Essentials

The  BL Flow product defaults to using the root user in the MySQL installation. Recent versions of MySQL server install without access to the root user from outside the localhost (i.e. it cannot be used from any other server except its own.) To support this secure choice the Flow installer for Chameleon creates 2 users for our apps to connect with - Player and Updater. 

Remote Privileges and Supporting Apps

During the MySQL install, the user is no longer asked if they would like to allow remote access for the root user. Limiting root access to the local machine only is a good security practice. To support this Flow (version 7.1.4.4 for Super Ticker and Flow for Brando version 7.5.4.2) now create 3 users for our apps to use to connect with by default. (The blade user was added in build 8.6.2.5)

• Blade

  • is a read-only user to allow accessing data for display only - no update privileges

• Player

  • is read-only with updates only allowed for a few select reporting tables

• Updater

  • has update and execute privileges

Further to this Flow has a configuration preference value that can be set that allows other BL apps to connect to the correct database server when they aren't running on the database server. It is the System > Database Location for Apps setting,

-- to use the default password authentication method
CREATE USER 'Player'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
CREATE USER 'Blade'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
CREATE USER 'Updater'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';

-- to use the new caching_sha2_password instead add a WITH clause like:
-- CREATE USER 'Player'@'%' IDENTIFIED WITH caching_sha2_password BY 'password';

GRANT SELECT ON `chameleon`.* TO 'Player'@'%';
GRANT SELECT ON `chameleon`.* TO 'Blade'@'%';
GRANT SELECT, UPDATE, INSERT, DELETE ON `chameleon`.* TO 'Updater'@'%';

Replication Privileges

In situations where you want to use replication to provide a ongoing backup source you need a user with specific privileges.

Recommended Replication User

Creating a user with these privileges will provide the ability to do everything required for master dump for for a replication reset through to continuous replication monitoring.

You will want to create this user on both the master and the backup/slave servers.

Using SQL

Create and grant privileges required by a replication user

-- check if user exists
SELECT EXISTS(SELECT 1 FROM `mysql`.`user` WHERE `user` = 'blbackup' AND `host` = '%') AS 'BackupUserExists 1=Yes';

-- create the user if it doesn't exist
CREATE USER 'blbackup'@'%' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password AS '*4D8DE8683A65AFAB16B91226426A0D9116C664D6';

-- grant privileges to user (can be more limited if you prefer - see notes below)
GRANT REPLICATION SLAVE ON *.* TO 'blbackup'@'%';
GRANT REPLICATION CLIENT ON *.* TO 'blbackup'@'%';
GRANT 
	SELECT,
	SHOW VIEW,
	EVENT,
	TRIGGER,
	SHOW DATABASES,
	RELOAD
	ON *.* TO 'blbackup'@'%';

Replication User for essential replication support

This option describes in more detail the options you have if you want a more restricted replication user and how to build privileges on to increase functionality.

You may choose to grant the privileges to an existing user or create a specific user for replication on the master/primary server. That account will need only the global privilege:

• REPLICATION SLAVE.

The DMan app can be used in scenarios with replication to provide status monitoring. To do so it will require the privileges:

• REPLICATION CLIENT

• SELECT 

Using SQL 

Privileges required by a replication user

GRANT REPLICATION SLAVE ON *.* TO 'blbackup'@'%';
GRANT REPLICATION CLIENT ON *.* TO 'blbackup'@'%';
GRANT SELECT ON *.* TO 'blbackup';

NOTE that the REPLICATION privileges can only be granted at the global level and not specific database on the server.

Using Workbench

 If you are doing so using the MySQL Workbench app you may find that it's easy to get the necessary privileges on the user account by selecting the 

• Administrative Roles

  • ReplicationAdmin

  • BackupAdmin

For backups

If you want to use this user for dumping the data from the server it will need additional privileges.

• SHOW VIEW

• EVENT

• TRIGGER

If dumping all databases at once

• SHOW DATABASES

If pulling master data from a server

• RELOAD

Flow User Sample

Create a user with all the necessary privileges to install and run Flow for Chameleon. SUPER privilege is not required assuming server is configured correctly (need log_bin_trust_function_creators=1 set when bin logging enabled.) The use of 127.0.0.1 instead of localhost below is used to enable connecting to a second instance of MySQL on a non-default port. If you use localhost the MySQL command line interface ignores any other port specification and always uses the default 3306 port.

CREATE USER 'flow'@'127.0.0.1' IDENTIFIED  BY 'password'; -- WITH caching_sha2_password

GRANT
    ALTER,
    ALTER ROUTINE,
    CREATE,
    CREATE ROUTINE,
    CREATE TEMPORARY TABLES,
    CREATE VIEW,
    DELETE,
    DROP,
    EXECUTE,
    INDEX,
    INSERT,
    LOCK TABLES,
    REFERENCES,
    SELECT,
    SHOW VIEW,
    TRIGGER,
    UPDATE
ON superticker.*
TO 'flow'@'127.0.0.1';

GRANT SELECT ON `mysql`.*
TO `flow`@'127.0.0.1';

GRANT 
    CREATE USER, 
    RELOAD
ON *.* 
TO 'flow'@'127.0.0.1' WITH GRANT OPTION;

flush privileges;

Suspending Privileges

You may want to temporarily disable the access to the database. In that case you would use a REVOKE command:

Remove Privileges from the superticker database from the BL user

REVOKE ALL PRIVILEGES ON superticker.* FROM 'BL';

Read-Only Privileges

If you wished to grant read-only privileges you would need to assign:

• SELECT ON all tables

• EXECUTE ON FUNCTION CalcUtilityStatus

Flow will then be able to display the content but no changes will be able to me made. Note that Flow is not truly designed to operate in view mode except when using a browsing only user and as a result when using other user types you may encounter errors if you try to perform an action that requires a change to the content.

Flow version will need to be greater then 6.11.4.2 to support even this basic access when only SELECT privileges are given.

Grant view-only access to superticker for user named BL

CREATE USER 'BLreadonly' IDENTIFIED BY 'bl-password';  -- make your own password 
GRANT SELECT ON `superticker`.* TO 'BLreadonly';
GRANT EXECUTE ON FUNCTION `superticker`.`CalcUtilityStatus` TO 'BLreadonly';