MySQL replication keeps a replica server in sync with a primary, providing redundancy and read scaling. This guide configures MySQL 8.0 primary-replica (master-slave) replication between two Ubuntu 24.04 LTS servers.

Tested and valid on:

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS

Prerequisites

Two Ubuntu 24.04 LTS servers (primary and replica) with MySQL 8.0 installed
Network connectivity between the two servers
A user with sudo privileges on both

Step 1 – Configure the Primary Server

On the primary, edit MySQL config:

sudo nano /etc/mysql/mysql.conf.d/mysqld.cnf

Set a unique server ID and enable binary logging:

[mysqld]
server-id   = 1
log_bin     = /var/log/mysql/mysql-bin.log
binlog_do_db = mydb

Restart MySQL:

sudo systemctl restart mysql

Step 2 – Create a Replication User on the Primary

sudo mysql
CREATE USER 'replica_user'@'replica_ip' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY 'ReplicaPass123!';
GRANT REPLICATION SLAVE ON *.* TO 'replica_user'@'replica_ip';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

Step 3 – Get the Primary Binary Log Coordinates

Lock tables and record the log file and position:

FLUSH TABLES WITH READ LOCK;
SHOW MASTER STATUS;

Note the File and Position values. Keep this session open.

Step 4 – Export and Transfer the Database

In a new terminal on the primary, dump the database:

sudo mysqldump -u root -p --databases mydb > /tmp/mydb.sql

Copy to the replica:

scp /tmp/mydb.sql user@replica_ip:/tmp/

Unlock tables on the primary:

UNLOCK TABLES;

Step 5 – Configure the Replica Server

On the replica, edit MySQL config:

sudo nano /etc/mysql/mysql.conf.d/mysqld.cnf

Set a different server ID and disable binary logging:

[mysqld]
server-id   = 2
relay-log   = /var/log/mysql/mysql-relay-bin.log

Restart MySQL and import the dump:

sudo systemctl restart mysql
sudo mysql < /tmp/mydb.sql

Step 6 – Connect the Replica to the Primary

On the replica, configure replication with the coordinates from Step 3:

sudo mysql
CHANGE REPLICATION SOURCE TO
  SOURCE_HOST='primary_ip',
  SOURCE_USER='replica_user',
  SOURCE_PASSWORD='ReplicaPass123!',
  SOURCE_LOG_FILE='mysql-bin.000001',
  SOURCE_LOG_POS=154;
START REPLICA;

Step 7 – Verify Replication

Check replica status:

SHOW REPLICA STATUSG

Look for Replica_IO_Running: Yes and Replica_SQL_Running: Yes.

Conclusion

MySQL 8.0 primary-replica replication is now active on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. Changes on the primary are automatically propagated to the replica. Use the replica for read-heavy queries to scale performance.

How to Configure MySQL Primary-Replica Replication on Ubuntu 24.04