Bug #19797 innodb_data_home_dir gets dropped from my.ini when reconfiguring instance
Submitted: 13 May 2006 23:33 Modified: 5 May 2008 18:44
Reporter: simon love Email Updates:
Status: Closed Impact on me:
None 
Category:MySQL Server: Config Wizard Severity:S2 (Serious)
Version:5.0.22, 5.0.21 OS:Windows (Windows XP)
Assigned to: Iggy Galarza CPU Architecture:Any

[13 May 2006 23:33] simon love
Description:

Using the MYSQL Instance Configuration tool installed as part of the basic MYSQL installation to turn off strict mode when diagnosing an installation problem with a web application, my service failed to restart.  

I rebooted my laptop to see if it was a transient problem and it was not.

By comparing my.ini files with previous backups, I found that the value for innodb_data_home_dir was not in the updated my.ini file.  A diff of the old and new files showed this and the change to the strict mode setting as the only two differences in the files.

As I use a custom location ( entered through the wizard during install ), any default values it may have decided to use would not have worked.  This may be why it has not popped up before on the bug database.

I classified it as serious, as it stops the database from being started ever again until the my.ini file is corrected.  For some people, it could be significant.

How to repeat:
Install Mysql latest version onto a windows machine.  set the database location to be a non-default location and then accept all of the defaults.

Start mysql and verify all is working as expected.

Run the instance configuration tool and reconfigure existing instance.  Go through and turn off strict mode.

The database location is greyed out when you go through the wizard.

database fails to restart after writing out my.ini.

The above should work, although I've not tested it out as I am a little tied up using it.  

Suggested fix:
Fix Instance Configuration Wizard to not drop the setting.
[14 May 2006 14:12] Valeriy Kravchuk
Thank you for a problem report. What exact latest version should be checked? 5.1.9-beta or 5.0.21?
[14 May 2006 16:11] simon love
This was identified on a 5.0.21 installation of mysql ( or at least I think it was ).
[18 May 2006 21:52] Valeriy Kravchuk
Please, check if it was 5.0.21. Version is written in the error log upon each startup.
[19 May 2006 5:52] simon love
It was version 5.0.21.  Error log extract included below for validation.

Version: '5.0.21-community-nt'  socket: ''  port: 3306  MySQL Community Edition (GPL)
[14 Jun 2006 14:29] Valeriy Kravchuk
Verified just as described with 5.0.22. It is MySQL Instance Config Wizard bug.
[8 Feb 2008 18:01] Patrick Crews
Ok to push

Verified changes to Instance Configuration Wizard correct this issue.  
Tested with 5.0.51 on Windows XP.

Refer to Bug#6627 regarding other possible difficulties in setting Innodb Tablespace paths.
[1 Apr 2008 19:13] Paul DuBois
Noted in 5.1.24 changelog.

MySQLInstanceConfig.exe could lose the innodb_data_home_dir setting
when reconfiguring an instance. 

Resetting report to Patch queued waiting for push into 6.0.x.
[5 May 2008 18:44] Paul DuBois
Noted in 6.0.5 changelog.