How to enable MySQL Query Log?

Question

How do I enable the MySQL function that logs each SQL query statement received from clients and the time that query statement has submitted? Can I do that in phpmyadmin or N

Answer 1

Not exactly an answer to the question because the question already has great answers. This is a side info. Enabling general_log really put a dent on MySQL performance. I left general_log =1 accidentally on a production server and spent hours finding out why performance was not comparable to a similar setup on other servers. Then I found this which explains the impact of enabling general log. http://www.fromdual.com/general_query_log_vs_mysql_performance.

Gist of the story, don't put general_log=1 in the .cnf file. Instead use set global general_log =1 for a brief duration just to log enough to find out what you are trying to find out and then turn it off.