MySQL General Query Log

• MySQL General Query Log overview
• Enable general logging via MySQL Workbench
• Enable general logging via my.ini

The MySQL general query log records client connections, disconnections and SQL queries. RdpGuard can monitor this log for failed login attempts and block IP addresses that reach the configured failure limit.

General logging is disabled by default. Enable it when using the MySQL General Log monitoring method in RdpGuard. It is not required when RdpGuard monitors failed logins through the Windows Application Event Log; see MySQL protection settings.

RdpGuard needs a log file, so select FILE as the output destination. Logging only to a MySQL table is not sufficient. Because the log also contains SQL queries, it can grow quickly on busy servers; monitor its size and arrange regular log rotation.

Use MySQL Workbench to edit the server's configuration file, or edit my.ini directly.

1. Start MySQL Workbench and open the connection to your MySQL server.

   

2. Open Options File under Instance, or select Server, Options File from the menu. Check that it points to the configuration file used by your server.

   

3. Select the Logging tab and make sure the option group is mysqld.

   

4. Enable these options:

   • general-log - enable general query logging.
   • general_log_file - specify a log filename, such as general.log.
   • log-output - set it to FILE.

5. Click Apply and confirm the changes to the configuration file.

   

6. Restart the MySQL Server service to load the updated configuration. Then check the log and configure RdpGuard.

1. Open the my.ini or my.cnf file used by your MySQL Server service in a text editor with permission to save changes.

   A common location on Windows is %PROGRAMDATA%\MySQL\MySQL Server x.x\my.ini, where x.x is the server version. If the service uses --defaults-file, edit the file specified there. See MySQL option file locations.

2. Under the existing [mysqld] section, set the following options. Update existing entries rather than adding duplicates.

   [mysqld]
   log-output=FILE
   general-log=1
   general_log_file="general.log"

   This example creates general.log in the MySQL data directory (datadir). You can keep an existing log filename or specify another path that the MySQL service can write to.

3. Save the file and restart the MySQL Server service to apply the changes.

After using either method, check that the log file exists and receives new entries when clients connect. Failed logins should produce entries containing Access denied for user.

In RdpGuard Dashboard, open MySQL, enable protection and select MySQL General Log. Let RdpGuard find the file automatically or specify its path, then click Save. If General Log monitoring was already configured, select Tools, RdpGuard Service, Restart to reload the log settings. Check View, Show event log for any MySQL monitoring errors.

How to Enable and Configure MySQL Brute-Force Protection

MySQL General Query Log documentation