MongoDB Glossary
MongoDB is a source-available cross-platform document-oriented database program for high-volume storage. Classified as a NoSQL database program, MongoDB uses JSON-like documents with optional schemas.
This glossary defines the core concepts behind MongoDB to help build your mental model of how MongoDB work and understand what the documentation is referring to when it uses certain terminology.
ACID compliance is a set of database characteristics consisting of Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability that ensure that database transactions are completed efficiently.
An access control list, or ACL, is a list of user permissions that controls access to a system resource.
A connection string is a string of characters that provides necessary information and parameters to establish a connection between a software application and the database. Connection strings are considered sensitive information and we recommend handling them securely, such as by avoiding hardcoding the string into the application’s code or configuration files.
A central processing unit, also called a processor or CPU, is an essential piece of computer hardware that executes the instructions from a computer program.
Database as a Service, Managed Database Service, or DBaaS for short, is a cloud service that allows users to access a cloud database system without having a personal cloud data system on a subscription basis.
End-to-end encryption, or E2EE, is a system of communication that encrypts messages for everyone including the messaging service except the user receiving the message and the user that sent the message.
Failover is a high availability (HA) mechanism that monitors servers for failures and reroutes traffic or operations to a redundant server when the primary server fails.
High Availability (HA) is an approach to infrastructure design focusing on reducing downtime and eliminating single points of failure.
Hot standby is the act of listening for when a primary node fails in order for the standby node to take its place.
Logs are captures of the standard output stream that you can inspect for information about activity related to your app.
Linux Unified Key Setup (LUKS) is an open source disk encryption specification for block storage devices.
Machine type is the set of virtualized hardware resources used for a virtual machine (VM) instance.
Point-in-time recovery, or PITR for short, ensures that automatic backups are made in order to restore or recover data made in a previous state of the server.
Random-Access Memory, or RAM, is a memory storage made to store and access memory on a short-term basis.
A read-only node is a replica of the cluster’s primary node.
A standby node is a node that is set aside idling on hot standby.
Tags are keywords associated with resources which help with managing resource ownership and organize lookups and actions on resources.