I want to keep a record of the configuration of the MySQL servers I manage. The configuration of some servers differs from others and over time the configuration may vary, partly as a result of upgrades in the mysql version or the use of the particular mysql instance, so tracking this is important.

Configuration items in MySQL can be thought of in 2 separate parts: the static configuration files which determine the behaviour of the server when it starts up (my.cnf) and the running configuration of the server in question. The latter information is usually obtained by running SHOW GLOBAL VARIABLES and SHOW SLAVE STATUS if the server is a slave.

I’d also like to compare the 2 sets of configuration so I can see if a local change has been made to the running server which is not reflected in its configuration file. I might want to correct this, or at least be aware of it.

However, collecting and …