Provided by: mysql-client-5.7_5.7.42-0ubuntu0.18.04.1_amd64 
NAME
mysqlslap - a load emulation client
SYNOPSIS
mysqlslap [options]
DESCRIPTION
mysqlslap is a diagnostic program designed to emulate client load for a MySQL server and to report the
timing of each stage. It works as if multiple clients are accessing the server.
Invoke mysqlslap like this:
mysqlslap [options]
Some options such as --create or --query enable you to specify a string containing an SQL statement or a
file containing statements. If you specify a file, by default it must contain one statement per line.
(That is, the implicit statement delimiter is the newline character.) Use the --delimiter option to
specify a different delimiter, which enables you to specify statements that span multiple lines or place
multiple statements on a single line. You cannot include comments in a file; mysqlslap does not
understand them.
mysqlslap runs in three stages:
1. Create schema, table, and optionally any stored programs or data to use for the test. This stage uses
a single client connection.
2. Run the load test. This stage can use many client connections.
3. Clean up (disconnect, drop table if specified). This stage uses a single client connection.
Examples:
Supply your own create and query SQL statements, with 50 clients querying and 200 selects for each (enter
the command on a single line):
mysqlslap --delimiter=";"
--create="CREATE TABLE a (b int);INSERT INTO a VALUES (23)"
--query="SELECT * FROM a" --concurrency=50 --iterations=200
Let mysqlslap build the query SQL statement with a table of two INT columns and three VARCHAR columns.
Use five clients querying 20 times each. Do not create the table or insert the data (that is, use the
previous test's schema and data):
mysqlslap --concurrency=5 --iterations=20
--number-int-cols=2 --number-char-cols=3
--auto-generate-sql
Tell the program to load the create, insert, and query SQL statements from the specified files, where the
create.sql file has multiple table creation statements delimited by ';' and multiple insert statements
delimited by ';'. The --query file has multiple queries delimited by ';'. Run all the load statements,
then run all the queries in the query file with five clients (five times each):
mysqlslap --concurrency=5
--iterations=5 --query=query.sql --create=create.sql
--delimiter=";"
mysqlslap supports the following options, which can be specified on the command line or in the
[mysqlslap] and [client] groups of an option file. For information about option files used by MySQL
programs, see Section 4.2.2.2, “Using Option Files”.
• --help, -? Display a help message and exit.
• --auto-generate-sql, -a Generate SQL statements automatically when they are not supplied in files or
using command options.
• --auto-generate-sql-add-autoincrement Add an AUTO_INCREMENT column to automatically generated tables.
• --auto-generate-sql-execute-number=N Specify how many queries to generate automatically.
• --auto-generate-sql-guid-primary Add a GUID-based primary key to automatically generated tables.
• --auto-generate-sql-load-type=type Specify the test load type. The permissible values are read (scan
tables), write (insert into tables), key (read primary keys), update (update primary keys), or mixed
(half inserts, half scanning selects). The default is mixed.
• --auto-generate-sql-secondary-indexes=N Specify how many secondary indexes to add to automatically
generated tables. By default, none are added.
• --auto-generate-sql-unique-query-number=N How many different queries to generate for automatic tests.
For example, if you run a key test that performs 1000 selects, you can use this option with a value
of 1000 to run 1000 unique queries, or with a value of 50 to perform 50 different selects. The
default is 10.
• --auto-generate-sql-unique-write-number=N How many different queries to generate for
--auto-generate-sql-write-number. The default is 10.
• --auto-generate-sql-write-number=N How many row inserts to perform. The default is 100.
• --commit=N How many statements to execute before committing. The default is 0 (no commits are done).
• --compress, -C Compress all information sent between the client and the server if possible. See
Section 4.2.6, “Connection Compression Control”.
• --concurrency=N, -c N The number of parallel clients to simulate.
• --create=value The file or string containing the statement to use for creating the table.
• --create-schema=value The schema in which to run the tests.
Note
If the --auto-generate-sql option is also given, mysqlslap drops the schema at the end of the
test run. To avoid this, use the --no-drop option as well.
• --csv[=file_name] Generate output in comma-separated values format. The output goes to the named
file, or to the standard output if no file is given.
• --debug[=debug_options], -# [debug_options] Write a debugging log. A typical debug_options string is
d:t:o,file_name. The default is d:t:o,/tmp/mysqlslap.trace.
This option is available only if MySQL was built using WITH_DEBUG. MySQL release binaries provided by
Oracle are not built using this option.
• --debug-check Print some debugging information when the program exits.
This option is available only if MySQL was built using WITH_DEBUG. MySQL release binaries provided by
Oracle are not built using this option.
• --debug-info, -T Print debugging information and memory and CPU usage statistics when the program
exits.
This option is available only if MySQL was built using WITH_DEBUG. MySQL release binaries provided by
Oracle are not built using this option.
• --default-auth=plugin A hint about which client-side authentication plugin to use. See
Section 6.2.13, “Pluggable Authentication”.
• --defaults-extra-file=file_name Read this option file after the global option file but (on Unix)
before the user option file. If the file does not exist or is otherwise inaccessible, an error
occurs. If file_name is not an absolute path name, it is interpreted relative to the current
directory.
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --defaults-file=file_name Use only the given option file. If the file does not exist or is otherwise
inaccessible, an error occurs. If file_name is not an absolute path name, it is interpreted relative
to the current directory.
Exception: Even with --defaults-file, client programs read .mylogin.cnf.
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --defaults-group-suffix=str Read not only the usual option groups, but also groups with the usual
names and a suffix of str. For example, mysqlslap normally reads the [client] and [mysqlslap] groups.
If this option is given as --defaults-group-suffix=_other, mysqlslap also reads the [client_other]
and [mysqlslap_other] groups.
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --delimiter=str, -F str The delimiter to use in SQL statements supplied in files or using command
options.
• --detach=N Detach (close and reopen) each connection after each N statements. The default is 0
(connections are not detached).
• --enable-cleartext-plugin Enable the mysql_clear_password cleartext authentication plugin. (See
Section 6.4.1.6, “Client-Side Cleartext Pluggable Authentication”.)
• --engine=engine_name, -e engine_name The storage engine to use for creating tables.
• --get-server-public-key Request from the server the RSA public key that it uses for key pair-based
password exchange. This option applies to clients that connect to the server using an account that
authenticates with the caching_sha2_password authentication plugin. For connections by such accounts,
the server does not send the public key to the client unless requested. The option is ignored for
accounts that do not authenticate with that plugin. It is also ignored if RSA-based password exchange
is not needed, as is the case when the client connects to the server using a secure connection.
If --server-public-key-path=file_name is given and specifies a valid public key file, it takes
precedence over --get-server-public-key.
For information about the caching_sha2_password plugin, see Section 6.4.1.4, “Caching SHA-2 Pluggable
Authentication”.
The --get-server-public-key option was added in MySQL 5.7.23.
• --host=host_name, -h host_name Connect to the MySQL server on the given host.
• --iterations=N, -i N The number of times to run the tests.
• --login-path=name Read options from the named login path in the .mylogin.cnf login path file. A
“login path” is an option group containing options that specify which MySQL server to connect to and
which account to authenticate as. To create or modify a login path file, use the mysql_config_editor
utility. See mysql_config_editor(1).
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --no-drop Prevent mysqlslap from dropping any schema it creates during the test run.
• --no-defaults Do not read any option files. If program startup fails due to reading unknown options
from an option file, --no-defaults can be used to prevent them from being read.
The exception is that the .mylogin.cnf file is read in all cases, if it exists. This permits
passwords to be specified in a safer way than on the command line even when --no-defaults is used. To
create .mylogin.cnf, use the mysql_config_editor utility. See mysql_config_editor(1).
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --number-char-cols=N, -x N The number of VARCHAR columns to use if --auto-generate-sql is specified.
• --number-int-cols=N, -y N The number of INT columns to use if --auto-generate-sql is specified.
• --number-of-queries=N Limit each client to approximately this many queries. Query counting takes into
account the statement delimiter. For example, if you invoke mysqlslap as follows, the ; delimiter is
recognized so that each instance of the query string counts as two queries. As a result, 5 rows (not
10) are inserted.
mysqlslap --delimiter=";" --number-of-queries=10
--query="use test;insert into t values(null)"
• --only-print Do not connect to databases. mysqlslap only prints what it would have done.
• --password[=password], -p[password] The password of the MySQL account used for connecting to the
server. The password value is optional. If not given, mysqlslap prompts for one. If given, there must
be no space between --password= or -p and the password following it. If no password option is
specified, the default is to send no password.
Specifying a password on the command line should be considered insecure. To avoid giving the password
on the command line, use an option file. See Section 6.1.2.1, “End-User Guidelines for Password
Security”.
To explicitly specify that there is no password and that mysqlslap should not prompt for one, use the
--skip-password option.
• --pipe, -W On Windows, connect to the server using a named pipe. This option applies only if the
server was started with the named_pipe system variable enabled to support named-pipe connections. In
addition, the user making the connection must be a member of the Windows group specified by the
named_pipe_full_access_group system variable.
• --plugin-dir=dir_name The directory in which to look for plugins. Specify this option if the
--default-auth option is used to specify an authentication plugin but mysqlslap does not find it. See
Section 6.2.13, “Pluggable Authentication”.
• --port=port_num, -P port_num For TCP/IP connections, the port number to use.
• --post-query=value The file or string containing the statement to execute after the tests have
completed. This execution is not counted for timing purposes.
• --post-system=str The string to execute using system() after the tests have completed. This execution
is not counted for timing purposes.
• --pre-query=value The file or string containing the statement to execute before running the tests.
This execution is not counted for timing purposes.
• --pre-system=str The string to execute using system() before running the tests. This execution is not
counted for timing purposes.
• --print-defaults Print the program name and all options that it gets from option files.
For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 4.2.2.3, “Command-
Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.
• --protocol={TCP|SOCKET|PIPE|MEMORY} The transport protocol to use for connecting to the server. It is
useful when the other connection parameters normally result in use of a protocol other than the one
you want. For details on the permissible values, see Section 4.2.5, “Connection Transport Protocols”.
• --query=value, -q value The file or string containing the SELECT statement to use for retrieving
data.
• --secure-auth Do not send passwords to the server in old (pre-4.1) format. This prevents connections
except for servers that use the newer password format.
As of MySQL 5.7.5, this option is deprecated; expect it to be removed in a future MySQL release. It
is always enabled and attempting to disable it (--skip-secure-auth, --secure-auth=0) produces an
error. Before MySQL 5.7.5, this option is enabled by default but can be disabled.
Note
Passwords that use the pre-4.1 hashing method are less secure than passwords that use the native
password hashing method and should be avoided. Pre-4.1 passwords are deprecated and support for
them was removed in MySQL 5.7.5. For account upgrade instructions, see Section 6.4.1.3,
“Migrating Away from Pre-4.1 Password Hashing and the mysql_old_password Plugin”.
• --server-public-key-path=file_name The path name to a file in PEM format containing a client-side
copy of the public key required by the server for RSA key pair-based password exchange. This option
applies to clients that authenticate with the sha256_password or caching_sha2_password authentication
plugin. This option is ignored for accounts that do not authenticate with one of those plugins. It is
also ignored if RSA-based password exchange is not used, as is the case when the client connects to
the server using a secure connection.
If --server-public-key-path=file_name is given and specifies a valid public key file, it takes
precedence over --get-server-public-key.
For sha256_password, this option applies only if MySQL was built using OpenSSL.
For information about the sha256_password and caching_sha2_password plugins, see Section 6.4.1.5,
“SHA-256 Pluggable Authentication”, and Section 6.4.1.4, “Caching SHA-2 Pluggable Authentication”.
The --server-public-key-path option was added in MySQL 5.7.23.
• --shared-memory-base-name=name On Windows, the shared-memory name to use for connections made using
shared memory to a local server. The default value is MYSQL. The shared-memory name is
case-sensitive.
This option applies only if the server was started with the shared_memory system variable enabled to
support shared-memory connections.
• --silent, -s Silent mode. No output.
• --socket=path, -S path For connections to localhost, the Unix socket file to use, or, on Windows, the
name of the named pipe to use.
On Windows, this option applies only if the server was started with the named_pipe system variable
enabled to support named-pipe connections. In addition, the user making the connection must be a
member of the Windows group specified by the named_pipe_full_access_group system variable.
• --sql-mode=mode Set the SQL mode for the client session.
• --ssl* Options that begin with --ssl specify whether to connect to the server using encryption and
indicate where to find SSL keys and certificates. See the section called “Command Options for
Encrypted Connections”.
• --tls-version=protocol_list The permissible TLS protocols for encrypted connections. The value is a
list of one or more comma-separated protocol names. The protocols that can be named for this option
depend on the SSL library used to compile MySQL. For details, see Section 6.3.2, “Encrypted
Connection TLS Protocols and Ciphers”.
This option was added in MySQL 5.7.10.
• --user=user_name, -u user_name The user name of the MySQL account to use for connecting to the
server.
• --verbose, -v Verbose mode. Print more information about what the program does. This option can be
used multiple times to increase the amount of information.
• --version, -V Display version information and exit.
COPYRIGHT
Copyright © 1997, 2023, Oracle and/or its affiliates.
This documentation is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it only under the terms of the
GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; version 2 of the License.
This documentation is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without
even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General
Public License for more details.
You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with the program; if not, write
to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 51 Franklin Street, Fifth Floor, Boston, MA 02110-1301 USA or see
http://www.gnu.org/licenses/.
SEE ALSO
For more information, please refer to the MySQL Reference Manual, which may already be installed locally
and which is also available online at http://dev.mysql.com/doc/.
AUTHOR
Oracle Corporation (http://dev.mysql.com/).