Connecting to mySQL database where developer

[Paul McManus]

I'm new to mySQL (though proficient at writing SQL) and using the connector for Excel. I'm a financial analyst, not a developer so please excuse my ignorance if there is a simple answer.

Our company has recently had a data integration project completed by a contractor who, from what I can tell, uses the LAMP stack (implemented before I started). Connecting to the phpMyAdmin portal via the browser requires an HTTPAUTH challenge (username and password) plus the usual username/password for the phpMyAdmin portal login.

I am wanting to connect to this database using the Excel connector. I have installed this with no problems, however, having entered my parameters in the parameters tab when clicking 'new connection', the connection status is 'refusing connections'. Is there anything special I should know about connecting to a database with this setup? Would the database be on the same port as I see in the phpMyAdmin portal URL? What parameters should I be using in the mySQL connection screen?

I'm hesitant to go to the developer in the first instance as I don't particularly want to pay for assistance if this is an easy config issue on my end.

Thanks in advance. I understand I'm probably missing some information but as I said, I'm not a developer so assistance on what info I need and how to get it would also be appreciated.