Importing Structure and Data - Mastering phpMyAdmin 2.11 for Effective MySQL Management - page 142

We first specify the directory name of our choice in the $cfg['UploadDir']
parameter; for example, './upload' . We can also use the %u string, as described in
Chapter 7, to represent the user's name.
Now, let's go back to the Import sub-page and see what happens:
This error message is expected, as the directory does not exist. It is supposed
to have been created inside the current phpMyAdmin installation directory. The
message might also indicate that the directory exists, but can't be read by the
web server. (In PHP safe mode, the owner of the directory and the owner of the
phpMyAdmin-installed scripts must be the same.)
Using an SFTP or FTP client, we create the necessary directory and can upload a file
there (for example book.sql ) bypassing any PHP timeouts or upload maximum
limits. Note that the file itself must have permissions that allow the web server to
read it. In most cases, the easiest way is to allow everyone to read the file.
Refreshing the Import sub-page brings up the following:
Clicking Go should execute the file.