/nosql-database-design

name: nosql-database-design
description: >
  Design NoSQL database schemas for MongoDB and DynamoDB. Use when modeling
  document structures, designing collections, or planning NoSQL data
  architectures.

NoSQL Database Design

Table of Contents

• [Overview](#overview)
• [When to Use](#when-to-use)
• [Quick Start](#quick-start)
• [Reference Guides](#reference-guides)
• [Best Practices](#best-practices)

Overview

Design scalable NoSQL schemas for MongoDB (document) and DynamoDB (key-value). Covers data modeling patterns, denormalization strategies, and query optimization for NoSQL systems.

When to Use

• MongoDB collection design
• DynamoDB table and index design
• Document structure modeling
• Embedding vs. referencing decisions
• Query pattern optimization
• NoSQL indexing strategies
• Data denormalization planning

Quick Start

Minimal working example:

// Single document with embedded arrays
db.createCollection("users");

db.users.insertOne({
  _id: ObjectId("..."),
  email: "john@example.com",
  name: "John Doe",
  createdAt: new Date(),

  // Embedded address
  address: {
    street: "123 Main St",
    city: "New York",
    state: "NY",
    zipCode: "10001",
  },

  // Embedded array of items
  orders: [
    {
      orderId: ObjectId("..."),
      date: new Date(),
      total: 149.99,
    },
    {
// ... (see reference guides for full implementation)

Reference Guides

Detailed implementations in the `references/` directory:

| Guide | Contents | |---|---| | [Document Structure Design](references/document-structure-design.md) | Document Structure Design | | [Indexing in MongoDB](references/indexing-in-mongodb.md) | Indexing in MongoDB | | [Schema Validation](references/schema-validation.md) | Schema Validation | | [Table Structure](references/table-structure.md) | Table Structure | | [Global Secondary Indexes (GSI)](references/global-secondary-indexes-gsi.md) | Global Secondary Indexes (GSI) | | [DynamoDB Item Operations](references/dynamodb-item-operations.md) | DynamoDB Item Operations |

Best Practices

✅ DO

• Follow established patterns and conventions
• Write clean, maintainable code
• Add appropriate documentation
• Test thoroughly before deploying

❌ DON'T

• Skip testing or validation
• Ignore error handling
• Hard-code configuration values