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I just installed the LAMP server and PHPMyAdmin. Once I logged in I noticed databases already created and within them tons of tables and rows.

My question of course is whether I can just delete them all without failing the system in any way. Below you see what I saw once I entered the first database.

One of four database preinstalled.

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  • in what way is this related to ubuntu?
    – don.joey
    Dec 28, 2012 at 14:59
  • No, Don't delete it
    – Tachyons
    Dec 28, 2012 at 15:05
  • In future, you should really ask this type of question in serverfault.com. You'll get much better answers there.
    – Flimm
    Dec 28, 2012 at 15:20

1 Answer 1

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INFORMATION_SCHEMA, PERFORMANCE_SCHEMA and mysql (and possibly more) are special system tables in MySQL. Please refer to the MySQL documentation on this. One excerpt:

Usage Notes for the INFORMATION_SCHEMA Database

INFORMATION_SCHEMA is a database within each MySQL instance, the place that stores information about all the other databases that the MySQL server maintains. The INFORMATION_SCHEMA database contains several read-only tables. They are actually views, not base tables, so there are no files associated with them, and you cannot set triggers on them. Also, there is no database directory with that name.

So, no, don't attempt to delete them. You need them in order to have a functional MySQL installation. Moreover, they're probably protected from any regular way of deleting/altering them.

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