mysh

mysh

MySQL connection manager with SSH tunnel support.

New to mysh? See the Getting Started guide for non-engineers — set up in 5 minutes and start querying with Claude Code.

Features

• Interactive connection setup with encrypted password storage (AES-256-GCM + Argon2id)
• SSH tunnel management (ad-hoc and background persistent tunnels)
• Automatic output masking for AI/non-TTY execution (protects personal data in production)
• Multiple connections across different terminals without conflicts
• mycli preferred, falls back to standard mysql client
• Native Go driver with MySQL 4.x old_password authentication support
• Output format conversion (plain, markdown, CSV, JSON, PDF) with file export
• Import connections from DBeaver, Sequel Ace, and MySQL Workbench
• MySQL 4.x+ compatible (native driver) / MySQL 5.1+ compatible (CLI driver)

Install

macOS / Linux

brew tap atani/tap
brew install mysh

Windows

Download mysh-windows-amd64.exe from the latest release, rename it to mysh.exe, and place it in a directory on your PATH.

Go

go install github.com/atani/mysh@latest

Quick Start

# Add a connection interactively
mysh add

# Test connection (name optional if only one connection)
mysh ping

# Connect
mysh connect

Usage

mysh <command> [arguments]

Connection Management

# Add a new connection (interactive)
mysh add

# List all connections
mysh list

# Edit an existing connection
mysh edit production

# Remove a connection
mysh remove production

Connection name can be omitted when only one connection exists.

Import from Other Tools

Import connections from other database tools:

• Migrating from DBeaver
• Migrating from Sequel Ace
• Migrating from MySQL Workbench

mysh import --from dbeaver        # Import from DBeaver
mysh import --from sequel-ace     # Import from Sequel Ace
mysh import --from workbench      # Import from MySQL Workbench
mysh import --from dbeaver --all  # Import all without selection prompt

Share Connections

Export connections for team members (passwords are always excluded):

# Export all connections
mysh export > connections.yaml

# Export a specific connection
mysh export production > prod.yaml

Recipients import the shared file and enter their own password:

mysh import --from yaml --file prod.yaml

Exported files include environment, SSH, and mask settings, so non-engineer users get a fully configured connection — they only need to enter the database password.

Redash Integration

Query production databases through Redash instead of direct DB connections. No database credentials or SSH tunnels needed — just a Redash API key.

# Add a Redash connection
mysh add --name prod --redash-url https://redash.example.com --redash-key YOUR_API_KEY --redash-datasource 1

# Query through Redash (masking is applied automatically)
mysh run prod -e "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 10"

# Test connectivity
mysh ping prod

This is ideal for non-engineer users (CS, marketing, PM) who need safe access to production data via AI assistants like Claude Code. The query flows through Redash, and mysh applies masking rules to the results before returning them.

Connecting & Querying

# Test connection
mysh ping production

# Open an interactive MySQL session
mysh connect production

# Execute a SQL file
mysh run production query.sql

# Execute inline SQL
mysh run production -e "SELECT COUNT(*) FROM users"

# Show tables
mysh tables production

SSH Tunnels

By default, connect and run open an ad-hoc SSH tunnel that closes when the command finishes.

For repeated access, start a persistent background tunnel:

# Start a background tunnel
mysh tunnel production

# List active tunnels
mysh tunnel

# connect/run will automatically reuse the background tunnel
mysh run production -e "SHOW PROCESSLIST"

# Stop a tunnel
mysh tunnel stop production

Multiple tunnels can run simultaneously for different connections.

Output Masking

mysh can automatically mask sensitive columns (email, phone, etc.) in query output. This is designed to prevent personal data from leaking into AI tool contexts.

How it works

Masking is controlled by two factors:

1. Connection environment (env in config)
2. TTY detection (is output going to a terminal or being captured?)

Configuration

connections:
  - name: production
    env: production
    mask:
      columns: ["email", "phone", "password_hash"]
      patterns: ["*address*", "*secret*"]
    ssh: ...
    db: ...

Manual override

# Force masking (even in terminal)
mysh run production --mask -e "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5"

# Force raw output (requires interactive confirmation for production)
mysh run production --raw -e "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5"

For production connections, --raw requires interactive confirmation at the terminal. Non-TTY processes (AI tools, scripts) cannot bypass masking.

Masking examples

Record Slicing

Extract specific records from a database as INSERT statements. Useful for creating reproducible test data or migrating individual records.

# Extract records matching a condition
mysh slice production products --where "category='electronics'"

# Save to file
mysh slice production products --where "id IN (7,8)" -o subset.sql

# Disable masking (requires interactive confirmation)
mysh slice production customers --where "id=3" --raw

Output example:

-- mysh slice: products WHERE category='electronics'
-- Generated at: 2026-03-15T12:00:00+09:00

INSERT INTO `products` (`id`, `name`, `price`) VALUES (7, 'Widget Pro', 2980);
INSERT INTO `products` (`id`, `name`, `price`) VALUES (8, 'Gadget Mini', NULL);

Masking rules from the connection config are always applied by default, regardless of environment. Use --raw to disable (requires interactive confirmation).

Output Formats

Export query results as markdown, CSV, JSON, or PDF.

# Markdown table
mysh run production -e "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5" --format markdown

# CSV file
mysh run production -e "SELECT * FROM users" --format csv -o users.csv

# JSON output
mysh run production -e "SELECT * FROM users LIMIT 5" --format json

# JSON file
mysh run production -e "SELECT * FROM users" --format json -o users.json

# PDF report
mysh run production -e "SELECT * FROM users" --format pdf -o report.pdf

# tables command also supports format/output
mysh tables production --format csv -o tables.csv

Supported formats: plain (default), markdown (md), csv, json, pdf

Saved Queries

Save .sql files in ~/.config/mysh/queries/ and list them with:

mysh queries

Configuration

Connections are stored in ~/.config/mysh/connections.yaml.

connections:
  - name: production
    env: production
    ssh:
      host: bastion.example.com
      port: 22
      user: deploy
      key: ~/.ssh/id_ed25519
    mask:
      columns: [email, phone]
      patterns: ["*address*"]
    db:
      host: 127.0.0.1
      port: 3306
      user: app
      database: myapp_production
      password: <encrypted>

  - name: legacy-db
    env: production
    db:
      host: 10.0.0.5
      port: 3306
      user: app
      database: legacy_production
      password: <encrypted>
      driver: native  # MySQL 4.x old_password support

  - name: local
    env: development
    db:
      host: localhost
      port: 3306
      user: root
      database: myapp_dev

Connection Driver

The driver field selects how mysh connects to MySQL.

The native driver uses go-sql-driver/mysql with allowOldPasswords=true to support MySQL 4.x old_password (mysql323) authentication. The connect command provides a simple REPL instead of mycli/mysql.

Environment Variables

The master password lookup order is: macOS Keychain → MYSH_MASTER_PASSWORD → interactive prompt.

Security

• Database passwords are encrypted with AES-256-GCM
• Key derivation uses Argon2id (memory-hard, resistant to GPU attacks)
• Master password is stored in macOS Keychain (falls back to MYSH_MASTER_PASSWORD env var, then prompt)
• Config files are created with 0600 permissions
• Production query output is always masked when mask rules are configured
• --raw on production requires interactive TTY confirmation (AI tools cannot bypass)

Caveats

• old_password is cryptographically weak: MySQL 4.x old_password (mysql323 hash) is a 16-byte XOR-based hash that does not meet modern security standards. Use the native driver only for legacy system connectivity.
• Native driver connect limitations: Unlike mycli/mysql CLI, the built-in REPL has no tab completion, syntax highlighting, or pager. For complex interactive work, prefer run -e.
• go-sql-driver/mysql allowOldPasswords: This depends on the driver's support, which may be removed in future driver updates.

Documentation

• Getting Started (non-engineers) — set up mysh and start querying with Claude Code
• Redash Integration Guide — query databases through Redash
• Sharing Connections — export/import configurations for team onboarding
• Import Guide — migrate from DBeaver, Sequel Ace, MySQL Workbench

Dependencies

• golang.org/x/crypto - Argon2id key derivation
• golang.org/x/term - Secure password input and TTY detection
• gopkg.in/yaml.v3 - Configuration file parsing
• github.com/go-sql-driver/mysql - Native MySQL driver (old_password support)
• github.com/go-pdf/fpdf - PDF output