Login to the system you want to install MySQL and install the mysql-server package.

$ sudo apt-get install mysql-server

Stopping the database

Once the package is installed the database will be started up, so first stop it before continiuing with it’s configuration.

$ sudo invoke-rc.d mysql stop

Configuring the database

If remote machines will be connecting to the MySQL database, we need to make sure that we listen not just on localhost.

To allow remote machines connecting to the database in /etc/mysql/my.cnf comment this line out:

bind-address           = 127.0.0.1

Any other changes you need to make you should do them in /etc/mysql/my.cnf file.

Starting up the database:

In order to start the database, execute the command below:

$ sudo invoke-rc.d mysql start

Securing the database

Set password for the database root user:

/usr/bin/mysqladmin -u root password 'some-good-password-here'
/usr/bin/mysqladmin -u root -h 'mysql.example.org' password 'some-good-password-here'

Drop any anonymous users from the database if any. Login to the MySQL instance using mysql -u root -p and then drop the anonymous users:

mysql> drop user ''@localhost;
mysql> drop user ''@hostname;
mysql> flush privileges;

And that should be all!