Hi Colleen, Which bootloader and init system do you use?
If it is grub, you can try adding a ' 1' OR ' real_init=single' to the bootline. If LILO, you can try adding ' append="1" ' to the bootline. If you use OpenRC, you can try adding ' softlevel=boot' This should tell your system to boot in single-user mode and hopefully not start the mysql service. Otherwise, any compatible Linux LiveCD is your friend. Good luck -- Roger Welsh
