How to Enable Encryption in Transit in MariaDB

How do I enable and enforce SSL/TLS encryption in transit for MariaDB?

Encryption in transit secures data exchanged between MariaDB clients and the server by wrapping every packet in SSL/TLS.

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Description

What does “encryption in transit” mean for MariaDB?

Encryption in transit protects data on the wire by forcing MariaDB to use SSL/TLS for every client-server packet, eliminating plaintext snooping risks.

How do I confirm SSL support is compiled in?

Run SHOW VARIABLES LIKE 'have_ssl';. If it returns YES, the server has SSL libraries. A value of DISABLED or NO means you must recompile or install the SSL plugin.

Which server settings enable SSL?

Add ssl-ca, ssl-cert, and ssl-key paths under the [mysqld] section of my.cnf. Restart the instance to activate TLS handshakes.

How do I force specific users to use SSL?

Use REQUIRE SSL in CREATE USER or ALTER USER. Clients that fail the TLS negotiation cannot connect.

Can I check if an active session is encrypted?

Query SELECT ssl_version, ssl_cipher FROM information_schema.processlist WHERE id = CONNECTION_ID();. A non-NULL result confirms an encrypted link.

How do I enforce SSL on application connectors?

Pass connection parameters such as --ssl-ca, --ssl-cert, and --ssl-key (CLI) or their driver-specific equivalents (useSSL=true, requireSSL=true in JDBC).

Does SSL impact query performance?

Expect a 2-5 % CPU overhead during handshakes and encryption. Modern CPUs with AES-NI typically hide the cost in normal workloads.

Best practices for production deployments?

Rotate certificates yearly, prefer TLS v1.2+, disable weak ciphers, and automate certificate distribution with tools such as Vault or cert-manager.

Quick checklist before going live

1) Certificates issued by trusted CA 2) Strong DH parameters 3) Firewall rules allow 3306 only over TLS 4) Monitoring alerts on have_ssl and expired certs.

Why How to Enable Encryption in Transit in MariaDB is important

How to Enable Encryption in Transit in MariaDB Example Usage


-- Customer success dashboard connects with SSL
mysql --host=db.prod --user=report_reader --password --ssl-ca=ca.pem --ssl-cert=client-cert.pem --ssl-key=client-key.pem \
      --execute="SELECT c.name, SUM(o.total_amount) AS lifetime_value
                 FROM Customers c
                 JOIN Orders o ON o.customer_id = c.id
                 GROUP BY c.name
                 ORDER BY lifetime_value DESC
                 LIMIT 10;"

How to Enable Encryption in Transit in MariaDB Syntax


# Server configuration (my.cnf)
[mysqld]
ssl-ca   = /etc/ssl/mariadb/ca.pem
ssl-cert = /etc/ssl/mariadb/server-cert.pem
ssl-key  = /etc/ssl/mariadb/server-key.pem

# Create an SSL-only user for the ecommerce reporting app
CREATE USER 'report_reader'@'%' IDENTIFIED BY 'S3cureP@ss' REQUIRE SSL;
GRANT SELECT ON ecommerce.* TO 'report_reader'@'%';

# Verify session encryption from psql-like client
SHOW STATUS LIKE 'Ssl_cipher';

Common Mistakes

Relying on <code>have_ssl=DISABLED</code> and assuming traffic is still secure. Fix: install proper SSL libraries or packages so <code>have_ssl</code> reads <code>YES</code>.
Adding <code>REQUIRE SSL</code> but forgetting to restart the application with SSL parameters, leading to connection failures. Fix: update connection strings to supply CA, cert, and key.