To see the values that a server will use based on its compiled-in defaults and any option files that it reads, use this command:

mysqld --verbose --help

To see the values that a server will use based on its compiled-in defaults, ignoring the settings in any option files, use this command:

mysqld --no-defaults --verbose --help

To see the current values used by a running server, use the SHOW VARIABLES statement.

Section 5.1.4, “Session System Variables”, describes system variables that exist only as session variables (that is, they do not have any global counterpart).

Section 5.1.5, “Using System Variables”, discusses the syntax for setting and displaying system variable values.

Section 5.1.5.2, “Dynamic System Variables”, lists the variables that can be set at runtime.

Information on tuning system variables can be found in Section 7.5.2, “Tuning Server Parameters”.

Section 13.5.4, “InnoDB Startup Options and System Variables”, lists InnoDB system variables.

auto_increment_increment

auto_increment_increment and auto_increment_offset are intended for use with master-to-master replication, and can be used to control the operation of AUTO_INCREMENT columns. Both variables have global and session values, and each can assume an integer value between 1 and 65,535 inclusive. Setting the value of either of these two variables to 0 causes its value to be set to 1 instead. Attempting to set the value of either of these two variables to an integer greater than 65,535 or less than 0 causes its value to be set to 65,535 instead. Attempting to set the value of auto_increment_increment or auto_increment_offset to a non-integer value gives rise to an error, and the actual value of the variable remains unchanged.

These two variables affect AUTO_INCREMENT column behavior as follows:

Should one or both of these variables be changed and then new rows inserted into a table containing an AUTO_INCREMENT column, the results may seem counterintuitive because the series of AUTO_INCREMENT values is calculated without regard to any values already present in the column, and the next value inserted is the least value in the series that is greater than the maximum existing value in the AUTO_INCREMENT column. In other words, the series is calculated like so:

auto_increment_offset + N × auto_increment_increment

where N is a positive integer value in the series [1, 2, 3, ...]. For example:

mysql> SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'auto_inc%';
+--------------------------+-------+
| Variable_name            | Value |
+--------------------------+-------+
| auto_increment_increment | 10    |
| auto_increment_offset    | 5     |
+--------------------------+-------+
2 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> SELECT col FROM autoinc1;
+-----+
| col |
+-----+
|   1 |
|  11 |
|  21 |
|  31 |
+-----+
4 rows in set (0.00 sec)

mysql> INSERT INTO autoinc1 VALUES (NULL), (NULL), (NULL), (NULL);
Query OK, 4 rows affected (0.00 sec)
Records: 4  Duplicates: 0  Warnings: 0

mysql> SELECT col FROM autoinc1;
+-----+
| col |
+-----+
|   1 |
|  11 |
|  21 |
|  31 |
|  35 |
|  45 |
|  55 |
|  65 |
+-----+
8 rows in set (0.00 sec)

The values shown for auto_increment_increment and auto_increment_offset generate the series 5 + N × 10, that is, [5, 15, 25, 35, 45, ...]. The greatest value present in the col column prior to the INSERT is 31, and the next available value in the AUTO_INCREMENT series is 35, so the inserted values for col begin at that point and the results are as shown for the SELECT query.

It is not possible to confine the effects of these two variables to a single table, and thus they do not take the place of the sequences offered by some other database management systems; these variables control the behavior of all AUTO_INCREMENT columns in all tables on the MySQL server. If the global value of either variable is set, its effects persist until the global value is changed or overridden by setting the session value, or until mysqld is restarted. If the local value is set, the new value affects AUTO_INCREMENT columns for all tables into which new rows are inserted by the current user for the duration of the session, unless the values are changed during that session.

The default value of auto_increment_increment is 1. See Auto-Increment in Multiple-Master Replication.

auto_increment_increment is supported for use with NDB tables beginning with MySQL 5.1.20. Previously, setting it when using MySQL Cluster tables or MySQL Cluster Replication produced unpredictable results.

auto_increment_offset