My last full-time job was manager of a university's database department. Ironically, I know very, very little about databases themselves. I'm no longer in charge of college databases, but I still do have a handful of MySQL servers that run my various Web applications. Apart from apt-get install, I have no idea how to make databases work. Thankfully, help is available.

MySQLTuner is a Perl script that checks your local (or remote) MySQL server and gives recommendations for improving security and performance. It does not edit files or actually make changes to the server, but it does give a very lengthy list of recommendations. If you (like me) are the sort of person who just tends to copy/paste database setup instructions, running MySQLTuner is a really good idea.

You can download your copy at http://mysqltuner.com. Be sure to read the documentation to get the most use out of the program. And, if you discover security problems like the ones shown in my screenshot? Fix them!

Thanks to its ability to help improve and secure MySQL servers that otherwise might be vulnerable, MySQLTuner gets this month's Editors' Choice award. If you're imperfect like me, download a copy today and fine-tune your databases!