Explore Your Data with Playgrounds

MongoDB Playgrounds are JavaScript environments where you can prototype queries, aggregations, and MongoDB commands with helpful syntax highlighting.

MongoDB Playgrounds provide intelligent autocomplete for:

• The Mongo Shell API

• MongoDB keywords, operators, aggregation stages, database, collection, and field names.

• Any JavaScript variables or keywords.

You can save playgrounds in your workspace and use them to document how your application interacts with MongoDB. MongoDB for VS Code interprets files with the .mongodb.js extension as playgrounds.

Starting in version 0.11.0 the default file extension for MongoDB Playgrounds files is .mongodb.js. Previous versions of MongoDB Playgrounds use the default file extension .mongodb. MongoDB Playgrounds support both file extensions.

MongoDB for VS Code splits your Playground window to display your Playground Result in the right-side pane. You can perform one of two actions on the result depending on the query you ran in the Playground.

• You may save any Playground Result to a file.

• You may edit any JSON document that MongoDB for VS Code returns in the Playground Result from a findOne or find query.

  MongoDB for VS Code returns these results in JSON format with JSON syntax highlighting. Each JSON document has an Edit Document link at its top.

  1. Click Edit Document at the top of the document you want to edit.

     MongoDB for VS Code opens this one JSON document in a new window as an editable document.

  2. Make any changes you need.

  3. Press Ctrl+S (Cmd+S on macOS) to save those changes in the database.

Open a Playground

Create a New Playground

You can create a new playground from the Playgrounds panel, the MongoDB for VS Code Overview page, or the Microsoft Visual Studio Code Command Pallette.

Playgrounds Panel

Overview Page

VSCode Command Palette

If you have no saved playgrounds in your Visual Studio Code workspace, in the Playgrounds panel of MongoDB for VS Code, click Create New Playground.

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If you have saved playgrounds in your Microsoft Visual Studio Code workspace, click the ... menu icon of the Playgrounds panel and select Create MongoDB Playground.

1. In Visual Studio Code, press one of the following key combinations:

   • Control + Shift + P on Windows or Linux.

   • Command + Shift + P on macOS.

   The Command Palette provides quick access to commands and keyboard shortcuts.

2. Find and run the MongoDB: Open Overview Page command.

   Tip

   Enter mongodb in the Command Palette to display all of the MongoDB for VS Code commands you can use.

3. Click Create Playground to open a MongoDB for VS Code playground pre-configured with a few commands.

1

Open the Visual Studio Code Command Palette.

In Visual Studio Code, press one of the following key combinations:

• Control + Shift + P on Windows or Linux.

• Command + Shift + P on macOS.

The Command Palette provides quick access to commands and keyboard shortcuts.

2

Find and run the "Create MongoDB Playground" command.

Use the Command Palette search bar to search for commands. All commands related to MongoDB for VS Code are prefaced with MongoDB:.

When you run the MongoDB: Create MongoDB Playground command, MongoDB for VS Code opens a default playground template pre-configured with a few commands.

Note

To load new Playgrounds without the template, disable the Use Default Template For Playground setting. To learn more about MongoDB for VS Code settings, see MongoDB for VS Code Settings.

Open a Saved Playground

If you have files in your Visual Studio Code workspace with the .mongodb.js or .mongodb extension, MongoDB for VS Code displays these files in the Playgrounds panel.

Double click a file to open that playground.

Run a Playground

To run a playground, click the Play Button in VS Code's top navigation bar. Your playground runs against the deployment specified in your active connection.

Connect to a Deployment from a Playground

If MongoDB for VS Code is not connected to a MongoDB deployment, you can specify a connection string for the deployment you want to run your playground against.

If you have a playground file open in Visual Studio Code and do not have an active connection, MongoDB for VS Code displays Click here to add connection at the top of your playground.

1

Select Click here to add connection

After you click Click here to add connection, MongoDB for VS Code displays the connection string drop-down menu.

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2

Click Add new connection

In the connection string drop-down menu, select Add new connection to enter a new connection string. If you have previously connected to the playground with another deployment, the connection string will appear as an option under the drop-down menu.

3

Enter your connection string

Enter the connection string to connect to your deployment.

Note

If the connection string specifies a database the playground runs against that database by default. To switch databases, call use('<database_name>').

If you are connected to a default database, the playground autocompletes only for collection names available on that database.

4

Press Enter

After you enter your connection string, a CodeLens replaces the Click here to add connection link. The CodeLens includes information on the connected deployment and, if applicable, the current database.

5

Run your playground

Note

When you connect to a deployment through the playground connection dialog, that connection is added to your MongoDB for VS Code Connections list.

Run Selected Lines of a Playground

If you select a section of your playground, you may optionally run only the selected portion. You may run either a single line or multiple lines of your playground.

MongoDB for VS Code shows the Run Selected Lines from Playground link immediately above your selected section. Click this link to test and troubleshoot specific lines or sections of your playground.