On my website installation, I need a mysql database to store my posts and configuration. During the configuration, I suddently run into a strange error: mysql server is complaining about authentication issues. Here is how I solved it.

The TL;DR anwser

Run this command:

mysql -u root -p

When you are prompted for the password, hit enter key (leave the password blank).

My setup

I am working on windows machine. I used the Web Platform Installer to have a development stack on my machine. I am intending to use Wordpress for my website.

Important note: I never set a password for the MySQL during the install process.

Attempt to connect without password

To connect to the database, I used the following command:

mysql -u root -p

Then it asks a password which I don’t have. :(

Attempt to connect with a password

I tried to connect using this command.

mysql -u root password '123'

Then it throws this back:

Access denied for user 'root@localhost' (using password:NO)

The solution

First, I made a mistake

There is a mistake in the command I ran. For the password, you need to use either -p or --password.

So this command is wrong.

mysql -u root password '123'

The right command is:

mysql -u root --password '123'

The default password

The default password for root for the installation is blank. Not the litteral word, but “nothing”.

The steps to solve

Connect to the MySQl server with blank password.

Run this command:

mysql -u root -p

When you are prompted for the password, hit enter key (leave the password blank).

After that, you can set a password for the root user.

Conclusion

To fix the issue you are having, you first need to:

• check that your command is correct.
• connect to the MySQL server with root account and blank password.
• set a password for root user.