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MongoDB

The MongoDB integration exports the contents of a MongoDB server into a Kloset store with encryption and deduplication, and restores them back to a server. It drives the MongoDB command line utilities rather than reading the data files directly, so a backup is a logical dump of a running server.

The integration includes two connectors:

Connector type Description
Source connector Back up a MongoDB server into a Kloset store.
Destination connector Restore data from a Kloset store back to MongoDB.

Each protocol matches one of the two MongoDB connection string formats:

Protocol Description
mongodb Connect to a server addressed by a fixed host name or IP address.
mongodb+srv Resolve the server addresses from DNS SRV records, as used by MongoDB Atlas clusters.

Requirements

  • mongosh, mongodump, and mongorestore available in $PATH.

Installation

The MongoDB package can be installed using pre-built binaries or compiled from source.

Pre-compiled packages are available for common platforms and provide the simplest installation method.

Logging In

Pre-built packages require Plakar authentication. See Logging in to Plakar for details.

Install the MongoDB package:

$ plakar pkg add mongodb

Verify installation:

$ plakar pkg show

Source builds are useful when pre-built packages are unavailable or when customization is required.

Prerequisites:

  • Go toolchain compatible with your Plakar version

Build the package:

$ plakar pkg build mongodb

A package archive will be created in the current directory (e.g., mongodb_v1.0.0_darwin_arm64.ptar).

Install the package:

$ plakar pkg add -allow-unsigned ./mongodb_v1.0.0_darwin_arm64.ptar

Verify installation:

$ plakar pkg show

To list, upgrade, or remove the package, see managing packages guide.

Server connection

Both protocols drive the MongoDB command line utilities. A backup dumps the contents of the server with mongodump and stores the result in a Kloset store with encryption and deduplication. A restore loads the data back into a server with mongorestore.

The following options apply to both protocols, for both source and destination connectors.

Option Required Description
location Yes URL of the MongoDB server. Must begin with mongodb:// or mongodb+srv://.
port No The MongoDB server port. Overrides a port given in location. Defaults to 27017. Ignored when using mongodb+srv.
username No Username for authentication to MongoDB.
password No Password for authentication to MongoDB.
auth_mechanism No Authentication mechanism to use with the server, such as SCRAM-SHA-256 or MONGODB-X509.
use_tls No Use an encrypted TLS/SSL connection. Defaults to true. The certificate options below apply only when TLS is enabled.
tls_ca_cert No Path to a custom CA certificate used to verify the server’s certificate.
tls_ca_cert_data No Inline PEM content of a custom CA certificate. Alternative to tls_ca_cert.
tls_client_cert No Path to a PEM file containing a client certificate and key for mTLS authentication.
tls_client_cert_data No Inline PEM content of a client certificate for mTLS authentication. Alternative to tls_client_cert.
tls_client_key_data No Inline PEM content of the client key for mTLS authentication. Must be set together with tls_client_cert_data. Setting only one of them is an error.
Inline certificates

The tls_ca_cert and tls_client_cert options expect files on the machine running Plakar. The _data variants embed the PEM content directly in the configuration, which is useful when the certificates are not stored as files on that machine. Set either a path or its _data variant, not both. Setting both is rejected as ambiguous.

1. mongodb protocol

The mongodb protocol connects to the server at the host and port given in the configuration. Use it for self-hosted servers and for any deployment addressed by a fixed host name or IP address.

Backup flow 

flowchart LR

subgraph Source["MongoDB Server"]
  FS["Databases"]
end

subgraph Plakar["Plakar"]
  Connector["Export via
mongodump"]
  Transform["Encrypt & deduplicate"]
  Connector --> Transform
end

Source --> Connector

Store["Kloset Store"]
Transform --> Store

Restore flow 

flowchart LR

Store["Kloset Store"]

subgraph Plakar["Plakar"]
  Transform["Decrypt & reconstruct"]
  Connector["Import via
mongorestore"]
  Transform --> Connector
end

Store --> Transform

subgraph Destination["MongoDB Server"]
  FS["Databases"]
end

Connector --> Destination

Example

Register the source and run a backup:

$ plakar source add my-mongodb \
  location=mongodb://<MONGODB_HOST> \
  username=<YOUR_USERNAME> \
  password=<YOUR_PASSWORD>

$ plakar at /var/backups backup "@my-mongodb"

Register the destination and restore a snapshot:

$ plakar destination add my-mongodb-restore \
  location=mongodb://<MONGODB_HOST> \
  username=<YOUR_USERNAME> \
  password=<YOUR_PASSWORD>

$ plakar at /var/backups restore -to "@my-mongodb-restore" <snapshot_id>

2. mongodb+srv protocol

The mongodb+srv protocol resolves the server addresses from DNS SRV records published for the host name, rather than connecting to that host name directly. The port is also obtained from DNS, and any configured port is ignored. Use it for deployments that publish their connection details through DNS, such as MongoDB Atlas clusters.

Backup flow 

flowchart LR

subgraph Source["MongoDB Server"]
  FS["Databases"]
end

subgraph Plakar["Plakar"]
  Connector["Export via
mongodump"]
  Transform["Encrypt & deduplicate"]
  Connector --> Transform
end

Source --> Connector

Store["Kloset Store"]
Transform --> Store

Restore flow 

flowchart LR

Store["Kloset Store"]

subgraph Plakar["Plakar"]
  Transform["Decrypt & reconstruct"]
  Connector["Import via
mongorestore"]
  Transform --> Connector
end

Store --> Transform

subgraph Destination["MongoDB Server"]
  FS["Databases"]
end

Connector --> Destination

Example

Register the source and run a backup:

$ plakar source add my-atlas \
  location=mongodb+srv://<SRV_HOSTNAME> \
  username=<YOUR_USERNAME> \
  password=<YOUR_PASSWORD>

$ plakar at /var/backups backup "@my-atlas"

Register the destination and restore a snapshot:

$ plakar destination add my-atlas-restore \
  location=mongodb+srv://<SRV_HOSTNAME> \
  username=<YOUR_USERNAME> \
  password=<YOUR_PASSWORD>

$ plakar at /var/backups restore -to "@my-atlas-restore" <snapshot_id>

Restore behaviour

Restoring replaces existing data

Each collection in the snapshot is dropped from the target server before it is restored. Restoring the admin database deletes all existing users and roles on the server and replaces them with those from the snapshot.

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