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Managing Collections & Documents Cloud

The RESTHeart Cloud UI provides two tightly integrated views for working with MongoDB data: the Collection Browser and the Documents Browser. Together they give you a complete read/write interface over your MongoDB collections without writing a single API call.

Collection Browser

Navigation path: Service → Collections

The Collection Browser is the entry point for inspecting and managing the MongoDB collections inside your RESTHeart service. It lists every collection in the service (or in the selected database for Dedicated plans) and lets you navigate into individual collections to browse their documents.

Listing Collections

Collections are fetched via GET /<db>?rep=STANDARD and displayed in a searchable, paginated table. Each row shows the collection name, an icon indicating whether it is a regular collection or a GridFS bucket, and action buttons.

On Dedicated plans a database selector dropdown appears at the top of the page. Switching databases refreshes the collection list automatically.

Creating a Collection

Click New Collection and enter a name. You may optionally assign a JSON Schema validator at creation time by selecting one of the schemas stored in /_schemas. The UI issues a PUT /<db>/<collection> request.

Note
 JSON Schema documents are managed in the Schemas section. A schema created there can be assigned to any number of collections.

Viewing and Editing Collection Metadata

Each collection row has a Metadata action that opens a dialog showing the raw collection metadata (JSON Schema binding, aggrs, streams, and any other properties). The metadata is fetched via GET /<db>/<collection>/_meta.

From this dialog you can:

  • Assign a JSON Schema — select a schema by its _id and bind it as the collection’s document validator. The UI issues a PATCH /<db>/<collection> with the jsonSchema property.

  • Inspect the raw aggrs and streams arrays managed by the Aggregations and Change Streams sections.

Deleting a Collection

Click Delete on a collection row. A confirmation dialog appears before the DELETE /<db>/<collection> request is issued. This operation is irreversible — all documents inside the collection are permanently removed.

GridFS Bucket Detection

Collections whose name ends with .files are automatically identified as GridFS buckets. The UI:

  • Displays a file-bucket icon next to the collection name.

  • Labels actions with file-oriented language (e.g. Files instead of Documents).

  • Provides a direct link to the binary download endpoint (GET /<collection>/<id>/binary) from the Documents view.

API Reference

Operation Endpoint

List collections

GET /<db>?rep=STANDARD

Create collection

PUT /<db>/<collection>

Read metadata

GET /<db>/<collection>/_meta

Patch metadata

PATCH /<db>/<collection>

Delete collection

DELETE /<db>/<collection>

Documents Browser

Navigation path: Service → Collections → select a collection

Clicking a collection row in the Collection Browser navigates to the Documents Browser for that collection. Here you can read and write individual MongoDB documents.

Listing and Filtering Documents

Documents are fetched in pages via:

GET /<db>/<collection>?filter=...&sort=...&page=...&pagesize=...
Parameter Description

filter

Any MongoDB query expression as a JSON object. For example: {"status":"active"} or {"age":{"$gt":18}}.

sort

Sort expression as a JSON object. For example: {"createdAt":-1} sorts by creation date descending.

page

1-based page number.

pagesize

Number of documents per page. Configurable in the UI.

Type a filter or sort expression directly in the search bar and the document list refreshes automatically.

Creating a Document

Click New Document to open an inline JSON editor. Enter the document body and click Save. The UI submits a POST /<db>/<collection> request. If you omit _id, MongoDB assigns an ObjectId automatically.

Editing a Document

Each document row has an Edit action that expands an inline editor pre-populated with the document’s current JSON. Modify the fields you want to change and click Save. The UI issues a PATCH /<db>/<collection>/<id> request — a partial update that preserves any fields you did not include in the editor.

Important
 Editing sends only a PATCH (partial update). Fields present in the database but not shown in the editor are preserved, not overwritten.

Deleting a Document

Click Delete on a document row. A confirmation dialog appears before the DELETE /<db>/<collection>/<id> request is issued.

_id Type Awareness

RESTHeart supports multiple _id types. The Documents Browser correctly handles the following types when constructing request URLs:

  • ObjectId — serialised as {"$oid":"…​"} in filter expressions.

  • string — used as-is.

  • number — used as-is.

  • date — serialised as {"$date":"…​"}.

JSON Formatting

Every JSON editor panel includes a Format button that pretty-prints the current JSON. If the JSON is invalid, an inline error is shown and the save action is blocked until the JSON is corrected.

GridFS Files

When the parent collection is a GridFS bucket (name ending in .files), the Documents Browser shows file metadata rows with an additional Download action. Clicking it follows GET /<collection>/<id>/binary to retrieve the binary file content.

A breadcrumb at the top of the Documents Browser shows the path Database → Collection. Clicking the collection name returns to the Collection Browser.

API Reference

Operation Endpoint

List / filter / sort

GET /<db>/<collection>?filter=…​&sort=…​&page=…​&pagesize=…​

Create document

POST /<db>/<collection>

Update document

PATCH /<db>/<collection>/<id>

Delete document

DELETE /<db>/<collection>/<id>

Download GridFS file

GET /<collection>/<id>/binary