Databases keep going missing & root password req keep changing... Any ideas why?

[mikegoe]

After running a worpress site with a MySQL back-end on a Windows XP Pro box running Apache since 2003, I decided to finally upgrade the hardware. I now have a Windows 7 Home Preimium laptop with the following:

 

Opsys: Windows 7 Home Premium

MySQL: 5.5.29

Apache: 5.4

PHP: 5.4.9

 

I've never had MySQL issues until now. During the install I created a pwd for 'root' and three databases (one for wordpress and two for gallery). For some reason, in order to access each database I had to leave the pwd blank, so I modified the config files to log in as root with no pwd. This worked for a day, then suddenly I was denied access...and had to start using the pwd. I modified the config files again and for the remainder of the evening all worked well. The next day all of my sites could not access their database. After checking I found all three databases missing (this was after a windows 7 upgrade auto reboot... coincence?). I had backups so I reloaded and once again they all worked well... using a pwd for access... for the remainder of the day. As a precaution I disabled the windows auto update. Today I get home from work and sure enough all three sites are down again due to no database access. First I noticed one of my three databases missing. Once again I reloaded from an export I made the night before and then realized all three databases were no longer accessible without first setting the password back to blank. The swapping of pwd requirements and the dissapearing databases make no sense. I don't know if this is a MySQL problem or a Win-7 issue.

 

Does anyone have any thoughts or suggestions?

 

-Michael G.

[fenway]

Sounds like maybe you have more than one DB server running.

[mikegoe]

Sounds like maybe you have more than one DB server running.

 

I handn't considered that as this was a clean install. How would I verify or validate that theory?

 

Thanks again!

[TRI0N]

MySQL does not like users using root as the connections for Query's outside of PHPMySQL and in some instances does not allow you to connect with root at all via different providers. I would assume that once you get your MySQL up and running that you create a user for external queries and use root for Administration Only.

[Christian F.]

That would not explain the intermittent problems, and certainly not why the DB seems to disappear from time to time. Also, since he is his own provider and running both Apache and MySQL on the same box, I really doubt that the root user is locked out in that manner.

 

Not that you are wrong in recommending the use of a specific user for the site, and leaving root only for administrative purposes. Which is, indeed, the recommended way of doing it, for security reasons.

It just doesn't explain the problems the OP experiences.

 

mikegoe: You might have some hardware issues, which is just about the only thing that I can think of. Either your HDD is failing or that your RAM is faulty, which leads to corrupted data on disk. That's the two most likely scenarios I can think of.

 

As for how to verify if you got two DB systems on the computer: Search, check running services, or whatever else. Plenty of ways to figure out what's installed and/or running on your computer.

Plus, since you have this publicly available, you really should know exactly what's running on it at all times. Lest you want to become saturated with malware and a part of a dozen, or so, botnets.

Edited January 16, 2013 by Christian F.