This topic explains how to configure LabKey Server to retrieve and display data from a MySQL database as an
external data source. This topic assumes you have
reviewed the general guidance here and provides specific parameters and details for this database type.
MySQL Version Support
We strongly recommend using MySQL 5.6 or higher; the MySQL JDBC driver that ships with LabKey Server (
Connector/J version 8.3) claims compatibility "with all MySQL versions starting with MySQL 5.6"; older server versions may not work correctly.
Configure the MySQL Data Source
The new external data source must have a
unique JNDI name that you will use in naming the properties you will define. In the example on this page, we use "externalMySqlDataSource", which will appear to users defining external schemas as "externalMySql". If you have more than one external data source, give each a unique name with the DataSource suffix ("firstExternalMySqlDataSource", "secondExternalMySqlDataSource", etc.). Learn more
here.
In the <LABKEY_HOME>/config/application.properties file, add a new section with the name of the datasource and the parameters you want to define. Provide your own server/port, <DB_NAME>, <DB_USERNAME>, and <DB_PASSWORD> where indicated:
context.resources.jdbc.externalMySqlDataSource.driverClassName=com.mysql.cj.jdbc.Driver
context.resources.jdbc.externalMySqlDataSource.url=jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/<DB_NAME>?autoReconnect=true&useUnicode=true&characterEncoding=utf8&zeroDateTimeBehavior=CONVERT_TO_NULL
context.resources.jdbc.externalMySqlDataSource.username=<DB_USERNAME>
context.resources.jdbc.externalMySqlDataSource.password=<DB_PASSWORD>
context.resources.jdbc.externalMySqlDataSource.validationQuery=/* ping */
There are additional properties you can set, as shown in the
template for the main "labkeyDataSource" in the application.properties file.
driverClassName
Use this as the
driverClassName:
url
The
url property for MySQL takes this form. Substitute the correct server/port and database name:
jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/databaseName/?autoReconnect=true&useUnicode=true&characterEncoding=utf8&zeroDateTimeBehavior=CONVERT_TO_NULL
: the "zeroDataTimeBehavior=CONVERT_TO_NULL" parameter on the url above converts MySQL's special representation of invalid dates ("00-00-0000") into null. See
the MySQL documentation for other options.
validationQuery
Use "/* ping */" as the trivial validation query for MySQL. :
context.resources.jdbc.@@extraJdbcDataSource@@.validationQuery=/* ping */
Define a New External Schema
To define a new schema from this data source see
Set Up an External Schema.
Related Topics