mysql not starting from command line in xampp on windows

Question

i am using windows xp sp3 and xampp 1.7.3. i am able to start both apache and mysql from xampp control panel but when i start mysql from command line,it fails. when i go to the directory C:\xampp\mysql\bin and typed mysql,i got the error

ERROR 2003 (HY000): Can't connect to MySQL server on 'localhost' (10061)

the i tried mysql -u root because i have no password set again i get the same error as above. also when i go to the apache bin folder and and type httpd from command line there is no response and the command line hangs up. whats wrong

Answer 1

You are trying to connect to mysql using the client rather than start the service.

To start the service first use mysqld

C:\Program Files\MySQL\MySQL Server 5.0\bin\mysqld

http://dev.mysql.com/doc/refman/5.0/en/windows-start-command-line.html