Database connector

The MySQL data catalog your whole team can trust.

The Dawiso MySQL data catalog turns every database, table, view and stored routine into a searchable inventory, with relationships and dependencies resolved from information_schema.

Read the docs

Live connector Stable connector

MySQL

Dawiso

Metadata-only · your data never leaves the source

Type: Open-source relational database
Auth: Username & password (read-only user)
Sync: Scheduled, incremental
Direction: Read-only · metadata

First things first

What is a data connector?

Metadata-only Read-only access Incremental sync Cross-system lineage

A data connector is the bridge between a tool in your stack and the catalog that gives you a unified view of it. Once a connector is configured, it reaches into the source system on a schedule, reads out the metadata - schemas, tables, dashboards, jobs, ownership, lineage - and represents it inside the catalog. Your actual rows and values stay where they are.

Connectors are the reason a data catalog can answer questions like "which Power BI dashboard depends on this Snowflake table?" or "who owns the orders topic in Kafka?" - automatically, without anyone keeping a spreadsheet up to date.

Three properties separate a good connector from a brittle one: it should be read-only and safe, it should be incremental so a full re-scan isn't required for every refresh, and it should resolve lineage across system boundaries, not just inside one tool.

About the platform

What is MySQL?

MySQL is the open-source relational database that powers the LAMP stack, WordPress, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. It is now owned by Oracle, ships with a permissive option alongside GPLv2, and remains one of the most deployed databases for web and operational workloads.

MySQL exposes its own information_schema for structural introspection, but that's per-instance. Across a real estate of dozens of MySQL databases, no business glossary, no shared ownership and no policy live there. That's where the Dawiso MySQL data catalog joins the picture: read-only, metadata-only, and cross-platform.

Architecture

How Dawiso connects to MySQL

A small read-only role on the MySQL side. The Dawiso scanner pulls metadata on a schedule. Everything ends up in your catalog, business-readable.

Source

MySQL server

Databases & tables
Views & materialized data
Columns & indexes
Routines, triggers, events

REST · JDBC

Dawiso scanner

Read-only metadata

Schema & object discovery
Dependency resolution
SQL flow parsing (optional)
Sampling on opt-in

Internal

Catalog

Dawiso platform

Searchable metadata
Lineage & ownership
Business glossary
Policy & classifications

Connection details

Protocol: MySQL wire protocol · information_schema views
Authentication: Dedicated user with SELECT, SHOW VIEW and EXECUTE
Lineage: Object relationships and dependencies resolved from information_schema (foreign keys, view and routine dependencies)

Setup

Connect MySQL in 4 steps

01

Create a dedicated user

Run CREATE USER 'dawiso_integration'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY '...' as a user with the global CREATE USER privilege or INSERT on the mysql system schema.
02

Grant minimum permissions

GRANT SELECT, SHOW VIEW, EXECUTE ON *.* to the new user, then FLUSH PRIVILEGES. SELECT for table data structure, SHOW VIEW for view definitions, EXECUTE for routine bodies.
03

Create the connection in Dawiso

Enter the host, port (3306 by default), user and password. Shared connections for public hosts, Private via the Dawiso Integration Runtime for VPC-only servers.
04

Run ingestion

Pick the databases to scan as a comma-separated list. Scheduled incremental sync keeps the catalog current; deletions on the MySQL side are reflected on the next run.

Capabilities

What you get with the MySQL connector

Database & table catalog

Every MySQL database, table, view and stored routine is searchable, with column types, comments and indexes.
Relationships & dependencies

Foreign keys, view and routine dependencies are resolved from information_schema so you can see how MySQL objects relate before you touch them.
PII classification

Classify a column once. Dawiso flags every MySQL column carrying email, IBAN or government IDs across every database in the fleet.
Ownership & certification

Mark tables as certified, deprecated or under review. The owner is visible in the catalog alongside grants pulled from the mysql system schema.
Business glossary alignment

Tie MySQL tables and columns to glossary terms so a developer can answer 'is this the right customer table?' without pinging the data team.
Read-only by design

Dawiso reads metadata through a dedicated user with SELECT, SHOW VIEW and EXECUTE only. Row-level data stays in MySQL; profiling is opt-in.

Business value

Why teams turn on the MySQL connector

−65%
Fewer 'which table?' pings

Developers find the certified MySQL table in Dawiso instead of pinging the data team to ask which database holds the live customer record.
10×
Faster impact analysis

Before altering a MySQL column, see exactly which views and stored routines depend on it via resolved object dependencies. Seconds, not days.
Audit-ready
GDPR & DORA evidence

Sensitive MySQL columns are classified once and the catalog keeps a full audit trail of the classification and ownership that follow them.

Ready to catalog your MySQL?

Set up the connector in an afternoon. See your first lineage graph the same day.

Read the docs

Frequently asked questions

Still curious? Talk to our team ->

What is metadata in MySQL?

MySQL exposes metadata through INFORMATION_SCHEMA - databases, tables, columns, keys and views. Dawiso reads it read-only and turns it into a business-readable catalog with relationships, ownership and classification across your platform.

What is a MySQL catalog?

MySQL's catalog is its INFORMATION_SCHEMA describing database objects. Dawiso reads those system views and builds a searchable, governed catalog with relationships, ownership and classification for MySQL tables.

What is included in a data catalog?

A data catalog includes datasets, tables and columns with descriptions, owners, classifications and the relationships between objects. Dawiso assembles all of this for MySQL automatically from live metadata.

What permissions does Dawiso need in MySQL?

A dedicated user (e.g. dawiso_integration) with GRANT SELECT, SHOW VIEW, EXECUTE ON *.*, followed by FLUSH PRIVILEGES. SELECT covers table metadata, SHOW VIEW reads view definitions, EXECUTE reads stored-routine bodies. Read-only end to end.

Does Dawiso copy our MySQL data?

No. Dawiso queries information_schema for metadata only. Row-level data stays inside MySQL. Column profiling and sampling are opt-in per data source and never run automatically.

Which MySQL versions and deployments are supported?

MySQL 8.0 and later. Self-managed MySQL on Linux or Windows, plus managed services like Amazon RDS, Aurora MySQL, Azure Database for MySQL and Cloud SQL. MariaDB is supported through the same family of connectors.

How are object relationships resolved?

Dawiso reads information_schema to resolve foreign keys and the dependencies between tables, views and stored routines, so you can see how MySQL objects relate to one another inside the catalog.