How to Connect Embeddable to MySQL Version 8 / 8.4

FAQs
1

When connecting a MySQL 8 or MySQL 8.4 (LTS) database to Embeddable, you may encounter the following error:

ER_NOT_SUPPORTED_AUTH_MODE: Client does not support authentication protocol requested by server

This happens because MySQL 8+ uses caching_sha2_password as its default authentication plugin, while Embeddable connects successfully using mysql_native_password.

How to Check Your MySQL Version and Authentication Plugin

You can confirm your MySQL version and user authentication method with:

SELECT VERSION();
SELECT user, host, plugin FROM mysql.user WHERE user = 'your_user';

If:

  • Your version is 8.x (especially 8.4), and

  • The plugin column shows caching_sha2_password,

then this is the cause of the connection failure.

Solution: Create a user/ Alter existing user with mysql_native_password

To connect Embeddable to MySQL 8/8.4, create a user that uses mysql_native_password instead of the default authentication method as mentioned here.

In MySQL 8.4, mysql_native_password is disabled by default and you must enable it at the MySQL server level.

If MySQL is installed on a server or VM

  1. Edit your MySQL configuration file (commonly one of the following):

    • /etc/my.cnf

    • /etc/mysql/my.cnf

    • /etc/mysql/mysql.conf.d/mysqld.cnf

  2. Under the [mysqld] section, add:

mysql_native_password=ON
  1. Restart MySQL:
sudo systemctl restart mysqld

or

sudo systemctl restart mysql

If MySQL is running in Docker

Start the container with native authentication enabled:

--mysql-native-password=ON

(Refer to your container configuration for where to add this option.)

If Using a Managed Service (e.g., RDS, Cloud SQL)

Some managed MySQL services may restrict authentication plugin configuration.

Consult your provider’s documentation to determine whether mysql_native_password can be enabled or whether users can be created explicitly with that plugin.

Step 2: Create a Native Authentication User

Once mysql_native_password is enabled, create a new user:

CREATE USER 'emb_user'@'%' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY 'your_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON your_database.* TO 'emb_user'@'%';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

or alter your existing user:

ALTER USER 'emb_user'@'%' IDENTIFIED WITH mysql_native_password BY 'your_password';
GRANT ALL PRIVILEGES ON your_database.* TO 'emb_user'@'%';
FLUSH PRIVILEGES;

Step 3: Use This User in Embeddable

Configure your Embeddable connection using:

  • Host

  • Database

  • Port (typically 3306)

  • Username: emb_user

  • Password: your password

The connection should now succeed.