You have just installed MariaDB server for the first time. You can start it via: systemctl start mariadb or rcmysql start During the first start, empty database will be created for you automatically. PLEASE REMEMBER TO SET A PASSWORD FOR THE MariaDB root USER! To do so, start the server and run the following commands: '/usr/bin/mysqladmin' -u root password 'new-password' '/usr/bin/mysqladmin' -u root -h <hostname> password 'new-password' Alternatively you can run: '/usr/bin/mysql_secure_installation' which will also give you the option of removing the test databases and anonymous user created by default. This is strongly recommended for production servers.