TCP/IP port number to use for the connection or 0 for
               default to, in order of preference, my.cnf, $MYSQL_TCP_PORT,
               /etc/services, built-in default (3306).  Forces --protocol=tcp
               when specified on the command line without other connection
               properties.
    
           •   **--print-defaults**
    
               Print the program argument list and exit. This must be given
               as the first argument.
    
           •   **--progress-reports**
    
               Get progress reports for long running commands (such as ALTER
               TABLE). (Defaults to on; use **--skip-progress-reports** to
               disable.)
    
           •   **--prompt=**_format_str_
    
               Set the prompt to the specified format. The special sequences
               that the prompt can contain are described in the section
               called “MARIADB COMMANDS”.
    
           •   **--protocol={TCP|SOCKET|PIPE|MEMORY}**
    
               The connection protocol to use for connecting to the server.
               It is useful when the other connection parameters normally
               would cause a protocol to be used other than the one you want.
    
           •   **--quick** , **-q**
    
               Do not cache each query result, print each row as it is
               received. This may slow down the server if the output is
               suspended. With this option, **mariadb** does not use the history
               file.
    
           •   **--raw** , **-r**
    
               For tabular output, the “boxing” around columns enables one
               column value to be distinguished from another. For nontabular
               output (such as is produced in batch mode or when the **--batch**
               or **--silent** option is given), special characters are escaped
               in the output so they can be identified easily. Newline, tab,
               NUL, and backslash are written as \n, \t, \0, and \\. The
               **--raw** option disables this character escaping.
    
               The following example demonstrates tabular versus nontabular
               output and the use of raw mode to disable escaping:
    
                   % **mariadb**
                   mariadb> SELECT CHAR(92);
                   +----------+
                   | CHAR(92) |
                   +----------+
                   | \        |
                   +----------+
                   % **mariadb -s**
                   mariadb> SELECT CHAR(92);
                   CHAR(92)
                   \\
                   % **mariadb -s -r**
                   mariadb> SELECT CHAR(92);
                   CHAR(92)
                   \
    
           •   **--reconnect**
    
               If the connection to the server is lost, automatically try to
               reconnect. A single reconnect attempt is made each time the
               connection is lost. Enabled by default, to disable use
               **--skip-reconnect** or **--disable-reconnect**.
    
           •   **--safe-updates** , **--i-am-a-dummy** , **-U**
    
               Allow only those UPDATE and DELETE statements that specify
               which rows to modify by using key values. If you have set this
               option in an option file, you can override it by using
               **--safe-updates** on the command line. See the section called
               “MARIADB TIPS”, for more information about this option.
    
           •   **--secure-auth**
    
               Do not send passwords to the server in old (pre-4.1.1) format.
               This prevents connections except for servers that use the
               newer password format.
    
           •   **--select-limit=**_limit_
    
               Set automatic limit for SELECT when using **--safe-updates**.
               (Default value is 1,000.)
    
           •   **--server-arg=**_name_
    
               Send _name_ as a parameter to the embedded server.
    
           •   **--show-warnings**
    
               Cause warnings to be shown after each statement if there are
               any. This option applies to interactive and batch mode.
    
           •   **--sigint-ignore**
    
               Ignore SIGINT signals (typically the result of typing
               Control-C).
    
           •   **--silent** , **-s**
    
               Silent mode. Produce less output. This option can be given
               multiple times to produce less and less output.
    
               This option results in nontabular output format and escaping
               of special characters. Escaping may be disabled by using raw
               mode; see the description for the **--raw** option.
    
           •   **--skip-auto-rehash**
    
               Disable automatic rehashing. Synonym for
               **--disable-auto-rehash**.
    
           •   **--skip-column-names** , **-N**
    
               Do not write column names in results.
    
           •   **--skip-line-numbers** , **-L**
    
               Do not write line numbers for errors. Useful when you want to
               compare result files that include error messages.
    
           •   **--socket=**_path_ , **-S** _path_
    
               For connections to localhost, the Unix socket file to use, or,
               on Windows, the name of the named pipe to use.  Forces
               --protocol=socket when specified on the command line without
               other connection properties; on Windows, forces
               --protocol=pipe.
    
           •   **--ssl**
    
               Enable SSL for connection (automatically enabled with other
               flags). Disable with **--skip-ssl**.
    
           •   **--ssl-ca=**_name_
    
               CA file in PEM format (check OpenSSL docs, implies **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-capath=**_name_
    
               CA directory (check OpenSSL docs, implies **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-cert=**_name_
    
               X509 cert in PEM format (check OpenSSL docs, implies **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-cipher=**_name_
    
               SSL cipher to use (check OpenSSL docs, implies **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-key=**_name_
    
               X509 key in PEM format (check OpenSSL docs, implies **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-crl=**_name_
    
               Certificate revocation list (check OpenSSL docs, implies
               **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-crlpath=**_name_
    
               Certificate revocation list path (check OpenSSL docs, implies
               **--ssl**).
    
           •   **--ssl-verify-server-cert**
    
               Verify server's "Common Name" in its cert against hostname
               used when connecting. This option is disabled by default.
    
           •   **--table** , **-t**
    
               Display output in table format. This is the default for
               interactive use, but can be used to produce table output in
               batch mode.
    
           •   **--tee=**_file_name_
    
               Append a copy of output to the given file. This option works
               only in interactive mode.  the section called “MARIADB
               COMMANDS”, discusses tee files further.
    
           •   **--unbuffered** , **-n**
    
               Flush the buffer after each query.
    
           •   **--user=**_user_name_ , **-u** _user_name_
    
               The MariaDB user name to use when connecting to the server.
    
           •   **--verbose** , **-v**
    
               Verbose mode. Produce more output about what the program does.
               This option can be given multiple times to produce more and
               more output. (For example, **-v -v -v** produces table output
               format even in batch mode.)
    
           •   **--version** , **-V**
    
               Display version information and exit.
    
           •   **--vertical** , **-E**
    
               Print query output rows vertically (one line per column
               value). Without this option, you can specify vertical output
               for individual statements by terminating them with \G.
    
           •   **--wait** , **-w**
    
               If the connection cannot be established, wait and retry
               instead of aborting.
    
           •   **--xml** , **-X**
    
               Produce XML output.  The output when **--xml** is used with
               **mariadb** matches that of **mariadb-dump --xml**. See
               mariadb-dump(1) for details.
    
               The XML output also uses an XML namespace, as shown here:
    
                   shell> **mariadb --xml -uroot -e "SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'version%'"**
                   <?xml version="1.0"?>
                   <resultset statement="SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'version%'" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance">
                   <row>
                   <field name="Variable_name">version</field>
                   <field name="Value">5.0.40-debug</field>
                   </row>
                   <row>
                   <field name="Variable_name">version_comment</field>
                   <field name="Value">Source distribution</field>
                   </row>
                   <row>
                   <field name="Variable_name">version_compile_machine</field>
                   <field name="Value">i686</field>
                   </row>
                   <row>
                   <field name="Variable_name">version_compile_os</field>
                   <field name="Value">suse-linux-gnu</field>
                   </row>
                   </resultset>
    
               You can also set the following variables by using
               **--**_var_name_**=**_value_.
    
               •   connect_timeout
    
                   The number of seconds before connection timeout. (Default
                   value is 0.)
    
               •   max_allowed_packet
    
                   The maximum packet length to send to or receive from the
                   server. (Default value is 16MB.)
    
               •   max_join_size
    
                   The automatic limit for rows in a join when using
                   **--safe-updates**. (Default value is 1,000,000.)
    
               •   net_buffer_length
    
                   The buffer size for TCP/IP and socket communication.
                   (Default value is 16KB.)
    
               •   select_limit
    
                   The automatic limit for SELECT statements when using
                   **--safe-updates**. (Default value is 1,000.)
    
               On Unix, the **mariadb** client writes a record of executed
               statements to a history file. By default, this file is named
               .mariadb_history and is created in your home directory. For
               backwards compatibility .mariadb_history will be used if
               present and .mariadb_history is missing. To specify a
               different file, set the value of the MARIADB_HISTFILE
               environment variable. The environment variable MYSQL_HISTFILE
               will be used if MARIADB_HISTFILE isn't present.
    
               The .mariadb_history should be protected with a restrictive
               access mode because sensitive information might be written to
               it, such as the text of SQL statements that contain passwords.
    
               If you do not want to maintain a history file, first remove
               .mariadb_history if it exists, and then use either of the
               following techniques:
    
               •   Set the MARIADB_HISTFILE variable to /dev/null. To cause
                   this setting to take effect each time you log in, put the
                   setting in one of your shell's startup files.
    
               •   Create .mariadb_history as a symbolic link to /dev/null:
    
                       shell> **ln -s /dev/null $HOME/.mariadb_history**
    
                   You need do this only once.
    


## MARIADB COMMANDS



           **mariadb** sends each SQL statement that you issue to the server to
           be executed. There is also a set of commands that **mariadb** itself
           interprets. For a list of these commands, type help or \h at the
           mariadb> prompt:
    
               mariadb> **help**
               List of all MariaDB commands:
               Note that all text commands must be first on line and end with ';'
               ?         (\?) Synonym for 'help'.
               clear     (\c) Clear command.
               connect   (\r) Reconnect to the server. Optional arguments are db and host.
               delimiter (\d) Set statement delimiter.
               edit      (\e) Edit command with $EDITOR.
               ego       (\G) Send command to mariadb server, display result vertically.
               exit      (\q) Exit mariadb. Same as quit.
               go        (\g) Send command to mariadb server.
               help      (\h) Display this help.
               nopager   (\n) Disable pager, print to stdout.
               notee     (\t) Don't write into outfile.
               pager     (\P) Set PAGER [to_pager]. Print the query results via PAGER.
               print     (\p) Print current command.
               prompt    (\R) Change your mariadb prompt.
               quit      (\q) Quit mariadb.
               rehash    (\#) Rebuild completion hash.
               source    (\.) Execute an SQL script file. Takes a file name as an argument.
               status    (\s) Get status information from the server.
               system    (\!) Execute a system shell command.
               tee       (\T) Set outfile [to_outfile]. Append everything into given
                              outfile.
               use       (\u) Use another database. Takes database name as argument.
               charset   (\C) Switch to another charset. Might be needed for processing
                              binlog with multi-byte charsets.
               warnings  (\W) Show warnings after every statement.
               nowarning (\w) Don't show warnings after every statement.
               For server side help, type 'help contents'
    
           Each command has both a long and short form. The long form is not
           case sensitive; the short form is. The long form can be followed
           by an optional semicolon terminator, but the short form should
           not.
    
           The use of short-form commands within multi-line /* ... */
           comments is not supported.
    
           •   **help [**_arg_**]** , **\h [**_arg_**]** , **\? [**_arg_**]** , **? [**_arg_**]**
    
               Display a help message listing the available **mariadb** commands.
    
               If you provide an argument to the help command, **mariadb** uses
               it as a search string to access server-side help. For more
               information, see the section called “MARIADB SERVER-SIDE
               HELP”.
    
           •   **charset** _charset_name_ , **\C** _charset_name_
    
               Change the default character set and issue a SET NAMES
               statement. This enables the character set to remain
               synchronized on the client and server if **mariadb** is run with
               auto-reconnect enabled (which is not recommended), because the
               specified character set is used for reconnects.
    
           •   **clear** , **\c**
    
               Clear the current input. Use this if you change your mind
               about executing the statement that you are entering.
    
           •   **connect [**_db_name host_name_**]]** , **\r [**_db_name host_name_**]]**
    
               Reconnect to the server. The optional database name and host
               name arguments may be given to specify the default database or
               the host where the server is running. If omitted, the current
               values are used.
    
           •   **delimiter** _str_ , **\d** _str_
    
               Change the string that **mariadb** interprets as the separator
               between SQL statements. The default is the semicolon character
               (“;”).
    
               The delimiter can be specified as an unquoted or quoted
               argument. Quoting can be done with either single quote (') or
               double quote (") characters. To include a quote within a
               quoted string, either quote the string with the other quote
               character or escape the quote with a backslash (“\”)
               character. Backslash should be avoided outside of quoted
               strings because it is the escape character for MariaDB. For an
               unquoted argument, the delimiter is read up to the first space
               or end of line. For a quoted argument, the delimiter is read
               up to the matching quote on the line.
    
               When the delimiter recognized by **mariadb** is set to something
               other than the default of “;”, instances of that character are
               sent to the server without interpretation. However, the server
               itself still interprets “;” as a statement delimiter and
               processes statements accordingly. This behavior on the server
               side comes into play for multiple-statement execution, and for
               parsing the body of stored procedures and functions, triggers,
               and events.
    
           •   **edit** , **\e**
    
               Edit the current input statement.  **mariadb** checks the values
               of the EDITOR and VISUAL environment variables to determine
               which editor to use. The default editor is **vi** if neither
               variable is set.
    
               The **edit** command works only in Unix.
    
           •   **ego** , **\G**
    
               Send the current statement to the server to be executed and
               display the result using vertical format.
    
           •   **exit** , **\q**
    
               Exit **mariadb**.
    
           •   **go** , **\g**
    
               Send the current statement to the server to be executed.
    
           •   **nopager** , **\n**
    
               Disable output paging. See the description for **pager**.
    
               The **nopager** command works only in Unix.
    
           •   **notee** , **\t**
    
               Disable output copying to the tee file. See the description
               for **tee**.
    
           •   **nowarning** , **\w**
    
               Enable display of warnings after each statement.
    
           •   **pager [**_command_**]** , **\P [**_command_**]**
    
               Enable output paging. By using the **--pager** option when you
               invoke **mariadb** , it is possible to browse or search query
               results in interactive mode with Unix programs such as **less** ,
               **more** , or any other similar program. If you specify no value
               for the option, **mariadb** checks the value of the PAGER
               environment variable and sets the pager to that. Pager
               functionality works only in interactive mode.
    
               Output paging can be enabled interactively with the **pager**
               command and disabled with **nopager**. The command takes an
               optional argument; if given, the paging program is set to
               that. With no argument, the pager is set to the pager that was
               set on the command line, or stdout if no pager was specified.
    
               Output paging works only in Unix because it uses the popen()
               function, which does not exist on Windows. For Windows, the
               **tee** option can be used instead to save query output, although
               it is not as convenient as **pager** for browsing output in some
               situations.
    
           •   **print** , **\p**
    
               Print the current input statement without executing it.
    
           •   **prompt [**_str_**]** , **\R [**_str_**]**
    
               Reconfigure the **mariadb** prompt to the given string. The
               special character sequences that can be used in the prompt are
               described later in this section.
    
               If you specify the prompt command with no argument, **mariadb**
               resets the prompt to the default of mariadb>.
    
           •   **quit** , **\q**
    
               Exit **mariadb**.
    
           •   **rehash** , **\#**
    
               Rebuild the completion hash that enables database, table, and
               column name completion while you are entering statements. (See
               the description for the **--auto-rehash** option.)
    
           •   **source** _file_name_ , **\.**_file_name_
    
               Read the named file and executes the statements contained
               therein. On Windows, you can specify path name separators as /
               or \\.
    
           •   **status** , **\s**
    
               Provide status information about the connection and the server
               you are using. If you are running in **--safe-updates** mode,
               status also prints the values for the **mariadb** variables that
               affect your queries.
    
           •   **system** _command_ , **\!**_command_
    
               Execute the given command using your default command
               interpreter.
    
               The **system** command works only in Unix.
    
           •   **tee [**_file_name_**]** , **\T [**_file_name_**]**
    
               By using the **--tee** option when you invoke **mariadb** , you can log
               statements and their output. All the data displayed on the
               screen is appended into a given file. This can be very useful
               for debugging purposes also.  **mariadb** flushes results to the
               file after each statement, just before it prints its next
               prompt. Tee functionality works only in interactive mode.
    
               You can enable this feature interactively with the **tee**
               command. Without a parameter, the previous file is used. The
               **tee** file can be disabled with the **notee** command. Executing **tee**
               again re-enables logging.
    
           •   **use** _db_name_ , **\u** _db_name_
    
               Use _db_name_ as the default database.
    
           •   **warnings** , **\W**
    
               Enable display of warnings after each statement (if there are
               any).
    
           Here are a few tips about the **pager** command:
    
           •   You can use it to write to a file and the results go only to
               the file:
    
                   mariadb> **pager cat > /tmp/log.txt**
    
               You can also pass any options for the program that you want to
               use as your pager:
    
                   mariadb> **pager less -n -i -S**
    
           •   In the preceding example, note the **-S** option. You may find it
               very useful for browsing wide query results. Sometimes a very
               wide result set is difficult to read on the screen. The **-S**
               option to **less** can make the result set much more readable
               because you can scroll it horizontally using the left-arrow
               and right-arrow keys. You can also use **-S** interactively within
               **less** to switch the horizontal-browse mode on and off. For more
               information, read the **less** manual page:
    
                   shell> **man less**
    
           •   The **-F** and **-X** options may be used with **less** to cause it to
               exit if output fits on one screen, which is convenient when no
               scrolling is necessary:
    
                   mariadb> **pager less -n -i -S -F -X**
    
           •   You can specify very complex pager commands for handling query
               output:
    
                   mariadb> **pager cat | tee /dr1/tmp/res.txt \**
                             **| tee /dr2/tmp/res2.txt | less -n -i -S**
    
               In this example, the command would send query results to two
               files in two different directories on two different file
               systems mounted on /dr1 and /dr2, yet still display the
               results onscreen via **less**.
    
           You can also combine the **tee** and **pager** functions. Have a **tee** file
           enabled and **pager** set to **less** , and you are able to browse the
           results using the **less** program and still have everything appended
           into a file the same time. The difference between the Unix **tee**
           used with the **pager** command and the **mariadb** built-in **tee** command
           is that the built-in **tee** works even if you do not have the Unix
           **tee** available. The built-in **tee** also logs everything that is
           printed on the screen, whereas the Unix **tee** used with **pager** does
           not log quite that much. Additionally, **tee** file logging can be
           turned on and off interactively from within **mariadb**. This is
           useful when you want to log some queries to a file, but not
           others.
    
           The **prompt** command reconfigures the default mariadb> prompt. The
           string for defining the prompt can contain the following special
           sequences.
           ┌────────┬────────────────────────────┐
           │ **Option** │ **Description** │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \c     │ A counter that             │
           │        │ increments for each        │
           │        │ statement you issue        │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \D     │ The full current date      │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \d     │ The default database       │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \h     │ The server host            │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \l     │ The current delimiter      │
           │        │ (new in 5.1.12)            │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \m     │ Minutes of the current     │
           │        │ time                       │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \n     │ A newline character        │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \O     │ The current month in       │
           │        │ three-letter format        │
           │        │ (Jan, Feb, ...)            │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \o     │ The current month in       │
           │        │ numeric format             │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \P     │ am/pm                      │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \p     │ The current TCP/IP port    │
           │        │ or socket file             │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \R     │ The current time, in       │
           │        │ 24-hour military time      │
           │        │ (0–23)                     │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \r     │ The current time,          │
           │        │ standard 12-hour time      │
           │        │ (1–12)                     │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \S     │ Semicolon                  │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \s     │ Seconds of the current     │
           │        │ time                       │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \t     │ A tab character            │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \U     │                            │
           │        │        Your full           │
           │        │        _user_name_ @_host_name_ │
           │        │        account name        │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \u     │ Your user name             │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \v     │ The server version         │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \w     │ The current day of the     │
           │        │ week in three-letter       │
           │        │ format (Mon, Tue, ...)     │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \Y     │ The current year, four     │
           │        │ digits                     │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \y     │ The current year, two      │
           │        │ digits                     │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \_     │ A space                    │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \      │ A space (a space follows   │
           │        │ the backslash)             │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \'     │ Single quote               │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \"     │ Double quote               │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \\     │ A literal “\” backslash    │
           │        │ character                  │
           ├────────┼────────────────────────────┤
           │ \_x_     │                            │
           │        │        _x_ , for any “ _x_ ” not  │
           │        │        listed above        │
           └────────┴────────────────────────────┘
    
           You can set the prompt in several ways:
    
           •   _Use an environment variable._  You can set the MYSQL_PS1
               environment variable to a prompt string. For example:
    
                   shell> **export MYSQL_PS1="(\u@\h) [\d] > "**
    
           •   _Use a command-line option._  You can set the **--prompt** option on
               the command line to **mariadb**. For example:
    
                   shell> **mariadb --prompt="(\u@\h) [\d] > "**
                   (user@host) [database]>
    
           •   _Use an option file._  You can set the prompt option in the
               [mariadb] group of any MariaDB option file, such as
               /etc/my.cnf or the .my.cnf file in your home directory. For
               example:
    
                   [mariadb]
                   prompt=(\\u@\\h) [\\d]>\\_
    
               In this example, note that the backslashes are doubled. If you
               set the prompt using the prompt option in an option file, it
               is advisable to double the backslashes when using the special
               prompt options. There is some overlap in the set of allowable
               prompt options and the set of special escape sequences that
               are recognized in option files. The overlap may cause you
               problems if you use single backslashes. For example, \s is
               interpreted as a space rather than as the current seconds
               value. The following example shows how to define a prompt
               within an option file to include the current time in HH:MM:SS>
               format:
    
                   [mariadb]
                   prompt="\\r:\\m:\\s> "
    
           •   _Set the prompt interactively._  You can change your prompt
               interactively by using the prompt (or \R) command. For
               example:
    
                   mariadb> **prompt (\u@\h) [\d] >\_**
                   PROMPT set to '(\u@\h) [\d]>\_'
                   (_user_ @_host_) [_database_]>
                   (_user_ @_host_) [_database_]> prompt
                   Returning to default PROMPT of mariadb>
                   mariadb>
    


## MARIADB SERVER-SIDE HELP



               mariadb> **help** _search_string_
    
           If you provide an argument to the help command, **mariadb** uses it as
           a search string to access server-side help. The proper operation
           of this command requires that the help tables in the mysql
           database be initialized with help topic information.
    
           If there is no match for the search string, the search fails:
    
               mariadb> **help me**
               Nothing found
               Please try to run 'help contents' for a list of all accessible topics
    
           Use **help contents** to see a list of the help categories:
    
               mariadb> **help contents**
               You asked for help about help category: "Contents"
               For more information, type 'help <item>', where <item> is one of the
               following categories:
                  Account Management
                  Administration
                  Data Definition
                  Data Manipulation
                  Data Types
                  Functions
                  Functions and Modifiers for Use with GROUP BY
                  Geographic Features
                  Language Structure
                  Plugins
                  Storage Engines
                  Stored Routines
                  Table Maintenance
                  Transactions
                  Triggers
    
           If the search string matches multiple items, **mariadb** shows a list
           of matching topics:
    
               mariadb> **help logs**
               Many help items for your request exist.
               To make a more specific request, please type 'help <item>',
               where <item> is one of the following topics:
                  SHOW
                  SHOW BINARY LOGS
                  SHOW ENGINE
                  SHOW LOGS
    
           Use a topic as the search string to see the help entry for that
           topic:
    
               mariadb> **help show binary logs**
               Name: 'SHOW BINARY LOGS'
               Description:
               Syntax:
               SHOW BINARY LOGS
               SHOW MASTER LOGS
               Lists the binary log files on the server. This statement is used as
               part of the procedure described in [purge-binary-logs], that shows how
               to determine which logs can be purged.
               mariadb> SHOW BINARY LOGS;
               +---------------+-----------+
               | Log_name      | File_size |
               +---------------+-----------+
               | binlog.000015 |    724935 |
               | binlog.000016 |    733481 |
               +---------------+-----------+
    


## EXECUTING SQL STATEMENTS FROM A TEXT FILE



           The **mariadb** client typically is used interactively, like this:
    
               shell> **mariadb** _db_name_
    
           However, it is also possible to put your SQL statements in a file
           and then tell **mariadb** to read its input from that file. To do so,
           create a text file _text_file_ that contains the statements you wish
           to execute. Then invoke **mariadb** as shown here:
    
               shell> **mariadb** _db_name_ **< **_text_file_
    
           If you place a USE _db_name_ statement as the first statement in the
           file, it is unnecessary to specify the database name on the
           command line:
    
               shell> **mariadb < text_file**
    
           If you are already running **mariadb** , you can execute an SQL script
           file using the source command or \.  command:
    
               mariadb> **source** _file_name_
               mariadb> **\.**_file_name_
    
           Sometimes you may want your script to display progress information
           to the user. For this you can insert statements like this:
    
               SELECT '<info_to_display>' AS ' ';
    
           The statement shown outputs <info_to_display>.
    
           You can also invoke **mariadb** with the **--verbose** option, which
           causes each statement to be displayed before the result that it
           produces.
    
           **mariadb** ignores Unicode byte order mark (BOM) characters at the
           beginning of input files. Presence of a BOM does not cause **mariadb**
           to change its default character set. To do that, invoke **mariadb**
           with an option such as **--default-character-set=utf8**.
    


## MARIADB TIPS



           This section describes some techniques that can help you use
           **mariadb** more effectively.
    
       **Displaying Query Results Vertically**
           Some query results are much more readable when displayed
           vertically, instead of in the usual horizontal table format.
           Queries can be displayed vertically by terminating the query with
           \G instead of a semicolon. For example, longer text values that
           include newlines often are much easier to read with vertical
           output:
    
               mariadb> **SELECT * FROM mails WHERE LENGTH(txt) < 300 LIMIT 300,1\G**
               *************************** 1. row ***************************
                 msg_nro: 3068
                    date: 2000-03-01 23:29:50
               time_zone: +0200
               mail_from: Monty
                   reply: monty@no.spam.com
                 mail_to: "Thimble Smith" <tim@no.spam.com>
                     sbj: UTF-8
                     txt: >>>>> "Thimble" == Thimble Smith writes:
               Thimble> Hi.  I think this is a good idea.  Is anyone familiar
               Thimble> with UTF-8 or Unicode? Otherwise, I'll put this on my
               Thimble> TODO list and see what happens.
               Yes, please do that.
               Regards,
               Monty
                    file: inbox-jani-1
                    hash: 190402944
               1 row in set (0.09 sec)
    
       **Using the --safe-updates Option**
           For beginners, a useful startup option is **--safe-updates**(or
           **--i-am-a-dummy** , which has the same effect). It is helpful for
           cases when you might have issued a DELETE FROM _tbl_name_ statement
           but forgotten the WHERE clause. Normally, such a statement deletes
           all rows from the table. With **--safe-updates** , you can delete rows
           only by specifying the key values that identify them. This helps
           prevent accidents.
    
           When you use the **--safe-updates** option, **mariadb** issues the
           following statement when it connects to the MariaDB server:
    
               SET sql_safe_updates=1, sql_select_limit=1000, sql_max_join_size=1000000;
    
           The SET statement has the following effects:
    
           •   You are not allowed to execute an UPDATE or DELETE statement
               unless you specify a key constraint in the WHERE clause or
               provide a LIMIT clause (or both). For example:
    
                   UPDATE _tbl_name_ SET _not_key_column_ =_val_ WHERE _key_column_ =_val_ ;
                   UPDATE _tbl_name_ SET _not_key_column_ =_val_ LIMIT 1;
    
           •   The server limits all large SELECT results to 1,000 rows
               unless the statement includes a LIMIT clause.
    
           •   The server aborts multiple-table SELECT statements that
               probably need to examine more than 1,000,000 row combinations.
    
           To specify limits different from 1,000 and 1,000,000, you can
           override the defaults by using the **--select-limit** and
           **--max-join-size** options:
    
               shell> **mariadb --safe-updates --select-limit=500 --max-join-size=10000**
    
       **Disabling mariadb Auto-Reconnect**
           If the **mariadb** client loses its connection to the server while
           sending a statement, it immediately and automatically tries to
           reconnect once to the server and send the statement again.
           However, even if **mariadb** succeeds in reconnecting, your first
           connection has ended and all your previous session objects and
           settings are lost: temporary tables, the autocommit mode, and
           user-defined and session variables. Also, any current transaction
           rolls back. This behavior may be dangerous for you, as in the
           following example where the server was shut down and restarted
           between the first and second statements without you knowing it:
    
               mariadb> **SET @a=1;**
               Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.05 sec)
               mariadb> **INSERT INTO t VALUES(@a);**
               ERROR 2006: MariaDB server has gone away
               No connection. Trying to reconnect...
               Connection id:    1
               Current database: test
               Query OK, 1 row affected (1.30 sec)
               mariadb> **SELECT * FROM t;**
               +------+
               | a    |
               +------+
               | NULL |
               +------+
               1 row in set (0.05 sec)
    
           The @a user variable has been lost with the connection, and after
           the reconnection it is undefined. If it is important to have
           **mariadb** terminate with an error if the connection has been lost,
           you can start the **mariadb** client with the **--skip-reconnect** option.
    


## NOTES



            1. Bug#25946
               http://bugs.mysql.com/bug.php?id=25946
    


* * *