Book Image

The MySQL Workshop

By : Thomas Pettit, Scott Cosentino
5 (1)
Book Image

The MySQL Workshop

5 (1)
By: Thomas Pettit, Scott Cosentino

Overview of this book

Do you want to learn how to create and maintain databases effectively? Are you looking for simple answers to basic MySQL questions as well as straightforward examples that you can use at work? If so, this workshop is the right choice for you. Designed to build your confidence through hands-on practice, this book uses a simple approach that focuses on the practical, so you can get straight down to business without having to wade through pages and pages of dull, dry theory. As you work through bite-sized exercises and activities, you'll learn how to use different MySQL tools to create a database and manage the data within it. You'll see how to transfer data between a MySQL database and other sources, and use real-world datasets to gain valuable experience of manipulating and gaining insights from data. As you progress, you'll discover how to protect your database by managing user permissions and performing logical backups and restores. If you've already tried to teach yourself SQL, but haven't been able to make the leap from understanding simple queries to working on live projects with a real database management system, The MySQL Workshop will get you on the right track. By the end of this MySQL book, you'll have the knowledge, skills, and confidence to advance your career and tackle your own ambitious projects with MySQL.
Table of Contents (22 chapters)
1
Section 1: Creating Your Database
6
Section 2: Managing Your Database
11
Section 3: Querying Your Database
16
Section 4: Protecting Your Database

Connecting to the MySQL database using ODBC

DSN-less connections are great for portability; however, as mentioned earlier, the connection's login details are in the Excel workbook. This can be a security risk if your data is sensitive. Another issue is that they will work for anyone who happens to get hold of the spreadsheet. As long as the relevant driver is on their computer, the driver details are also in the connection routine, so someone with a little ODBC and VBA knowledge will figure that out quickly.

In the next exercise, we will create a new function to connect to the database using a DSN.

Exercise 12.01 – creating a DSN connection function

A DSN offers more security; you need to set up the connection on the user's computer before they can use the spreadsheet. When using a DSN, the login details are not visible in the workbook. Also, as a bonus for you, the developer, it requires less coding to use in your application.

In this exercise, we will...