## 2.10 Postinstallation Setup and Testing

[2.10.1 Initializing the Data Directory](data-directory-initialization.html)
[2.10.2 Starting the Server](starting-server.html)
[2.10.3 Testing the Server](testing-server.html)
[2.10.4 Securing the Initial MySQL Account](default-privileges.html)
[2.10.5 Starting and Stopping MySQL Automatically](automatic-start.html)

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 This section discusses tasks that you should perform after installing MySQL:

* If necessary, initialize the data directory and create the MySQL grant tables. For some MySQL installation methods, data directory initialization may be done for you automatically:

  * Windows installation operations performed by MySQL Installer.

  * Installation on Linux using a server RPM or Debian distribution from Oracle.

  * Installation using the native packaging system on many platforms, including Debian Linux, Ubuntu Linux, Gentoo Linux, and others.

  * Installation on macOS using a DMG distribution.

   For other platforms and installation types, you must initialize the data directory manually. These include installation from generic binary and source distributions on Unix and Unix-like system, and installation from a ZIP Archive package on Windows. For instructions, see [Section 2.10.1, “Initializing the Data Directory”](data-directory-initialization.html).

* Start the server and make sure that it can be accessed. For instructions, see [Section 2.10.2, “Starting the Server”](starting-server.html), and [Section 2.10.3, “Testing the Server”](testing-server.html).

* Assign passwords to the initial `root` account in the grant tables, if that was not already done during data directory initialization. Passwords prevent unauthorized access to the MySQL server. For instructions, see [Section 2.10.4, “Securing the Initial MySQL Account”](default-privileges.html).

* Optionally, arrange for the server to start and stop automatically when your system starts and stops. For instructions, see [Section 2.10.5, “Starting and Stopping MySQL Automatically”](automatic-start.html).

* Optionally, populate time zone tables to enable recognition of named time zones. For instructions, see [Section 5.1.15, “MySQL Server Time Zone Support”](time-zone-support.html).

 When you are ready to create additional user accounts, you can find information on the MySQL access control system and account management in [Section 6.2, “Access Control and Account Management”](access-control.html).

