phpMyAdmin - Authentication type and info

Question

I am using XAMPP to develop my prototype website locally and will transfer the whole prototype to a web hosting company after everything is ready.

By default the content of the Authentication type and info section is as follows: C:\xampp\phpMyAdmin\config.inc.php

$cfg['Servers'][$i]['auth_type']            = 'config';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['user']                 = 'root';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['password']             = '';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['AllowNoPassword']      = false;

While I am in the prototype development period, I modify the password of root to XXX

$cfg['Servers'][$i]['auth_type']            = 'config';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['user']                 = 'root';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['password']             = 'XXX';
$cfg['Servers'][$i]['AllowNoPassword']      = false;

Questions:

1. When I upload my website to a hosting site, do I have to provide such a password for the root?

2. When I upload my website to a hosting site, is it safe to write download my root password explicitly as this?

3. What $cfg['Servers'][$i]['auth_type'] should I use?

   I saw some tutorials which change the auth_type from config to http. What is the meaning of each type (config and http) and when should I use which?

4. What is the meaning of $cfg['Servers'][$i]['AllowNoPassword']?

Answer 1

Unless you have a dedicated server and your hosting company expects you to do all of your wn setup, you are not going to have to do any configuration on phpMyadmin on your hosting account. It will be set up by your hosting company. In both Plesk and cPanel, you would create a new database in the hosting manager, then create a new user for that database.

Answer 2

http://www.phpmyadmin.net/documentation/#cfg_Servers_auth_type

[Specifies] whether config or cookie or HTTP or signon authentication should be used for this server.