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db.collection.validate()

Description

db.collection.validate(<option>)

Important

mongo Shell Method

This page documents a mongo method. This is not the documentation for database commands or language-specific drivers, such as Node.js. To use the database command, see the validate command.

For MongoDB API drivers, refer to the language-specific MongoDB driver documentation.

Validates a collection. The method scans a collection data and indexes for correctness and returns the result. For details of the output, see Validate Output.

The db.collection.validate() method has the following syntax:

db.collection.validate( {
   full: <boolean>         // Optional
} )

To specify only the full option, you can also use:

db.collection.validate( <boolean> ) // full option

The db.collection.validate() method can take the following optional document parameter with the fields:

Field Type Description
full boolean

Optional. A flag that determines whether the command performs a slower but more thorough check or a faster but less thorough check.

  • If true, performs a more thorough check.
  • If false, omits some checks for a faster but less thorough check.

The default is false.

Starting in MongoDB 3.6, for the WiredTiger storage engine, only the full validation process will force a checkpoint and flush all in-memory data to disk before verifying the on-disk data.

In previous versions, the data validation process for the WT storage engine always forces a checkpoint.

The db.collection.validate() method is a wrapper around the validate database command.

Behavior

Performance

The db.collection.validate() method is potentially resource intensive and may impact the performance of your MongoDB instance, particularly on larger data sets.

The db.collection.validate() method obtains an exclusive lock on the collection. This will block all reads and writes on the collection until the operation finishes. When run on a secondary, the operation can block all other operations on that secondary until it finishes.

Warning

Due to the performance impact of validation, consider running db.collection.validate() only on secondary replica set nodes. You can use rs.stepDown() to instruct the current primary node to become a secondary to avoid impacting a live primary node.

Data Throughput Metrics

Examples

  • To validate a collection myCollection using the default settings (i.e. full: false )

    db.myCollection.validate()
    
  • To perform a full validation of collection myCollection

    db.myCollection.validate( { full: true } )
    
    db.myCollection.validate(true)
    

For details of the output, see Validate Output.