Hide string in open-source code? [duplicate]

Question

I've been working on a Java project for a while now, and before I make it available for public download, I'd like to add in a feature which requires me to connect to a MySQL database. My question is simple: How would I go about hiding the password to the database if the code is open-source?

Answer 1

Store the database connection settings separate from your code.

Answer 2

You can put the password in some sort of configuration file like an ini file. During the setup/installation stage, get the password from the user and populate it in the configuration file either by code, or allow them to do it manually.

Answer 3

As far as I know, there is no correct answer. You can try really hard to obfuscate or hide it, but if the password or a method of calculating it is in your JAR, a persistent and skilled user will find it.

There is a much better answer than I could give here: How can I protect MySQL username and password from decompiling?