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Replication Commands

replSetInitiate

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  • Definition
  • Syntax
  • IP Binding
  • Example

Definition

replSetInitiate

The replSetInitiate command initializes a new replica set.

Tip

In mongosh, this command can also be run through the rs.initiate() helper method.

Helper methods are convenient for mongosh users, but they may not return the same level of information as database commands. In cases where the convenience is not needed or the additional return fields are required, use the database command.

To run replSetInitiate, use the db.runCommand( { <command> } ) method.

Note

Run the command on only one of the mongod instances for the replica set.

Syntax

The command has the following syntax:

db.runCommand(
   {
     replSetInitiate : <config_document>
   }
)

The <config_document> is a document that specifies the replica set's configuration. For instance, here's a config document for creating a simple 3-member replica set:

{
    _id : <setname>,
     members : [
         {_id : 0, host : <host0>},
         {_id : 1, host : <host1>},
         {_id : 2, host : <host2>},
     ]
}

Important

To avoid configuration updates due to IP address changes, use DNS hostnames instead of IP addresses. It is particularly important to use a DNS hostname instead of an IP address when configuring replica set members or sharded cluster members.

Use hostnames instead of IP addresses to configure clusters across a split network horizon. Starting in MongoDB 5.0, nodes that are only configured with an IP address will fail startup validation and will not start.

IP Binding

Warning

Before binding to a non-localhost (e.g. publicly accessible) IP address, ensure you have secured your cluster from unauthorized access. For a complete list of security recommendations, see Security Checklist. At minimum, consider enabling authentication and hardening network infrastructure.

MongoDB binaries, mongod and mongos, bind to localhost by default. If the net.ipv6 configuration file setting or the --ipv6 command line option is set for the binary, the binary additionally binds to the localhost IPv6 address.

By default mongod and mongos that are bound to localhost only accept connections from clients that are running on the same computer. This binding behavior includes mongosh and other members of your replica set or sharded cluster. Remote clients cannot connect to binaries that are bound only to localhost.

To override the default binding and bind to other IP addresses, use the net.bindIp configuration file setting or the --bind_ip command-line option to specify a list of hostnames or IP addresses.

Warning

Starting in MongDB 5.0, split horizon DNS nodes that are only configured with an IP address fail startup validation and report an error. See disableSplitHorizonIPCheck.

For example, the following mongod instance binds to both the localhost and the hostname My-Example-Associated-Hostname, which is associated with the IP address 198.51.100.1:

mongod --bind_ip localhost,My-Example-Associated-Hostname

In order to connect to this instance, remote clients must specify the hostname or its associated IP address 198.51.100.1:

mongosh --host My-Example-Associated-Hostname
mongosh --host 198.51.100.1

Example

Assign a config document to a variable and then to pass the document to the rs.initiate() helper:

config = {
    _id : "my_replica_set",
     members : [
         {_id : 0, host : "rs1.example.net:27017"},
         {_id : 1, host : "rs2.example.net:27017"},
         {_id : 2, host : "rs3.example.net", arbiterOnly: true},
     ]
}
rs.initiate(config)

Important

To avoid configuration updates due to IP address changes, use DNS hostnames instead of IP addresses. It is particularly important to use a DNS hostname instead of an IP address when configuring replica set members or sharded cluster members.

Use hostnames instead of IP addresses to configure clusters across a split network horizon. Starting in MongoDB 5.0, nodes that are only configured with an IP address will fail startup validation and will not start.

Notice that omitting the port cause the host to use the default port of 27017. Notice also that you can specify other options in the config documents such as the arbiterOnly setting in this example.

Tip

See also:

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replSetGetStatus