How to Reset or Recover Forgotten mySql root Password

Recover Forgotten mySql root Password in Linux

• Step 1 – Locate my.ini or my.cnf in mysql server.
• Step 2 – Edit my.ini or my.cnf and insert ‘skip-grant-tables’ below [mysqld]
• Step 3 – Restart MySQL
• Step 4 – Set new password for your root user by running

$ mysql -u root
mysql> UPDATE mysql.user SET Password=PASSWORD('new_password') WHERE User='root';
mysql> UPDATE mysql.user SET Password=PASSWORD('new-password-here') WHERE USER='root' AND Host='localhost';


in phpMyAdmin in the mysql database (or just leave it like this if MySQL cannot be accessed from remote hosts)
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

• Step 5 – Remove the skip-grant-tables in the my.ini or my.cnf file
• Step 6 – Restart MySQL

OLD method

UPDATE mysql.user 
  SET Password = PASSWORD('NewStrongPass123!')
  WHERE User = 'root' AND Host = 'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Resetting MySQL Root Password with XAMPP on Localhost

How to change a mysql user password?

$ mysql -u root -p
mysql> use mysql;

- The syntax is as follows for mysql database server version 5.7.5 or older:
mysql> SET PASSWORD FOR 'user-name-here'@'hostname' = PASSWORD('new-password');

- For mysql database server version 5.7.6 or newer use the following syntax:
mysql> ALTER USER 'user'@'hostname' IDENTIFIED BY 'newPass';

- You can also use the following sql syntax:
mysql> UPDATE mysql.user SET Password=PASSWORD('new-password-here') WHERE USER='user-name-here' AND Host='host-name-here';

mysql> ALTER USER 'root'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'sjh643#22SLKhaA2%';
mysql> FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Rajesh Kumar

I’m Rajesh Kumar, a DevOps, SRE, DevSecOps, Cloud, and Platform Engineering expert passionate about sharing practical knowledge, real-world experiences, and industry best practices. I have worked at Cotocus and regularly write about technology, travel, investing, health, product reviews, and digital marketing through my various platforms.

I publish technical articles at DevOps School, travel stories at Holiday Landmark, stock market insights at Stocks Mantra, health and fitness guidance at My Medic Plus, product reviews at TrueReviewNow, and SEO and digital marketing strategies at Wizbrand.