Import a MySQL Database

Before you import a MySQL® backup, you can create a .my.cnf file with the root credentials. This file enables you to avoid having to input the password when you restore the databases and also helps if you want to create a cron job script to backup MySQL daily.

Store your MySQL root password in /root/.my.cnf, as shown in the following example, and use chmod 600 to set appropriate permisssions for the file.

[client]
user=root
password=yourmysqlrootpassword

Restore commands

Use the following command to restore a single database:

$ mysql [database_name] < /path/to/backup/backupfile.sql

Use the following command to restore all databases. The tables need to exist, or backup needs to contain CREATE TABLE statements:

$ mysql < /path/to/backup/alldatabases.sql