Safely Delete MySQL Bin Logs

Have you ever encountered a situation where your database server runs out of disk space, even when the database itself is relatively small? The culprit might be the binary logs.

To assess the disk usage of the logs, you can use the following command:

du -h -d 1 /var/log/mysql
27.1G	/var/log/mysql

If you find yourself in this scenario, a straightforward solution is to execute the following MySQL command:

PURGE BINARY LOGS BEFORE NOW();
 
-- or using interval. ex 3 days
PURGE BINARY LOGS BEFORE NOW() - INTERVAL 3 DAY;

To proactively manage disk space and avoid future log-related issues, consider adjusting the /etc/mysql/my.cnf configuration file:

[mysqld]
 
# others config
 
expire_logs_days = 3

This setting ensures the automatic deletion of logs older than 3 days. Remember to restart your MySQL service with service mysql restart to apply these changes effectively.