mysql config file
The current build for mysql needs to be hand edited for security and configuration.
Look at http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/blfs/view/svn/server/mysql.html to see what they're recommending.
When building mysql, the last thing it says is:
PLEASE REMEMBER TO SET A PASSWORD FOR THE MySQL root USER ! To do so, start the server, then issue the following commands:
/usr/bin/mysqladmin -u root password 'new-password' /usr/bin/mysqladmin -u root -h phpwebbox.local password 'new-password'
Alternatively you can run:
/usr/bin/mysql_secure_installation
which will also give you the option of removing the test databases and anonymous user created by default. This is strongly recommended for production servers.
See the manual for more instructions.
You can start the MySQL daemon with:
cd . ; /usr/bin/mysqld_safe &
You can test the MySQL daemon with mysql-test-run.pl
cd mysql-test ; perl mysql-test-run.pl