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WordPress database is a necessary part of your WP-based website. Without the database, you cannot run a site perfectly since it stores the crucial entities of your website. Databases comprise tables, indexes, data elements, database schemas, fields, columns, records, rows, keys, relationships, and data types. All of these elements play pivotal roles in your website.
Then, each element has its table types, such as Subset Tables, Data Tables, Join Tables, and Validation Tables.
However, if you build a website using WordPress, you do not have to be confused about the elements above because they were generated when you started developing a site. For instance, when you have created a new user for registering a WordPress site, then the user database is stored on your database automatically.
The username, password, email, and other entities you have created were saved in the database.
WordPress Database Management System
In WordPress, there is database management, which is called MySQL. MySQL is a totally free open-source database management system that is used by several applications based on websites.
For some popular WordPress hostings, MySQL files can be organized by using a tool named phpMyAdmin. You can utilize it by accessing the cPanel Hosting and configure it by simply using the web browser.
Then, you can also upload a program similar to phpMyAdmin to the Hosting. This tool is called Adminer, and nowadays some web hosting prefer using Adminer instead of phpMyAdmin. But its function and interface is the same.
Additionally, if you do not have access to either of the above tools, you can still organize MySQL by using an SQL Buddy plugin. A simple way to access, edit, and remove the database through a WordPress dashboard.
But I highly recommend constantly deleting the plugin after you use it. The database contains sensitive data, so you have to protect it carefully.
When Do You Need to Delete a WordPress Database?
Even though the database stores a lot of crucial data, sometimes it is not needed anymore. In my case, when I migrated my website to another Hosting, the old database was still left. So, I need to delete it.
I still have a MySQL database that is stored on my Hosting and uses 510MB of storage.
The problem is that my Hawkhost Hosting capacity is only 10GB, which is roughly 5% used by the SQL database, and it consumes more disk. In fact, I do not need it anymore since I have migrated the website to another hosting. I just realized that I forgot to delete the database SQL stuck on my old Hosting.
How can you permanently delete the SQL database of your WordPress site in the Hosting? This article will show you the simple way to remove a WordPress database.
In this tutorial, I will show the interface of my HawkHost Hosting. Still, you can use this guide for other hostings since the interface is the same.
How to Delete WordPress Database via Databases Menu
- Login to your cPanel Hosting
- Make sure the name of the database you want to delete. For instance, I will delete the database which is attributed to antarannews[dot]com website, so I can find its name is acehwebs_antarannews on the wp-config.php of File Manager
- Direct to the Databases menu on the Hosting and select MySQL Databases
- At Current Databases, choose the database target and click delete. You will get a confirmation message. Go ahead and click the “Delete Database” button
- You will get a successful notification of the deletion of the database
How to Delete WordPress Database via phpMyAdmin
- After logging in to your cPanel Hosting, select the phpMyAdmin option on the Databases menu section
- Please take care of the database name you want to delete. In this case, I want to delete the acehwebs_harianreportase database, so I click it
- Point your mouse to the bottom and select the “Check all / Check tables having overhead” option
- Choose “Drop” instead of With selected:
- Then you will be asked to forward your decision, make sure the “Enable foreign key checks” is checked, and click Yes
- Your SQL query has been executed successfully. You have deleted the database through the phpMyAdmin option
Now, my Hosting capacity is 510MB larger than before. Many of us may need to realize when the database SQL consumes more space. Kindly check your storage regularly and delete database or other website files you do not need. This simple thing will expand your disk and speed up your website speed due to unnecessary scripts.
Conclusion
The database plays a vital role in WordPress. It stores WordPress users, posts, pages, and even the comments archive. A database management system on WordPress is called MySQL, and it can be arranged through phpMyAdmin, Adminer, and SQL Buddy plugin. Several databases on WordPress are not deleted perfectly; you can check and delete them if you are not using them anymore.
Reference: The WordPress Database