Working with databases just got a whole lot easier in Azure Cosmos DB Data Explorer, thanks to some nifty new keyboard shortcuts. Now you can speed through your database tasks and manage your data with keyboard clicks.
This update is about making your workflow smoother and faster. We heard your feedback and now with a few key presses, you can run queries, add new containers, edit items, and do so much more. It’s all designed to help you get more done in less time.
And if you’ve ever hit F5 mistakenly and watched your work disappear, you’ll be happy to know it’s no longer a problem. These shortcuts are smart and will keep your progress safe.
The letters shown below correspond to keys on your keyboard. For example, to use G+N, press and hold the G key, then press N. If the command is Ctrl+K Ctrl+X, press and hold Ctrl, then press K, release K and then press X. If the command is Alt + N P, press Alt + N, release both, and then press P.
Keyboard shortcuts for the Data Explorer Toolbar
| To do this action | Windows Press | Mac Press |
| Close tab | Ctrl + alt + W | Cmd+ Opt + W |
| Discard edit Query/Item/Stored Procedure/Trigger/UDF | Esc | Esc |
| Download Query to Disk | Ctrl + Shift + S | Cmd + Shift + S |
| Enable/Disable Copilot | Ctrl + P | Cmd + P |
| Execute Query/Stored Procedure | Shift + Enter or F5 | Shift + Return or F5 |
| New Container | Alt + N C | Opt + N C |
| New Database | Alt + N D | Opt + N D |
| New Item | Alt + N I | Opt + N I |
| New Query | Ctrl + J or Alt + N Q | Cmd + J or Opt + N Q |
| New Stored Procedure (SPROC) | Alt + N P | Opt + N P |
| New Trigger | Alt + N T | Opt + N T |
| New User Defined Function (UDF) | Alt + N F | Opt + N F |
| Open Query | Ctrl + O | Cmd + O |
| Open Query from Disk in Query editor | Ctrl + Shift + O | Cmd + Shift + O |
| Run query | Shift + Enter or F5 | Shift + Return or F5 |
| Save Query | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S |
| Switch to Tab on the left | Ctrl + Alt + [ or Ctrl + Shift + F6 | Cmd + Opt + [ or Cmd + Shift + F6 |
| Switch to Tab on the right | Ctrl + Alt + ] or Ctrl + F6 | Cmd + Opt + ] or Cmd + F6 |
| Update Item/SPROC/UDF/Trigger | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S |
Keyboard shortcuts for filter and Items
| To do this action | Windows Press | Mac Press |
| Apply Filter | Enter | Return |
| Clear Filter | Ctrl + Shift + C
|
Cmd + Shift + C |
| Close Filter | Esc | Esc |
| Close Tab | Ctrl + Alt + W | Cmd + Opt + W |
| Delete Item | Alt + D | Opt + D |
| Discard edit Item | Esc | Esc |
| New Item | Alt + N I | Opt + N I |
| Move cursor from item to filter | Ctrl + Shift + F | Cmd + Shift + F |
| Open Edit Filter | Ctrl + Shift + F | Cmd + Shift + F |
| Open properties menu | Ctrl + Shift + O | Cmd+ Shift + O |
| Select filter from menu | Ctrl + Down Arrow | Cmd + Down Arrow |
| Update Item | Ctrl + S | Cmd + S |
Keyboard shortcuts for editing queries
| To do this action | Windows Press | Mac Press |
| Add new query tab | Ctrl + J or Alt + N Q | Cmd+ J or Opt + N Q |
| Cancel Query | Esc | Esc |
| Close tab | Ctrl + alt + W | Cmd + Opt + W |
| Copy line down | Shift + Alt + DownArrow | Shift + Opt + DownArrow |
| Comment line | Ctrl + K Ctrl + C | Cmd + K Cmd + C |
| Copy line up | Shift + Alt + UpArrow | Shift + Opt + UpArrow |
| Copy query clipboard | Shift + Alt + C | Shift + Opt + C |
| Cut the selected text | Ctrl + X | Cmd + X |
| Delete the current line | Ctrl + shift + K | Cmd + shift + K |
| Download Query to Disk | Ctrl + Shift + S | Cmd + Shift + S |
| Duplicate the current query | Ctrl + ALT + D | Cmd + Opt + D |
| Enable Copilot/Disable Copilot | Ctrl + P | Cmd + P |
| Find | Ctrl + F | Cmd + F |
| Format all | Shift + Alt + F | Shift + Opt + F |
| Format selection | Ctrl + K Ctrl + F | Cmd + K Cmd + F |
| Go to line | Ctrl + G | Cmd + G |
| Indent the current line or the selected lines | Tab | Tab |
| Insert line above | Ctrl + Shift +
Enter |
Cmd+ Shift +
Return |
| Insert Line Below | Ctrl + Enter | Cmd + Return |
| Move line down | Alt + DownArrow | Opt + DownArrow |
| Move line up | Alt + UpArrow | Opt + UpArrow |
| Move the cursor to the end of the line | Shift + Alt + I | Shift + Opt + I |
| Move the cursor to the next word | Ctrl + Right | Cmd + Right |
| Move the cursor to the previous word | Ctrl + Left | Cmd + Left |
| Open Query | Ctrl + O | Cmd + O |
| Open Query from Disk | Ctrl + Shift + O | Cmd + Shift + O |
| Paste the copied or cut text | Ctrl + V | Cmd + V |
| Restore previous undone edit | Ctrl + Shift + Z | Cmd + Shift + Z |
| Run Query/Stored Procedure | Shift + Enter or F5 | Shift + Return or F5 |
| Save Query to Disk | Ctrl + Shift + S | Cmd + Shift + S |
| Select all the text in the query editor | Ctrl + A | Cmd + A |
| Select the text from the cursor to the next word | Ctrl + Shift + Right | Cmd+ Shift + Right |
| Select the text from the cursor to the previous word | Ctrl + Shift + Left | Cmd + Shift + Left |
| Show Editor Context Menu | Shift + F10 | Shift + F10 |
| Switch to tab on the left | Ctrl + Alt + [ or Ctrl + Shift + F6 | Cmd + Opt + [ or Cmd + Shift + F6 |
| Switch to tab on the right | Ctrl + Alt + ] or Ctrl + F6 | Cmd + Opt + ] or Cmd + F6 |
| Toggle comment on/off | Ctrl + / | Cmd + / |
| Uncomment line | Ctrl + K Ctrl + U | Cmd + K Cmd + U |
| Undo last editing | Ctrl + Z | Cmd + Z |
| Unindent the current line or the selected lines | Shift + Tab | Shift + Tab |
Next steps
To wrap it up, maximizing efficiency in Azure Cosmos DB Data Explorer with these keyboard shortcuts allows you to whizz through your tasks at top speed, all with a keyboard. This update provides a streamlined workflow, enabling you to execute tasks with simple key combinations. We heard your feedback! From executing a query with F5, to setting up a new container with Alt N + C, these shortcuts are all about cutting down time and boosting your work output. For more details, check out these docs.
- Keyboard shortcuts in Cosmos DB
- Queries in Azure Cosmos DB for NoSQL
- Use the Azure Cosmos DB Explorer to manage your data
- Keyboard shortcuts in the Azure portal
Let us know how we are doing. Send feedback to us in Data Explorer by pressing the smile icon.
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.
Hi Meredith , For Cosmos data explorer do we have any plans for future to support only data plane roles instead of Keys
We are trying to provide a data visualization tool that works with Entra ID authentication without the need for control plane roles. Please let us if there are any tools that support it or any feasibility for future