Recovering MySQL root password

You can recover MySQL database server password with following five easy steps.

Step # 1: Stop the MySQL server process.
Step # 2: Start the MySQL (mysqld) server/daemon process with the –skip-grant-tables option so that it will not prompt for password
Step # 3: Connect to mysql server as the root user
Step # 4: Setup new root password
Step # 5: Exit and restart MySQL server

Here are commands you need to type for each step (login as the root user):
Step # 1 : Stop mysql service
# /etc/init.d/mysql stop
Stopping MySQL database server: mysqld.
Step # 2: Start to MySQL server w/o password
# mysqld_safe –skip-grant-tables &

Starting mysqld daemon with databases from /var/lib/mysql
mysqld_safe[PID]: started
Step # 3: Connect to mysql server using mysql client
# mysql -u root

mysql>
Step # 4: Setup new MySQL root user password
mysql> use mysql;
mysql> update user set password=PASSWORD(”NEW-ROOT-PASSWORD“) where User=’root’;
mysql> flush privileges;
mysql> quit

Step # 5: Stop MySQL Server:
# /etc/init.d/mysql stop
Step # 6: Start MySQL server and test it
# /etc/init.d/mysql start
# mysql -u root -p