MYSQLIMPORT(1)

NAME
mysqlimport - a data import program

SYNOPSIS

mysqlimport [options] db_name textfile1 ...

DESCRIPTION

The mysqlimport client provides a command-line interface to the LOAD DATA SQL statement. Most options to mysqlimport correspond directly to clauses of LOAD DATA syntax. See Section 15.2.9, “LOAD DATA Statement”.

Invoke mysqlimport like this:

    mysqlimport [options] db_name textfile1 [textfile2 ...]

For each text file named on the command line, mysqlimport strips any extension from the file name and uses the result to determine the name of the table into which to import the file's contents. For example, files named patient.txt, patient.text, and patient all would be imported into a table named patient.

mysqlimport supports the following options, which can be specified on the command line or in the [mysqlimport] and [client] groups of an option file. For information about option files used by MySQL programs, see Section 6.2.2.2, “Using Option Files”.

    • --help, -?
    Command-Line Format | --help

    Display a help message and exit.

    • --bind-address=ip_address
    Command-Line Format | --bind-address=ip_address

    On a computer having multiple network interfaces, use this option to select which interface to use for connecting to the MySQL server.

    • --character-sets-dir=dir_name
    Command-Line Format | --character-sets-dir=path
    Type | String
    Default Value | [none]

    The directory where character sets are installed. See Section 12.15, “Character Set Configuration”.

    • --columns=column_list, -c column_list
    Command-Line Format | --columns=column_list

    This option takes a list of comma-separated column names as its value. The order of the column names indicates how to match data file columns with table columns.

    • --compress, -C
    Command-Line Format | --compress[={OFF|ON}]
    Deprecated | Yes
    Type | Boolean
    Default Value | OFF

    Compress all information sent between the client and the server if possible. See Section 6.2.8, “Connection Compression Control”.

    This option is deprecated. Expect it to be removed in a future version of MySQL. See the section called “Configuring Legacy Connection Compression”.

    • --compression-algorithms=value
    Command-Line Format | --compression-algorithms=value
    Type | Set
    Default Value | uncompressed
    Valid Values | zlib zstd uncompressed

    The permitted compression algorithms for connections to the server. The available algorithms are the same as for the protocol_compression_algorithms system variable. The default value is uncompressed.

    For more information, see Section 6.2.8, “Connection Compression Control”.

    • --debug[=debug_options], -# [debug_options]
    Command-Line Format | --debug[=debug_options]
    Type | String
    Default Value | d:t:o

    Write a debugging log. A typical debug_options string is d:t:o,file_name. The default is d:t:o.

    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
    Command-Line Format | --debug-check
    Type | Boolean
    Default Value | FALSE

    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
    Command-Line Format | --debug-info
    Type | Boolean
    Default Value | FALSE

    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-character-set=charset_name
    Command-Line Format | --default-character-set=charset_name
    Type | String

    Use charset_name as the default character set. See Section 12.15, “Character Set Configuration”.

    • --default-auth=plugin
    Command-Line Format | --default-auth=plugin
    Type | String

    A hint about which client-side authentication plugin to use. See Section 8.2.17, “Pluggable Authentication”.

    • --defaults-extra-file=file_name
    Command-Line Format | --defaults-extra-file=file_name
    Type | 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 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --defaults-file=file_name
    Command-Line Format | --defaults-file=file_name
    Type | 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 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --defaults-group-suffix=str
    Command-Line Format | --defaults-group-suffix=str
    Type | String

    Read not only the usual option groups, but also groups with the usual names and a suffix of str. For example, mysqlimport normally reads the [client] and [mysqlimport] groups. If this option is given as --defaults-group-suffix=_other, mysqlimport also reads the [client_other] and [mysqlimport_other] groups.

    For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --delete, -D
    Command-Line Format | --delete

    Empty the table before importing the text file.

    • --enable-cleartext-plugin
    Command-Line Format | --enable-cleartext-plugin
    Type | Boolean
    Default Value | FALSE

    Enable the mysql_clear_password cleartext authentication plugin. (See Section 8.4.1.3, “Client-Side Cleartext Pluggable Authentication”.)

    • --fields-terminated-by=..., --fields-enclosed-by=..., --fields-optionally-enclosed-by=..., --fields-escaped-by=...
    Command-Line Format | --fields-terminated-by=string
    Type | String

    Command-Line Format | --fields-enclosed-by=string
    Type | String

    Command-Line Format | --fields-optionally-enclosed-by=string
    Type | String

    Command-Line Format | --fields-escaped-by
    Type | String

    These options have the same meaning as the corresponding clauses for LOAD DATA. See Section 15.2.9, “LOAD DATA Statement”.

    • --force, -f
    Command-Line Format | --force

    Ignore errors. For example, if a table for a text file does not exist, continue processing any remaining files. Without --force, mysqlimport exits if a table does not exist.

    • --get-server-public-key
    Command-Line Format | --get-server-public-key
    Type | Boolean

    Request from the server the public key required for RSA key pair-based password exchange. This option applies to clients that authenticate with the caching_sha2_password authentication plugin. For that plugin, the server does not send the public key unless requested. This option is ignored for accounts that do not authenticate with that plugin. 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 information about the caching_sha2_password plugin, see Section 8.4.1.1, “Caching SHA-2 Pluggable Authentication”.

    • --host=host_name, -h host_name
    Command-Line Format | --host=host_name
    Type | String
    Default Value | localhost

    Import data to the MySQL server on the given host. The default host is localhost.

    • --ignore, -i
    Command-Line Format | --ignore

    See the description for the --replace option.

    • --ignore-lines=N
    Command-Line Format | --ignore-lines=#
    Type | Numeric

    Ignore the first N lines of the data file.

    • --lines-terminated-by=...
    Command-Line Format | --lines-terminated-by=string
    Type | String

    This option has the same meaning as the corresponding clause for LOAD DATA. For example, to import Windows files that have lines terminated with carriage return/linefeed pairs, use --lines-terminated-by="\r\n". (You might have to double the backslashes, depending on the escaping conventions of your command interpreter.) See Section 15.2.9, “LOAD DATA Statement”.

    • --local, -L
    Command-Line Format | --local
    Type | Boolean
    Default Value | FALSE

    By default, files are read by the server on the server host. With this option, mysqlimport reads input files locally on the client host.

    Successful use of LOCAL load operations within mysqlimport also requires that the server permits local loading; see Section 8.1.6, “Security Considerations for LOAD DATA LOCAL”

    • --lock-tables, -l
    Command-Line Format | --lock-tables

    Lock all tables for writing before processing any text files. This ensures that all tables are synchronized on the server.

    • --login-path=name
    Command-Line Format | --login-path=name
    Type | String

    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 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --no-login-paths
    Command-Line Format | --no-login-paths

    Skips reading options from the login path file.

    See --login-path for related information.

    For additional information about this and other option-file options, see Section 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --low-priority
    Command-Line Format | --low-priority

    Use LOW_PRIORITY when loading the table. This affects only storage engines that use only table-level locking (such as MyISAM, MEMORY, and MERGE).

    • --no-defaults
    Command-Line Format | --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 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --password[=password], -p[password]
    Command-Line Format | --password[=password]
    Type | String

    The password of the MySQL account used for connecting to the server. The password value is optional. If not given, mysqlimport 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 8.1.2.1, “End-User Guidelines for Password Security”.

    To explicitly specify that there is no password and that mysqlimport should not prompt for one, use the --skip-password option.

    • --password1[=pass_val] The password for multifactor authentication factor 1 of the MySQL account used for connecting to the server. The password value is optional. If not given, mysqlimport prompts for one. If given, there must be no space between --password1= 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 8.1.2.1, “End-User Guidelines for Password Security”.

    To explicitly specify that there is no password and that mysqlimport should not prompt for one, use the --skip-password1 option.

    --password1 and --password are synonymous, as are --skip-password1 and --skip-password.

    • --password2[=pass_val] The password for multifactor authentication factor 2 of the MySQL account used for connecting to the server. The semantics of this option are similar to the semantics for --password1; see the description of that option for details.

    • --password3[=pass_val] The password for multifactor authentication factor 3 of the MySQL account used for connecting to the server. The semantics of this option are similar to the semantics for --password1; see the description of that option for details.

    • --pipe, -W
    Command-Line Format | --pipe
    Type | String

    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
    Command-Line Format | --plugin-dir=dir_name
    Type | Directory 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 mysqlimport does not find it. See Section 8.2.17, “Pluggable Authentication”.

    • --port=port_num, -P port_num
    Command-Line Format | --port=port_num
    Type | Numeric
    Default Value | 3306

    For TCP/IP connections, the port number to use.

    • --print-defaults
    Command-Line Format | --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 6.2.2.3, “Command-Line Options that Affect Option-File Handling”.

    • --protocol={TCP|SOCKET|PIPE|MEMORY}
    Command-Line Format | --protocol=type
    Type | String
    Default Value | [see text]
    Valid Values | 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 6.2.7, “Connection Transport Protocols”.

    • --replace, -r
    Command-Line Format | --replace

    The --replace and --ignore options control handling of input rows that duplicate existing rows on unique key values. If you specify --replace, new rows replace existing rows that have the same unique key value. If you specify --ignore, input rows that duplicate an existing row on a unique key value are skipped. If you do not specify either option, an error occurs when a duplicate key value is found, and the rest of the text file is ignored.

    • --server-public-key-path=file_name
    Command-Line Format | --server-public-key-path=file_name
    Type | 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 8.4.1.2, “SHA-256 Pluggable Authentication”, and Section 8.4.1.1, “Caching SHA-2 Pluggable Authentication”.

    • --shared-memory-base-name=name
    Command-Line Format | --shared-memory-base-name=name
    Platform Specific | Windows

    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
    Command-Line Format | --silent

    Silent mode. Produce output only when errors occur.

    • --socket=path, -S path
    Command-Line Format | --socket={file_name|pipe_name}
    Type | String

    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.

    • --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”.

    • --ssl-fips-mode={OFF|ON|STRICT}
    Command-Line Format | --ssl-fips-mode={OFF|ON|STRICT}
    Deprecated | Yes
    Type | Enumeration
    Default Value | OFF
    Valid Values | OFF ON STRICT

    Controls whether to enable FIPS mode on the client side. The --ssl-fips-mode option differs from other --ssl-xxx options in that it is not used to establish encrypted connections, but rather to affect which cryptographic operations to permit. See Section 8.8, “FIPS Support”.

    These --ssl-fips-mode values are permitted:

        • OFF: Disable FIPS mode.

        • ON: Enable FIPS mode.

        • STRICT: Enable “strict” FIPS mode.

        Note
        If the OpenSSL FIPS Object Module is not available, the only permitted value for --ssl-fips-mode is OFF. In this case, setting --ssl-fips-mode to ON or STRICT causes the client to produce a warning at startup and to operate in non-FIPS mode.

    This option is deprecated. Expect it to be removed in a future version of MySQL.

    • --tls-ciphersuites=ciphersuite_list
    Command-Line Format | --tls-ciphersuites=ciphersuite_list
    Type | String

    The permissible ciphersuites for encrypted connections that use TLSv1.3. The value is a list of one or more colon-separated ciphersuite names. The ciphersuites that can be named for this option depend on the SSL library used to compile MySQL. For details, see Section 8.3.2, “Encrypted Connection TLS Protocols and Ciphers”.

    • --tls-sni-servername=server_name
    Command-Line Format | --tls-sni-servername=server_name
    Type | String

    When specified, the name is passed to the libmysqlclient C API library using the MYSQL_OPT_TLS_SNI_SERVERNAME option of mysql_options(). The server name is not case-sensitive. To show which server name the client specified for the current session, if any, check the Tls_sni_server_name status variable.

    Server Name Indication (SNI) is an extension to the TLS protocol (OpenSSL must be compiled using TLS extensions for this option to function). The MySQL implementation of SNI represents the client-side only.

    • --tls-version=protocol_list
    Command-Line Format | --tls-version=protocol_list
    Type | String
    Default Value | TLSv1,TLSv1.1,TLSv1.2,TLSv1.3 (OpenSSL 1.1.1 or higher) TLSv1,TLSv1.1,TLSv1.2 (otherwise)

    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 8.3.2, “Encrypted Connection TLS Protocols and Ciphers”.

    • --user=user_name, -u user_name
    Command-Line Format | --user=user_name,
    Type | String

    The user name of the MySQL account to use for connecting to the server.

    • --use-threads=N
    Command-Line Format | --use-threads=#
    Type | Numeric

    Load files in parallel using N threads.

    • --verbose, -v
    Command-Line Format | --verbose

    Verbose mode. Print more information about what the program does.

    • --version, -V
    Command-Line Format | --version

    Display version information and exit.

    • --zstd-compression-level=level
    Command-Line Format | --zstd-compression-level=#
    Type | Integer

    The compression level to use for connections to the server that use the zstd compression algorithm. The permitted levels are from 1 to 22, with larger values indicating increasing levels of compression. The default zstd compression level is 3. The compression level setting has no effect on connections that do not use zstd compression.

    For more information, see Section 6.2.8, “Connection Compression Control”.

Here is a sample session that demonstrates use of mysqlimport:

    $> mysql -e 'CREATE TABLE imptest(id INT, n VARCHAR(30))' test
    $> ed
    a
    100     Max Sydow
    101     Count Dracula
    .
    w imptest.txt
    32
    q
    $> od -c imptest.txt
    0000000   1   0   0  \t   M   a   x       S   y   d   o   w  \n   1   0
    0000020   1  \t   C   o   u   n   t       D   r   a   c   u   l   a  \n
    0000040
    $> mysqlimport --local test imptest.txt
    test.imptest: Records: 2  Deleted: 0  Skipped: 0  Warnings: 0
    $> mysql -e 'SELECT * FROM imptest' test
    +------+---------------+
    | id   | n             |
    +------+---------------+
    |  100 | Max Sydow     |
    |  101 | Count Dracula |
    +------+---------------+

COPYRIGHT

Copyright © 1997, 2026, 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/).