This section describes the steps to upgrade a MySQL installation.
Upgrading is a common procedure, as you pick up bug fixes within the same MySQL release series or significant features between major MySQL releases. You perform this procedure first on some test systems to make sure everything works smoothly, and then on the production systems.
In the following discussion, MySQL commands that must be run using a MySQL account with administrative privileges include -u on the command line to specify the MySQL root root user. Commands that require a password for root also include a -p option. Because -p is followed by no option value, such commands prompt for the password. Type the password when prompted and press Enter.
SQL statements can be executed using the mysql command-line client (connect as root to ensure that you have the necessary privileges).