mysql special characters in connection string

Question

I have a visual studio Windows form programme that I connect to a MySQL database. I recently updated the server and now it wants special characters in the password. The problem I have is when the connection string is passed to the database the special characters through an error. I have connected to the database via and ODBC connection in excel, so I know my connection string works its just when Visual Studio 2019 sends it to the server that something goes wrong. I have no idea how to solve this one. I am using the latest MySQL.data.dll. The password has a * character in it. I have tried other characters with no success.

Answer 1

Hi,@info. Welcome to Microsoft Q&A.

When dealing with special characters in connection strings, especially in the context of a password, it's essential to ensure that the characters are properly encoded or escaped. The asterisk (*) character, being a special character, might need special handling.

Here are some general tips to handle special characters in MySQL connection strings:

URL Encoding: URL encoding can be used to represent special characters in a URL. If you are constructing the connection string manually, you can encode the password using URL encoding. For example, the asterisk character * can be represented as %2A.

// Example: If your original password is "password*123"
// Encode the password before including it in the connection string
string encodedPassword = Uri.EscapeDataString("password*123");
string connectionString = $"Server=myServerAddress;Database=myDataBase;User Id=myUsername;Password={encodedPassword};";

Use Connection String Builders: Instead of manually constructing the connection string, consider using the MySqlConnectionStringBuilder class provided by the MySQL Connector. This class can handle special characters and ensures that the connection string is properly formatted.

MySqlConnectionStringBuilder builder = new MySqlConnectionStringBuilder
{
    Server = "your_server",
    Database = "your_database",
    UserID = "your_user",
    Password = "your_encoded_password", // Use the encoded password here
    // ... other connection options
};

string connectionString = builder.ConnectionString;

Escape Special Characters: If you prefer to manually construct the connection string, make sure to escape special characters properly. For the asterisk character, you might need to escape it depending on the context. In some cases, a backslash (\) may be used as an escape character.

string password = "password*123";
string escapedPassword = password.Replace("*", @"\*");

Ensure Compatibility: Ensure that your MySQL Connector for .NET is up-to-date and compatible with the version of MySQL server you are using. Sometimes, updating the connector can resolve issues related to special characters.

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