Resolving Database Collation Issues during MySQL Backup Restore

The Problem

When restoring a MySQL database backup from a newer version to an older version, you may encounter issues due to differences in database collation.

The Cause

The MySQL server running on the destination is an older version than the source, which means it doesn't contain the required database collation.

The Solution

To resolve this issue, you need to make a small tweak to the backup file. Follow these steps:

Edit the Backup File

1. Open the database backup file in a text editor.
2. Replace the following strings:
   • utf8mb4_0900_ai_ci with utf8mb4_general_ci
   • CHARSET=utf8mb4 with CHARSET=utf8

Update the ENGINE Statement

Replace the following line:

ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8mb4 COLLATE=utf8mb4_0900_ai_ci;

With

ENGINE=InnoDB DEFAULT CHARSET=utf8 COLLATE=utf8_general_ci;