There might be a situation when your VPS cannot be started. If you are trying to recover MySQL databases from VPS Recovery Mode or VPS backup files, follow these steps:
Step 1 - Install and stop MySQL server
Connect to your VPS via SSH and install MySQL server by running this command:
yum install mysql-server
It's recommended to use the same version of MySQL. However, using a newer version is also possible.
After the MySQL server is installed, it's time to stop it to add to the data folders:
service mysql stop
Step 2 - Copy the data
Use the following command to copy your old MySQL data to the new MySQL server data files' location:
cp -rf /mnt/var/lib/mysql/* /var/lib/mysql
After the command is executed, verify that the files are owned by the MySQL user. by changing the files' ownership:
chown -R mysql:mysql /var/lib/mysql
When all is good to go, start your MySQL server:
service mysql start
Step 3 - Final checks and export
Check and repair all the database tables to ensure no data is corrupted:
mysqlcheck -rA
NOTE
Depending on the version of MySQL you are running, you should run MYSQLCHECK
Lastly, export the databases:
mysqldump --all-databases > all_databases.sql
That's it. Now, your databases have been fully recovered!