Help & FAQ

pt-summary collects OS, hardware, kernel, and MySQL runtime metadata. It does not modify the system and is safe for production environments.

wget https://www.percona.com/get/pt-summary
chmod +x pt-summary
./pt-summary > server_name_$(date +%d%m%y)_pt-summary.txt

Alternative: Install via package manager (includes all pt-* tools):

# Debian / Ubuntu
apt install percona-toolkit

# RHEL / CentOS / Amazon Linux
yum install percona-toolkit

• Does not modify the system
• Safe for production
• Requires OS (shell) access to the server

pt-mysql-summary collects MySQL version, configuration variables, storage engines, and schema & index metadata using standard SQL queries only.

wget https://www.percona.com/get/pt-mysql-summary
chmod +x pt-mysql-summary
./pt-mysql-summary --user=advisor --password --host=localhost \
  > server_name_$(date +%d%m%y)_pt-mysql-summary.txt

Alternative: Install via package manager (includes all pt-* tools):

# Debian / Ubuntu
apt install percona-toolkit

# RHEL / CentOS / Amazon Linux
yum install percona-toolkit

• Read-only — uses SELECT queries only
• Safe for production
• Replace advisor with your read-only username

Exports all MySQL server configuration variables to a file. This is required for the core analysis.

mysql -u advisor -p -e "SHOW GLOBAL VARIABLES" \
  > server_name_$(date +%d%m%y)_global_variables.txt

• Paste the output into the SHOW VARIABLES tab in MySQL Advisor
• Do not use \G — vertical output is not readable by the analyzer. Use a semicolon or the -e form above, which produces the tab-separated output the tool expects.
• Or use the Collect data from MySQL panel to fetch it automatically

Exports runtime status counters — connections, InnoDB metrics, query cache hits, replication lag, etc. Run during normal workload hours for the most accurate analysis.

mysql -u advisor -p -e "SHOW GLOBAL STATUS" \
  > server_name_$(date +%d%m%y)_global_status.txt

• Paste into the SHOW GLOBAL STATUS tab in MySQL Advisor
• Do not use \G — vertical output is not readable by the analyzer. Use a semicolon or the -e form above, which produces the tab-separated output the tool expects.
• Or use the Collect data from MySQL panel to fetch it automatically

Create a dedicated, minimal-privilege user for analysis. No INSERT, UPDATE, DELETE, or DDL permissions are granted.

CREATE USER 'advisor'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'StrongPasswordHere';

-- Core privileges
GRANT SELECT, PROCESS, SHOW VIEW ON *.* TO 'advisor'@'%';

-- Optional: replication visibility
GRANT REPLICATION CLIENT ON *.* TO 'advisor'@'%';

FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

Upload or paste the following files into their respective tabs in MySQL Advisor.

• No table data or row contents are collected
• No passwords appear in any output files
• Hostnames, IPs, and file paths may appear — review before sharing if required
• MySQL Advisor processes data server-side and never stores it
• No external network calls are made during analysis
• Analysis never connects to your database — it works only on the text you provide
• The optional Collect data from MySQL panel is the one exception, and only when you use it: the host and read-only credentials you enter are sent to the MySQL Advisor server, which opens the connection and runs SHOW GLOBAL VARIABLES and SHOW GLOBAL STATUS only. The credentials are used for that single request and are never stored or logged. The host must be reachable from the internet; for a database on a private network, paste the output instead

Prefer automation? Send the same diagnostic output to the MySQL Advisor API and get findings back as JSON (default) or a Markdown report. The API never connects to your database — it only analyzes the text you upload. You need an API key to get started.

Fill in the request form with your name, organization, and intended use; your key is emailed once approved.

Step 1 — Collect the data (the two variables and status files are required; the pt-summaries are optional):

# Required: server configuration + runtime status
mysql -u advisor -p -e "SHOW GLOBAL VARIABLES" > global_variables.txt
mysql -u advisor -p -e "SHOW GLOBAL STATUS"    > global_status.txt

# Optional: OS/hardware + schema context (needs Percona Toolkit)
pt-summary                                 > pt-summary.txt
pt-mysql-summary --user=advisor --password > pt-mysql-summary.txt

Step 2 — Set your key and the API URL (run once in your shell):

KEY="mad_your_api_key_here"
API="https://nitty-witty.com/mysql-advisor/api/v1/analyze.php"

Step 3 — Call the API (minimal — required files only, JSON response):

curl -H "X-API-Key: $KEY" \
  -F vars=@global_variables.txt \
  -F status=@global_status.txt \
  "$API"

Full analysis + Markdown report (all four files, saved to advisor_report.md):

curl -H "X-API-Key: $KEY" \
  -F vars=@global_variables.txt \
  -F status=@global_status.txt \
  -F ptsummary=@pt-summary.txt \
  -F ptmysql=@pt-mysql-summary.txt \
  "$API?output=md" > advisor_report.md

• CLI: cli/mysqladvisor.sh in the repository wraps these steps: it collects via the mysql client, calls the API with MYSQL_ADVISOR_KEY from your environment, and prints the Markdown report
• Response format: JSON by default; add ?output=md for a readable Markdown report
• Auth: send your key in the X-API-Key header; a missing/invalid key returns 401
• Rate limits: requests are throttled per key; exceeding the limit returns 429 with a Retry-After value
• Privacy: only the text you send is analyzed — no database connection is ever made
• Replace advisor with your read-only MySQL user and mad_your_api_key_here with your real key