MariaDB 10.11 LTS is a community-developed fork of MySQL with enhanced performance, more storage engines, and longer support windows. Ubuntu 24.04 LTS ships MariaDB 10.11 in its repositories. This guide installs and configures it.

Tested and valid on:

  • Ubuntu 24.04 LTS

Prerequisites

  • Ubuntu 24.04 LTS server
  • A user with sudo privileges

Step 1 – Install MariaDB

Install from the Ubuntu 24.04 repos:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install mariadb-server -y

Step 2 – Start and Enable the Service

Start MariaDB and enable auto-start:

sudo systemctl start mariadb
sudo systemctl enable mariadb

Step 3 – Run the Security Script

Secure the installation:

sudo mysql_secure_installation

Set a root password, remove anonymous users, disallow remote root login, and drop the test database.

Step 4 – Log In to MariaDB

Connect as root:

sudo mariadb

Or with password:

mariadb -u root -p

Step 5 – Create a Database and User

Inside the MariaDB shell:

CREATE DATABASE appdb;
CREATE USER 'appuser'@'localhost' IDENTIFIED BY 'SecurePass123!';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON appdb.* TO 'appuser'@'localhost';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;
EXIT;

Step 6 – Check the Version

Verify the installed version:

mariadb --version

Step 7 – Manage the Service

Common management commands:

sudo systemctl stop mariadb
sudo systemctl restart mariadb
sudo systemctl status mariadb

Conclusion

MariaDB 10.11 LTS is now installed on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. It is a drop-in replacement for MySQL and compatible with most applications that use the MySQL protocol.