MongoDB FAQ¶

Answers to common questions about the MongoDB connector. Sections are grouped by topic; pick the heading closest to what you are working on.

Connecting¶

Does it work with MongoDB Atlas?¶

Yes, including the shared and Flex tiers. Enter the cluster address in Host, set DNS Seed List (SRV) to Yes (mongodb+srv, e.g. Atlas), and add the Qualytics addresses to the Atlas IP access list. See the Atlas example.

Can I paste a connection string?¶

No. The form asks for the host, the port, and the options as separate fields, and the API refuses a connection string, so a password never ends up written into an address. Take the host names from your connection string, and enter the user and password in their own fields.

How do I connect to a replica set?¶

List every member with its port in Host, separated by commas, for example mongo-1.internal:27017,mongo-2.internal:27017,mongo-3.internal:27018, and leave Port empty. Every member name the replica set reports has to be reachable from your Qualytics deployment. See Network access.

What is the Auth Source?¶

The database where the user is defined, which is usually admin and is the default. It is not the database you monitor, which you pick under Location. See Authentication.

Is the connection encrypted?¶

When SSL Connection is on, or whenever DNS Seed List (SRV) is set to Yes (mongodb+srv, e.g. Atlas), the connection uses TLS. Without either, it is not encrypted.

Why is there no Catalog field?¶

Connectors such as Athena ask for a Catalog, the level above the database. MongoDB has no such level, only databases and collections, so there is nothing to name. Qualytics works one out from the connection settings.

What it reads¶

What becomes a container?¶

Every collection in the selected database, including time-series collections. Views and system. collections are not listed. See What becomes a container.

How does Qualytics know the fields of a collection?¶

Each Sync samples up to 10,000 documents per collection and builds the fields from them. A smaller collection is read in full. The fields stay as they are until the next Sync. See How fields are worked out.

Can I change the sample size?¶

No. The sample is always up to 10,000 documents per collection. Running a Sync again draws a new sample and updates the fields.

What happens to nested documents and arrays?¶

Sub-documents become nested fields and arrays become array fields, which you can profile and check. A sub-document with more than 20 different keys is read as a map. See Complex Data Types.

What if documents store the same field with different types?¶

Each field takes the type the sample settled on. A value of another type is converted where possible, such as the text "12" in a number field, and otherwise reads as empty for that document only. The rest of the document is still read.

Can Qualytics write to my MongoDB database?¶

No. The connector is read-only, so it cannot be used as an enrichment datastore. Link a separate enrichment datastore as its destination for the anomalies and metadata Qualytics produces.

Datastores¶

Can I monitor several databases from one connection?¶

Yes. Select several databases in the Database dropdown, and each one becomes its own datastore on the same connection. Add more later with Add with an Existing Connection.

What happens when I change the password?¶

Edit the connection, enter the new password, and save. The change applies to every datastore that uses that connection. See How the credentials are stored.