Introducing Online Migration Capability for vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB in Azure Data Studio

Sandeep S. Nair

July 3rd, 20240 1

We’re thrilled to announce a significant enhancement to the Azure Cosmos DB Migration for MongoDB extension! Now, you can seamlessly migrate your MongoDB workloads to vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB with the added convenience of online migration capability. Let’s dive into the details.

What Is the Azure Cosmos DB Migration for MongoDB Extension?

The Azure Cosmos DB Migration for MongoDB extension is a powerful tool designed to simplify the migration process for MongoDB workloads to Azure Cosmos DB.

Key Features of the Extension:

End-to-End Assessment: Before migrating, it’s essential to understand your workload and identify necessary actions. The extension allows you to run a comprehensive assessment, providing insights into the steps required for a successful migration to vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB.
Online Migration Capability: With the latest update, you can now perform online migrations directly from your existing MongoDB instance to vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB. Say goodbye to downtime and disruptions during migration!
Selective Migration: Handpick specific databases and collections for migration. This flexibility ensures that you can migrate precisely what you need, minimizing complexity and reducing the impact on your applications
Seamless Cloud Based Migration: The extension deploys and manages the Data Migration Service and other Azure resources for data movement, eliminating the need for you to deploy additional Azure resources or be concerned about local bandwidth.

What’s changing?

Till now migrations were carried out offline, leading to substantial service interruptions lasting hours. With online migrations, the process is now seamless, minimizing disruptions.

Online migrations utilize the change stream feature to transfer data updates from the source database to the target database while minimizing downtime. Here’s how it works:

Initial Bulk Data Copy: During an online migration, an initial bulk data copy is performed to set up the target environment and move bulk of the data.
Change Stream Mechanism: Simultaneously, the migration tool continuously captures changes made to the source data using the change stream mechanism.

The change stream acts as a real-time feed of modifications, including inserts, updates, and deletes, occurring in the source database. As new updates are detected, they are immediately applied to the target database. This ensures that the target remains synchronized with the source, even during the migration process.

By combining bulk data copy with real-time change tracking, online migrations provide several benefits:

Minimal Downtime: Since the target database is kept up-to-date with the source, the cutover to the new environment can happen seamlessly. Users experience minimal disruption during the migration.
Consistency: The change stream ensures that no data is lost during the migration. Any updates made to the source after the initial bulk copy are automatically reflected in the target.
Efficiency: Online migrations avoid the need for a lengthy freeze period during which no changes can occur. Instead, the migration process adapts dynamically to ongoing updates.

Getting Started:

Open Azure Data Studio.
Navigate to the Extensions Manager:
- Click on the extensions icon or go to View > Extensions.
Search for “Cosmos” in the extensions search bar.
Install the Azure Cosmos DB Migration for MongoDB extension.

After installing the extension, follow the 7-step wizard to seamlessly migrate your MongoDB workloads to vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB for MongoDB. For detailed instructions, refer to the step-by-step guide and the FAQ.

In Conclusion:

The Azure Cosmos DB Migration for MongoDB extension empowers you to migrate MongoDB workloads seamlessly to vCore-based Azure Cosmos DB. With online migration capability, minimal downtime, and selective migration options, this extension simplifies the transition. Whether you’re moving your applications to the cloud or optimizing your existing setup, this extension streamlines the transition.

About Azure Cosmos DB

Azure Cosmos DB is a fully managed and serverless distributed database for modern app development, with SLA-backed speed and availability, automatic and instant scalability, and support for open-source PostgreSQL, MongoDB and Apache Cassandra. Try Azure Cosmos DB for free here. To stay in the loop on Azure Cosmos DB updates, follow us on X, YouTube, and LinkedIn.

To easily build your first database, watch our Get Started videos on YouTube and explore ways to dev/test free.

Try out the step-by-step guide.