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MySQL 5.1 Reference Manual :: 3 Tutorial :: 3.5 Using mysql in Batch Mode
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3.5. Using mysql in Batch Mode

In the previous sections, you used mysql interactively to enter queries and view the results. You can also run mysql in batch mode. To do this, put the commands you want to run in a file, then tell mysql to read its input from the file: 

shell> mysql < batch-file

If you are running mysql under Windows and have some special characters in the file that cause problems, you can do this: 

C:\> mysql -e "source batch-file"

If you need to specify connection parameters on the command line, the command might look like this: 

shell> mysql -h host -u user -p < batch-file
Enter password: ********

When you use mysql this way, you are creating a script file, then executing the script.

If you want the script to continue even if some of the statements in it produce errors, you should use the --force command-line option.

Why use a script? Here are a few reasons:

  • If you run a query repeatedly (say, every day or every week), making it a script allows you to avoid retyping it each time you execute it.

  • You can generate new queries from existing ones that are similar by copying and editing script files.

  • Batch mode can also be useful while you're developing a query, particularly for multiple-line commands or multiple-statement sequences of commands. If you make a mistake, you don't have to retype everything. Just edit your script to correct the error, then tell mysql to execute it again.

  • If you have a query that produces a lot of output, you can run the output through a pager rather than watching it scroll off the top of your screen: 

    shell> mysql < batch-file | more

  • You can catch the output in a file for further processing: 

    shell> mysql < batch-file > mysql.out

  • You can distribute your script to other people so that they can also run the commands.

  • Some situations do not allow for interactive use, for example, when you run a query from a cron job. In this case, you must use batch mode.

The default output format is different (more concise) when you run mysql in batch mode than when you use it interactively. For example, the output of SELECT DISTINCT species FROM pet looks like this when mysql is run interactively: 

+---------+
| species |
+---------+
| bird    |
| cat     |
| dog     |
| hamster |
| snake   |
+---------+

In batch mode, the output looks like this instead: 

species
bird
cat
dog
hamster
snake

If you want to get the interactive output format in batch mode, use mysql -t. To echo to the output the commands that are executed, use mysql -vvv.

You can also use scripts from the mysql prompt by using the source command or \. command: 

mysql> source filename;
mysql> \. filename

See Section 4.5.1.4, “Executing SQL Statements from a Text File”, for more information.


User Comments

Posted by Yurii Zborovs'kyi on March 6 2003 12:57am[Delete] [Edit]

How to measure total batch running time for several SQLs:

# at start of your script file
SET @start=UNIX_TIMESTAMP();

# great job
...
...
...

# at bottom of your script file
SET
@s=@seconds:=UNIX_TIMESTAMP()-@start,
@d=TRUNCATE(@s/86400,0), @s=MOD(@s,86400),
@h=TRUNCATE(@s/3600,0), @s=MOD(@s,3600),
@m=TRUNCATE(@s/60,0), @s=MOD(@s,60),
@day=IF(@d>0,CONCAT(@d,' day'),''),
@hour=IF(@d+@h>0,CONCAT(IF(@d>0,LPAD(@h,2,'0'),@h),' hour'),''),
@min=IF(@d+@h+@m>0,CONCAT(IF(@d+@h>0,LPAD(@m,2,'0'),@m),' min.'),''),
@sec=CONCAT(IF(@d+@h+@m>0,LPAD(@s,2,'0'),@s),' sec.');

SELECT
CONCAT(@seconds,' sec.') AS seconds,
CONCAT_WS(' ',@day,@hour,@min,@sec) AS elapsed;

# enjoy :)

p.s. Tested & works
p.p.s. No fractions of seconds :(

jz

Posted by Musba - on May 19 2003 11:41pm[Delete] [Edit]

Example of a Korn Shell Script

#!/bin/ksh
mysql --user=<user> --password=<password> -h <host> <<!!
SELECT VERSION(), CURRENT_DATE;
quit
!!

Posted by Matthew Dominick on January 10 2004 10:20am[Delete] [Edit]

When using mysql in batch mode there is an odd requirement that cost me hours. Your .sql file cannot contain any #comment lines. Delete them and importing will be a breeze. There is no indication that this is the problem. However, experimentation revealed this to be the cause.

Posted by Donald Axel on February 18 2004 2:52pm[Delete] [Edit]

Lines beginning with two dashes are comment lines. Inside a shell script you will use #comment lines in the shell part and if you use a here-document you must use --comment lines inside the here document. Example:
===file petquery.sh===
#!/bin/sh
# This is a comment
mysql -t <<STOP
-- This is a comment inside an sql-command-stream.
use menagerie
select * from pet ;
\q
STOP
test $? = 0 && echo "Your batch job terminated gracefully"

===end-of-file petquery.sh===
DO NOT cut/paste the === lines.
I don't know how to make source listings inside the example.
donald_j_axel(at)get2net.dk

Posted by [name withheld] on September 8 2004 1:11pm[Delete] [Edit]

A more secure way to use the shell.

So that passwords are not embedded in the shell source file create a password file:

echo "batchpassword" > /etc/security/mysqlpassword
chmod 200 /etc/security/mysqlpassword

Then in your script:

echo "update tablex set x=1 where a=2;" | mysql mydb --user=batchdb --password=`cat /etc/security/mysqlpassword`

This assumes you have created a user called "batchdb" with that password and the correct access rights to the database called "mydb".

tc

Posted by Senthil Nathan on October 29 2004 11:57pm[Delete] [Edit]

When using mysql in batch mode you can use pipes to write an interactive but pre-scripted shell script. Be aware that you need to use the "-n" command line option to flush the buffer otherwise your read will hang. Here is a code sample in ksh:

-------------------------------------------------
#!/bin/ksh
mysql -u username -ppassword -D dbname -ss -n -q |&
print -p -- "select count(*) from some_table;"
read -p get_row_count1
print -p -- "select count(*) from some_other_table;"
read -p get_row_count2
print -p exit ;
#
echo $get_row_count1
echo $get_row_count2
#
exit
-------------------------------------------------
(The -q option is optional)

Note: If you dislike using "-n" then make sure all your read statements are after the exit.

Posted by Jamie Jones on November 22 2004 3:33am[Delete] [Edit]

N.B. On most Unix systems, by placing the password in the command line with --password (even the above method for using a password file) you are making the password visible to local users, who can see the command string with a "ps" or "w" command.

Whilst some systems can be set to block this, and others would let you wrap the command in something that would overwrite what users could see as your command, the best way to do any automations like this is to create a specific unix user for the job (or use a user that is already secure) and place the password in the .my.cnf file for that user - making sure the permissions are set so that only the owner can read it

Posted by Frances D on April 29 2006 11:33pm[Delete] [Edit]

For newbies like me: This exact command allowed me to run a script from outside MySQL (using the DOS command line in Win98):

C:\WINDOWS\Desktop>c:\mysql\bin\mysql -u root -p < "c:\mysql\scripts\20060416_ShowInnodbstatusscript.txt" | more

Note: My text file had two commands:

Use db_name;
Show InnoDB Status;

FYI: I had been plagued by a foreign key error, but was unable figure out how to see the result of my Show Innodb Status command due to my 50-line DOS screen limitation. To get around this problem I

a) created the simple script shown above
b) created a foreign key error while logged into my MySQL user account, then
c) opened an additional DOS window to execute the command shown above.

Running the command outside of MySQL essentially creates a way to view command results one page at a time for folks administering MySQL at the command line (using Windows).

Posted by WL Seow on November 2 2006 3:36pm[Delete] [Edit]

Alternatively, by default, mysql.exe assumes that the script is inside the same folder.

cd C:\Program Files\MySQL\MySQL Server 5.0\bin
mysql -u root -p < testing.txt

Done!

Posted by Alexander Simakov on February 2 2007 10:52am[Delete] [Edit]

Hello!

Suppose you want to run script `test.sql' in batch mode.
The most straightforward way, as mentioned at the very
beginning, is to say:

shell> mysql < test.sql

In order to further reduce typing, one wish to invoke

shell> chmod a+x test.sql

and then run `test.sql' as a usual Unix script.
But it doesn`t work.

It is well known that so-called Sha-Bang (#!) symbol
is used in Unix world to specify where actual interpreter
lives. For example, #!/bin/bash

My objective is to create small and convenient wrapper
to run MySQL scripts in the same way as I run other scripts:
just typing `test.sql'.

Here is the program:

=[sql.c]===8<========================================================
/*
* MySQL Sha-Bang wrapper. Public domain.
* Alexander Simakov
*/

#include <stdio.h>
#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>

int main(int argc, char **argv) {
char buf[512];
int i;

buf[0] = 0;

for (i = 1; i < argc; i++) {
if (i == 1) {
strncat(buf, "mysql ", sizeof(buf) - strlen(buf) - 1);
}

if (i == argc - 1) {
strncat(buf, "< ", sizeof(buf) - strlen(buf) - 1);
}

strncat(buf, argv[i], sizeof(buf) - strlen(buf) - 1);

if (i != argc - 1) {
strncat(buf, " ", sizeof(buf) - strlen(buf) - 1);
}
}

return system(buf);
}
===========8<========================================================

Compile the program
shell> gcc -o sql sql.c

Copy program into the usual location
shell> cp sql /usr/bin/sql

Set execution flag on the script
shell> chmod 755 test.sql

Show script contents
shell> cat test.sql
#!/usr/bin/sql -t

use mysql;
select User,Host from user;

Enjoy!
shell> ./test.sql

+--------+-----------+
| User   | Host      |
+--------+-----------+
| root   | localhost |
| xander | localhost |
+--------+-----------+
P.S.
Note that in order to use batch mode efficiently you need
non-interactive authentification. The best way is per-user
configuration file: ~/.my.cnf

Create file and put a couple of strings:
[client]
password = yourpasswd

NB! Don`t forget to set proper permissions!
shell> chmod 400 ~/.my.cnf

Now mysql will use this password as you default password.

P.S.S.
You can also pass any mysql parmeters in the sha-bang line.
For example:
#!/usr/bin/sql -t
or
#!/usr/bin/sql -X
or even
#!/usr/bin/sql -u someuser -ppassword

That`s it!

---
There are 10 kinds of people: those who understand binary and those who don`t.

Posted by Richard Moor on April 30 2008 12:49am[Delete] [Edit]

re:Using mysql in Batch Mode - Windows XP - Vista:
If you need to specify connection parameters on the command line for using a text file use forward slashes
and print the word source, not the url of your file.
Example:mysql> source C:/inetpub/wwwroot/your folder/sql.txt; unfortunately the reference manual does
not allude to this.
rich: comrefhvac.com

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