- Create a MySQL User on Linux via Command Line
- Grant Permissions to a MySQL User on Linux via Command Line
- Remove Permissions for a MySQL User on Linux via Command Line
- Remove a MySQL User on Linux via Command Line
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MySQL via Command Line 101: Basic Database Interaction
MySQL via Command Line 101: Basic Database Interaction

Preflight Check
- These instructions are intended for revoking a MySQL user permissions on Linux via the command line
- I’ll be working from a Liquid Web Core Managed CentOS 6.5 server, and I’ll be logged in as root.
Login to MySQL
First we’ll log in to the MySQL server from the command line with the following command:
mysql -u root -p
In this case, I’ve specified the user mysql>
If you haven’t yet created a MySQL user, please refer to our tutorial on creating a MySQL user.
View Grants for MySQL User
Use the following command to check the grants for the user SHOW GRANTS FOR 'testuser'@'localhost';
Revoke Permissions to MySQL User
The basic syntax for revoking permissions is as follows:
REVOKE permission ON database.table FROM 'user'@'localhost';
Here is a short list of commonly used - ALL – Allow complete access to a specific database. If a database is not specified, then allow complete access to the entirety of MySQL.
- CREATE – Allow a user to create databases and tables.
- DELETE – Allow a user to delete rows from a table.
- DROP – Allow a user to drop databases and tables.
- EXECUTE – Allow a user to execute stored routines.
- GRANT OPTION – Allow a user to grant or remove another user’s privileges.
- INSERT – Allow a user to insert rows from a table.
- SELECT – Allow a user to select data from a database.
- SHOW DATABASES- Allow a user to view a list of all databases.
- UPDATE – Allow a user to update rows in a table.
REVOKE CREATE ON *.* FROM 'testuser'@'localhost';
Using an asterisk (*) in the place of the REVOKE DROP ON tutorial_database.* FROM 'testuser'@'localhost';
Note: If the specified user does not have the specified permission, then you will receive an error. Be sure to use the SHOW GRANTS command, as demonstrated above, to see what permissions are granted.
When finished making your permission changes, it’s good practice to reload all the privileges with the
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;