MongoDB query to retrieve records from a collection named with letters and numbers

When working with MongoDB collections that have names containing letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores, you must use the db.getCollection() method to access them, as these names cannot be used with standard dot notation.

Syntax

db.getCollection('collection-name-with-special-chars').find();
db.getCollection('collection-name-with-special-chars').insertOne(document);

Create Sample Collection

Let's create a collection with a complex name containing letters, numbers, hyphens, and underscores ?

db.createCollection('7664734-541d-r5i5f-845575e-ghfhjrjr3747_demo368');

{ "ok" : 1 }

Insert Sample Data

Insert documents into the collection using db.getCollection() ?

db.getCollection('7664734-541d-r5i5f-845575e-ghfhjrjr3747_demo368').insertMany([
    {"FirstName": "Chris"},
    {"FirstName": "David"},
    {"FirstName": "Bob"}
]);

{
    "acknowledged" : true,
    "insertedIds" : [
        ObjectId("5e57e2152ae06a1609a00aea"),
        ObjectId("5e57e21a2ae06a1609a00aeb"),
        ObjectId("5e57e21e2ae06a1609a00aec")
    ]
}

Retrieve Records

Query all documents from the collection using find() method ?

db.getCollection('7664734-541d-r5i5f-845575e-ghfhjrjr3747_demo368').find();

{ "_id" : ObjectId("5e57e2152ae06a1609a00aea"), "FirstName" : "Chris" }
{ "_id" : ObjectId("5e57e21a2ae06a1609a00aeb"), "FirstName" : "David" }
{ "_id" : ObjectId("5e57e21e2ae06a1609a00aec"), "FirstName" : "Bob" }

Key Points

• Use db.getCollection('collection-name') for collections with special characters
• Collection names with hyphens, numbers, or underscores require this method
• Standard dot notation like db.collection-name will not work

Conclusion

MongoDB's db.getCollection() method allows you to work with collections that have complex names containing special characters. This approach ensures you can access and query any collection regardless of its naming convention.