<p>MySQL raises error 1468 (ER_USERNAME) when a statement references an invalid, empty, or overly long user name.</p>
<p>MySQL Error 1468 ER_USERNAME appears when a statement contains an empty, malformed, or too-long user name. Supply a valid 'user'@'host' identifier or shorten the account name to fix the issue.</p>
user name
MySQL error 1468 ER_USERNAME is raised when a SQL statement references a user account whose name is empty, malformed, or exceeds the character limit. The server cannot parse the user part of the account identifier and therefore aborts the statement.
The error can surface during CREATE USER, GRANT, RENAME USER, ALTER USER, or DROP USER commands, and also when authenticating connections if the login string is invalid. Resolving it quickly is critical because user management operations will fail and new connections may be blocked.
The server validates each account name against strict rules: it must have at least one character, stay within 32 characters, and appear in 'user'@'host' format. Any violation triggers ER_USERNAME.
Missing quotes, accidental commas, control characters, and mis-typed host separators are also common causes. Tools that automatically build SQL can insert an empty user field when variables are null, silently leading to the error.
First, confirm whether the user portion is blank or too long. Reissue the command with a valid identifier not exceeding 32 characters. If the host part is optional, use '%' as a wildcard but still provide the user portion.
When running a CREATE USER or GRANT statement programmatically, add defensive checks that verify the variable is not null before concatenation. After correction, run FLUSH PRIVILEGES or reconnect to apply the change immediately.
CI/CD scripts occasionally supply an environment variable USER_NAME that is unset in staging. Guard the script with a default value or exit if the variable is empty to avoid ER_USERNAME.
Migrations that rename service accounts longer than 32 characters should truncate or abbreviate the name, for example renaming 'analytics_microservice_read_pipeline' to 'analytics_reader'.
Enforce naming conventions in version control so every account follows user32 format and contains only allowed characters. Lint SQL in pre-commit hooks or IDEs such as Galaxy to catch blank strings quickly.
Centralize user creation in stored procedures or Terraform modules that validate input length and character set before executing DDL statements against MySQL.
Error 1396: Operation CREATE USER failed for 'user'@'host' - occurs when the account already exists. Drop or rename the existing user before creating a new one.
Error 1044: Access denied for user - raised when privileges are insufficient. Grant CREATE USER or root-level access to perform user management tasks.
Statements like CREATE USER '@localhost'; or GRANT SELECT ON db.* TO '@%'; trigger ER_USERNAME because the user part is missing.
MySQL limits account names to 32 characters. Longer strings are rejected with error 1468.
Spaces, control characters, or Unicode outside the default charset cause validation failure.
Forgetting the separating @ symbol or misquoting the string confuses the parser, resulting in ER_USERNAME.
Raised when an account already exists. Drop the existing user or use IF NOT EXISTS.
Appears when the current session lacks privilege to manage users. Grant adequate rights or connect as root.
Triggered when SUPER privilege is needed for certain user operations. Assign SUPER or perform the action as an administrative account.
Yes. If you omit @host, MySQL defaults to @'%'. However the user portion must still be present; otherwise ER_USERNAME is triggered.
The 32-character limit has existed since early versions. The error code and behavior are consistent in MySQL 5.7 and 8.0.
Galaxy's SQL editor highlights empty or malformed user identifiers and enforces linting rules, so you fix the mistake before running the query.
sql_mode settings do not influence user name validation. Only correcting the identifier resolves the error.
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