[root@host root]# mysql Welcome to the MySQL monitor.
Commands end with ; or g. Your MySQL connection id is 1 to server
version: 3.23.41
Type 'help;' or 'h' for help. Type 'c' to clear the buffer.
mysql> USE mysql Reading table information for completion of table and c
olumn names You can turn off this feature to get a quicker startup
with -A Database changed
mysql> UPDATE user -> SET password=password("newpassword") -> WHERE user="root";
Query OK, 2 rows affected (0.04 sec) Rows matched: 2  Changed: 2  Warnings: 0
mysql> flush privileges; Query OK, 0 rows affected (0.01 sec)
mysql> exit; [root@host root]#killall mysqld
Start MySQL the normal way for your system, and all is good.
/etc/init.d/mysqld start