MySQL Bugs: #68438: mysql_install_db exits with "Unknown/unsupported storage engine: InnoDB"

Bug #68438	mysql_install_db exits with "Unknown/unsupported storage engine: InnoDB"
Submitted:	20 Feb 2013 2:19	Modified:	19 Jun 2013 18:22
Reporter:	Rene Berber	Email Updates:
Status:	Closed	Impact on me:	None
Category:	MySQL Server: Installing	Severity:	S3 (Non-critical)
Version:	5.6.10	OS:	Linux
Assigned to:		CPU Architecture:	Any

Description:
After building from source MySQL on an ARM based NAS with the small feature set (which I assume results in no InnoDB engine), I tried to follow with the installation, and at the system tables creation step I got:

mysql # scripts/mysql_install_db --user=mysql
Installing MySQL system tables...2013-02-19 19:02:44 0 [Warning] TIMESTAMP with implicit DEFAULT value is deprecated. Pl
ease use --explicit_defaults_for_timestamp server option (see documentation for more details).
2013-02-19 19:02:44 3272 [ERROR] Unknown/unsupported storage engine: InnoDB
2013-02-19 19:02:44 3272 [ERROR] Aborting

2013-02-19 19:02:44 3272 [Note] Binlog end
2013-02-19 19:02:44 3272 [Note] ./bin/mysqld: Shutdown complete

I also tried using: 

scripts/mysql_install_db --user=mysql --default-storage-engine=myisam

with the exact same result (InnoDB is still used, not MyIsam).

There are no logs left, or configuration files (i.e. my.cfg)

Perl version 5.8.8
Gcc version 4.5.4
Linux kernel version 2.6.12

How to repeat:
The relevant steps are:

1. Build

cmake ../mysql-5.6.10/ -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=Release -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/opt/mysql -DENABLED_PROFILING=0 -DFEATURE_SET=small -DWITH_EXTRA_CHARSETS=none -DWITH_SSL=system -DWITH_UNIT_TESTS=0 -DWITH_ZLIB=system -DMYSQL_DATADIR=/opt/mysql/data -DSYSCONFDIR=/opt/mysql/etc

make

make install

2. Initial configuration (which fails)

cd /opt/mysql

chown -R mysql:mysql .

scripts/mysql_install_db --user=mysql

Had you set --default-tmp-storage-engine to myisam too?
http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.6/en/innodb-turning-off.html

and i'm guessing you'd want to make sure sql_mode does not have no_engine_substitution..

> Had you set --default-tmp-storage-engine to myisam too?

Same result:

mysql # scripts/mysql_install_db --user=mysql --default-storage-engine=myisam --default-tmp-storage-engine=myisam
Installing MySQL system tables...2013-02-20 12:51:25 0 [Warning] TIMESTAMP with implicit DEFAULT value is deprecated. Please use --explicit_defaults_for_timestamp server option (see documentation for more details).
2013-02-20 12:51:25 20727 [Note] RSA private key file not found: /opt/mysql/data/private_key.pem. Some authentication plugins will not work.
ERROR: 1286  Unknown storage engine 'INNODB'
2013-02-20 12:51:26 20727 [ERROR] Aborting

2013-02-20 12:51:26 20727 [Note] Binlog end
2013-02-20 12:51:26 20727 [Note] ./bin/mysqld: Shutdown complete

> and i'm guessing you'd want to make sure sql_mode does not have
no_engine_substitution.

I don't understand what you mean.

To be clear, this bug report is about lack of information in the documentation, and the failure of the script to adapt to the configured options.

I chose feature set "small" because I'm installing on a NAS with low resources (mainly RAM), but I could not find any description about what "small", or "xsmall", or any of the other options mean.

Granted the main problem is the script, it shouldn't use InnoDB if its not available.

Addition to my last comment:

I don't know why InnoDB is not available, as I said in the description I assume that choosing feature set "small" does produce a DBMS w/o InnoDB.

Under lib/plugin/ I don't see anything that looks like a DB engine, just authentication libraries, perhaps something gets linked statically.

I really don't care which DB engine is used, as long as it works.

Following the article about "Turning Off InnoDB" I also tried adding --innodb=OFF and --skip-innodb.

The first results in a "[ERROR] ./bin/mysqld: unknown variable 'innodb=OFF'";
the second: "[ERROR] ./bin/mysqld: unknown option '--skip-innodb'"

The problem is in mysql_system_tables.sql, when creating innodb_index_stats and innodb_table_stats tables, they must be in innodb.
So it does this first which causes the failure.

SET SESSION sql_mode='NO_ENGINE_SUBSTITUTION';

The solution should be for the script to bypass creating those tables if innodb is not compiled in, or is disabled.

I can confirm, with mysql_system_tables.sql lines 101 to 129 disabled, the configuration succeeds (but still needs the "--default-storage-engine=myisam --default-tmp-storage-engine=myisam" parameters).

Same for starting the DBMS, the parameters are needed.

On a side note, why are you using 5.6.10 without innodb?  Much of the benefits are lost...  For size and simplicity it might be easier to deploy 5.5 or 5.1 since there is no dependency on innodb :)

As I explained in the description, and can be seen in the way I build it, and in one of my other comments: I didn't choose to use, or not use, InnoDB.

It seems to be a MySQL "feature" that when you chose "-DFEATURE_SET=small" you end up with no InnoDB, and the installation procedure gets you to the problem reported (and others later on).

As I also said, the 2nd problem is the lack of good documentation (for that feature set).

Noted in 5.6.13, 5.7.2 changelogs.

mysql_install_db incorrectly tried to create the
mysql.innodb_table_stats and mysql.innodb_index_stats tables if
InnoDB was not available.

Is there a fix or workaround to this issue? Issue still exists with MySQL version 5.6.12?