What does MySQL dump do?

Question

The mysqldump client utility performs logical backups, producing a set of SQL statements that can be executed to reproduce the original database object definitions and table data. It dumps one or more MySQL databases for backup or transfer to another SQL server.

Is MySQL dump safe?

MySQL's unencrypted port is not secure. If you're running mysqldump on your VPS host, and only transferring the resulting dump file to your PC, then you can do this securely. If you can ssh to your VPS, you should be able to use scp too. This gives you the ability to transfer files securely.

What is a database dump used for?

A database dump (also: SQL dump) contains a record of the table structure and/or the data from a database and is usually in the form of a list of SQL statements. A database dump is most often used for backing up a database so that its contents can be restored in the event of data loss.

Where do MySQL dumps go?

Then the dump will be in the file backup-file. sql in the current directory. If you don't redirect then the output will just be displayed to the screen, not saved to a file.

Does Mysqldump cause downtime?

But when dealing with a medium to large database that is live, running mysqldump with default options can cause service unavailability issues for the application users, causing a temporary downtime. This is because mysqldump locks the tables during a backup process also known as export process.

Expert · Answer