How to Monitor MySQL Database

Overview

The MySQL integration allows you to monitor your MySQL database performance in real time. Xitoring tracks key performance indicators like query throughput, connection counts, replication status, CPU and memory usage — all visible from your dashboard with customizable alerts.

What Can It Monitor?

CPU Usage — Database server CPU utilization
Memory Usage — RAM consumed by MySQL processes
Connections — Active and total connection counts
Queries per Second — Rate of SELECT, INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE operations
Slow Queries — Count of queries exceeding the slow query threshold
Replication Lag — Seconds behind master in replica setups
InnoDB Buffer Pool — Hit ratio and usage statistics
Table Locks — Lock wait times and deadlock detection
Uptime — How long the MySQL server has been running

Prerequisites

1. Enable Performance Schema

Add the following to your MySQL configuration file under the [mysqld] block:

[mysqld]
performance_schema=ON

Restart MySQL:

sudo systemctl restart mysqld

Verify it is enabled:

SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'performance_schema';

2. Create a Monitoring User

Create a dedicated user for Xitogent (do not use root):

CREATE USER 'xitoring'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY '{your_password}';

For MySQL 8+, use native password authentication:

CREATE USER 'xitoring'@'%' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY '{your_password}';

3. Grant Required Privileges

For MySQL 5.6 / 5.7:

GRANT REPLICATION CLIENT ON *.* TO 'xitoring'@'%' WITH MAX_USER_CONNECTIONS 5;

For MySQL 8+:

GRANT REPLICATION CLIENT ON *.* TO 'xitoring'@'%';
ALTER USER 'xitoring'@'%' WITH MAX_USER_CONNECTIONS 5;

Then grant process and performance schema access:

GRANT PROCESS ON *.* TO 'xitoring'@'%';
GRANT SELECT ON performance_schema.* TO 'xitoring'@'%';

Verify the user can connect:

mysql -u xitoring --password={your_password} -e "show status" | \
grep Uptime && echo "MySQL user - OK" || echo "Cannot connect to MySQL"

How to Activate the Integration

Run the Xitogent CLI:

xitogent integrate

Select MySQL from the list. You will be prompted for:

MySQL host (typically 127.0.0.1)
MySQL port (default: 3306)
Username and password for the monitoring user

The config file is created at /etc/xitogent/integrations/mysql_integration.conf.

Windows note: The MySQL integration supports environments where MySQL, MySQL Shell, and ODBC Connector are installed via the official MySQL package. WAMP and XAMPP are not yet supported.

Setting Up Triggers

Available trigger parameters:

CPU Usage / Memory Usage
Connections / Queries per Second
Slow Queries / Replication Lag
InnoDB Buffer Pool metrics
Uptime

Navigate to Triggers on your server page, select MySQL, choose a metric, and configure thresholds and notification channels.

Tips

Always create a dedicated monitoring user with minimal privileges
Enable performance_schema for the most comprehensive metrics
Monitor Slow Queries to catch inefficient queries early
Use Replication Lag alerts in primary-replica setups to detect sync issues