A Comprehensive Guide to Using Couchbase in Node.js Applications

This guide is more than just a manual; it’s your trusty companion on the road to mastering Couchbase in conjunction with Node.js. Whether you’re starting a brand-new project or contemplating the migration of an existing one, the wisdom imparted in this guide will empower you to make confident, informed decisions about your data management strategy.

As you work your way through the guide, you’ll not only become proficient in Couchbase and Node.js, but you’ll also be armed with the knowledge needed to craft applications that are not just efficient but also capable of scaling gracefully, handling substantial data loads, and performing at peak levels. So, let’s venture together and unlock the true potential of Couchbase for your Node.js projects.

Prerequisites

Before we dive into the details of Nodejs with Couchbase, it’s important to ensure that we have the necessary prerequisites in place. To get started with Couchbase, we need to have an understanding of JavaScript, NPM, and NodeJs. We also need to have Node.js and NPM (Node Package Manager) installed and create a cluster on Couchbase.

What is Couchbase?

Couchbase Server is an open-source, distributed, JSON document database. It exposes a scale-out, key-value store with a managed cache for sub-millisecond data operations, purpose-built indexers for efficient queries, and a powerful query engine for executing SQL-like queries.

Why Couchbase?

Couchbase is a modern database for enterprise applications. Couchbase is a distributed, JSON document database, with all the desired capabilities of a relational DBMS. It is a robust database, built for microservices and serverless consumption-based computing on the cloud on one end, and edge computing for occasionally and locally connected edge Mobile/IoT devices on the other.

Couchbase manages JSON documents, eliminating the need for a hard-coded schema in the database. The application object definition, available within JSON, is the schema controlled by the developer.

Related read: DevOps and IoT: How to Integrate Them for Success

MongoDB vs. Couchbase

Couchbase

Couchbase is a developer-friendly, open-source NoSQL database server launched in 2011. As it is a NoSQL database, it makes use of a schema-free data model.
Here are some cool features that differentiate it from other existing databases.

• Couchbase is highly flexible, has a similar structure as the data that is in the code and supports different frameworks and languages.
• It is document-oriented.
• It supports two types of ACID transactions-
  • N1QL (SQL – 92 compatible)
  • Key-Value
• It assists in avoiding pointless joints. In turn, this enhances the performance.
• Couchbase follows the Memory-First architecture.
• It is modular and the user can decide which of its services are required. It can be used as a-
  • NoSQL Database
  • Key-Value Store
  • Cache
  • Search Engine

MongoDB

MongoDB is a widely used non-structured, open-source NoSQL database solution, launched in 2009.

Let’s look at some of its features to grasp a better understanding of the same.

• MongoDB is a document-oriented database server. This entails that instead of storing data in the form of columns and tables (like a relational database model would generally do), MongoDB stores data in the form of records called documents.
• MongoDB is becoming increasingly popular because of its qualities such as-
  • High speed
  • Scalability
  • Ease of use
• The sharding technique can be used in MongoDB databases to easily scale data in the database horizontally.
• It follows a distributed system. The collections or records are self-contained which makes them simple to work with. Due to this, MongoDB can efficiently handle an enormous amount of workload.
• Every field in the documents is indexed by the MongoDB database with primary and secondary indices, which speeds up and simplifies retrieving or searching for data from the pool of data.
• It is a highly flexible schema-free model.

Both Couchbase and MongoDB are brilliant NoSQL databases, but they have their own unique features and differences.

Installation of Couchbase Server on Local

Start using the Node.js SDK with Couchbase Server

Create a new directory for the application by running the following command on the terminal:

mkdir node-couchbase
cd node-couchbase

Initialize the directory to create a package.json file by running:

npm init -y
$ npm install couchbase --save

To create a connection with Couchbase:

const couchbase = require('couchbase')

async function main() {
const cluster = await couchbase.connect('couchbase://localhost', {
username: 'Administrator',
password: 'password',
})

To select couchbase bucket

const bucket = cluster.bucket('couchbase-bucket')

To select the collection:

//Get a reference to a collection
const collection = bucket.scope('couchbase-bucket').collection('users')

DB Connection Final Code

// Database connection
var couchbase = require('couchbase')

exports.db = async()=>{
const cluster = await couchbase.connect(
'couchbase://127.0.0.1',
{
username: 'admin',
password: 'admin123'
}
)
var bucket = cluster.bucket('couchbase-bucket')
var coll = bucket.defaultCollection()
return coll
}
);
});

To create new documents:

// Database connection
app.post("/users", async (req, res, next) => {
const user = req.body;
await (await db()).upsert("users", user, (err, result) => {
res.json(result);
});
});