"Cound not find driver with class name: com.mysql.jdbc.Driver" when trying to Connect Jira to a MySQL8 database

Platform Notice: Data Center Only - This article only applies to Atlassian products on the Data Center platform.

Note that this KB was created for the Data Center version of the product. Data Center KBs for non-Data-Center-specific features may also work for Server versions of the product, however they have not been tested. Support for Server* products ended on February 15th 2024. If you are running a Server product, you can visit the Atlassian Server end of support announcement to review your migration options.

*Except Fisheye and Crucible

Summary

Jira is not able to connect to the MySQL8 database. When testing the connection, the error "Could not find driver with the class name: com.mysql.cj.jdbc.Driver" appears and you are not able to proceed.

Environment

Jira Data Center 8.22.1 and earlier.

Diagnosis

This error indicates that Jira is not able to connect to the database using the anticipated JDBC driver.  In order to connect to an external database, the correct driver must be downloaded and added to: <Jira-installation-directory>/lib

Cause

This error occurs when the MySQL JDBC driver is not found, or is not accessible, from: <Jira-installation-directory>/lib

Solution

  1. Verify that you are using a MySQL8 Database

  2. Then, download the appropriate driver for MySQL8 from here.

  3. Copy the driver to the following directory: <Jira-installation-directory>/lib

    1. If you are installing Jira using the Windows installer, you will need to do this step after running the Windows installer, but beforerunning the setup wizard.

  4. Restart the Jira service

Updated on February 27, 2025

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