MySQL CREATE USER

Summary: in this tutorial, you will learn how to use the MySQL CREATE USER statement to create a new user in the MySQL database server.

Typically, MySQL creates the root user account during installation. This root user account has full privileges over the MySQL database server, giving it complete control over all databases, tables, users, and more.

It’s a good practice to use the root account for administrative functions exclusively. For other tasks, create a new user account and grant the necessary privileges.

This tutorial focuses on using the CREATE USER statement to create a new user in the MySQL database.

Introduction to MySQL CREATE USER statement

To create a new user in the MySQL database, you use the CREATE USER statement.

Here’s the basic syntax of the CREATE USER statement:

CREATE USER [IF NOT EXISTS] account_name 
IDENTIFIED BY 'password';Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

In this syntax:

First, specify the account name after the CREATE USER keywords. The account name consists of two parts: username and hostname, separated by the @ sign:

username@hostnameCode language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

The username is the name of the user while the hostname is the name of the host from which the user connects to the MySQL Server.

The hostname part of the account name is optional. If you omit the hostname, the user can connect from any host.

An account name without a hostname is equivalent to the following:

username@%Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

If the username and hostname contains special characters, such as spaces or hyphens, you need to enclose the username and hostname separately in quotes, like this:

'bob-cat'@'hostname'Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

In addition to the single quote ('), you can use backticks ( `) or double quotation mark (").

Second, specify the password for the user after the IDENTIFIED BY keywords.

The IF NOT EXISTS option creates a new user only if it does not already exist. If the user exists, the statement issues a warning.

Note that the CREATE USER statement creates a new user without any privileges. To grant privileges to the user, you use the GRANT statement.

MySQL CREATE USER example

First, establish a connection to the MySQL Server using the mysql client tool with the root user account:

mysql -u root -pCode language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Enter the password for the root account and press Enter:

Enter password: ********Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Second, show the users on the current MySQL Server:

SELECT
  user 
FROM 
  mysql.user;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Here is the output:

+------------------+
| user             |
+------------------+
| mysql.infoschema |
| mysql.saession   |
| mysql.sys        |
| root             |
+------------------+

Third, create a new user named bob:

create user bob@localhost 
identified by 'Secure1pass!';Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Fourth, show all users again:

select user from mysql.user;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

The output will be:

+------------------+
| user             |
+------------------+
| bob              |
| mysql.infoschema |
| mysql.session    |
| mysql.sys        |
| root             |
+------------------+
5 rows in set (0.00 sec)Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

The output indicates that the user with the name bob has been created successfully.

Fifth, open a second session and log in to the MySQL database server with the user bob:

mysql -u bob -pCode language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Input the password for bob and press Enter:

Enter password: ********Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Sixth, show the databases that bob has access:

show databases;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Here is the list of databases that bob can access:

+--------------------+
| Database           |
+--------------------+
| information_schema |
| performance_schema |
+--------------------+
2 rows in set (0.01 sec)Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Seventh, go to the session of the user root and create a new database called bobdb:

create database bobdb;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Eight, select the database bobdb:

use bobdb;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Ninth, create a new table called todos:

create table todos(
   id int auto_increment primary key,
   title varchar(255) not null,
   completed bool default false
);Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Tenth, grant all privileges to the bobdb to bob:

grant all privileges on bobdb.* to bob@localhost;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Note that you will learn how to grant privileges to a user in the GRANT tutorial.

Eleventh, go to bob’s session and display all the databases:

show databases;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Now, bob can see the bobdb:

+--------------------+
| Database           |
+--------------------+
| bobdb              |
| information_schema |
| performance_schema |
+--------------------+
3 rows in set (0.00 sec)Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Twelfth, select the database bobdb:

use bobdb;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Thirteenth, show the tables from the bobdb database:

show tables;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

The user bob can see the lists table:

+-----------------+
| Tables_in_bobdb |
+-----------------+
| todos           |
+-----------------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Fourteenth, insert a row into the todos table:

insert into todos(title) 
values('Learn MySQL');Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Fifteenth, query data from the lists table:

select * from todos;Code language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

This is the output:

+----+-------------+-----------+
| id | title       | completed |
+----+-------------+-----------+
|  1 | Learn MySQL |         0 |
+----+-------------+-----------+
1 row in set (0.00 sec)Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

So the user bob can do everything with the bobdb database.

Finally, disconnect from the MySQL Server from both sessions:

exitCode language: SQL (Structured Query Language) (sql)

Summary

Use the CREATE USER statement to create a new user in the MySQL Database Server.

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