Configuring a MySQL or MariaDB database for the HCL Launch server

To use a MySQL or MariaDB database with the server, before you install the server, install the database, and provide the JDBC JAR file for the server installation process.MySQL and MariaDB are similar databases. Which one you use depends on your operating system and version.

Before you begin

Before you install the HCL Launch server, install MySQL or MariaDB, depending on your operating system and version. If you are evaluating HCL Launch, you can install the database on the same system as the HCL Launch server.

For example, the command to install MariaDB on a system that runs Red Hat Enterprise Linux™ version 7 resembles the following example:

yum install -y mariadb mariadb-server

To set the database to run automatically and start the MariaDB database on a Linux™ system that uses systemctl, run the following command:

systemctl enable mariadb; systemctl start mariadb

When you install HCL Launch, you need the database connection information, and a user account with table-creation privileges.

Note: It is recommended that you change the database to a case-sensitive collation.

Follow these steps to set the database encoding:

On the system that hosts the database, open MySQL or MariaDB configuration file. The location of the file depends on the operating system. On Linux, the file is named my.cnf, and many distributions put the file in the folder /etc or /etc/mysql. On Windows, the file is named my.ini.
In the [mysqld] section of the configuration file, add the following lines:
```
character-set-server=utf8
character-set-filesystem=utf8
```
Restart the database. For example, to restart MariaDB on Linux, use this command:
```
systemctl restart mariadb
```

Procedure

Open a command-line window and log in to the database.
The command might look like the following example:
```
mysql -u username -ppassword
```
For username, specify the user name for the database. The default user name is root. For password, specify the password for that user name. The default account has no password; in this case, omit the -p flag and the password.
Note: Do not insert a space between the -p flag and the password.
Create a database. Specify case-sensitive collation.
The following commands are an example of how you might create this database:
```
CREATE USER 'dbUser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'password';
```
```
CREATE DATABASE dbName character set utf8 collate utf8_bin;
```
Grant all permissions to the user on MySQL database versions 7 and prior:
```
GRANT ALL ON dbName.* TO 'dbUser'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'password' WITH GRANT OPTION;
```
Grant all permissions to the user on MySQL database versions 8:
```
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON dbName.* TO 'dbUser'@'localhost';
GRANT ALL ON dbName.* TO 'dbUser'@'localhost';
```
Where,
- dbUser is the username for the database.
- dbName is the database name.
  Such as launch.
Log out of the database command line.
Obtain the database JDBC driver.
The JDBC JAR file is included among the database installation files. The driver is unique to the database edition you are using.
Copy the JDBC JAR file to installer_directory\lib\ext.
Begin server installation. See Installing the server. When you are prompted for the database type, enter mysql.
Provide the JDBC driver class HCL Launch uses to connect to the database.
The default value is com.mysql.jdbc.Driver.
Next, provide the JDBC connection string.
Typically, it is similar to the following code:
```
jdbc:mysql://dbURL:dbPort/dbName
```
For example, the connection string to database that is on the same computer as the HCL Launch server and that uses the default port resembles the following code:
```
jdbc:mysql://localhost:3306/mydb
```
Finish by entering the database user name and password.