Build a Node.js App with CockroachDB

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This tutorial shows you how build a simple Node.js application with CockroachDB using a PostgreSQL-compatible driver or ORM.

We have tested the Node.js pg driver and the Sequelize ORM enough to claim beta-level support, so those are featured here. If you encounter problems, please open an issue with details to help us make progress toward full support.

Before You Begin

Make sure you have already installed CockroachDB.

Step 1. Install the Sequelize ORM

To install Sequelize, as well as a CockroachDB Node.js package that accounts for some minor differences between CockroachDB and PostgreSQL, run the following command:

$ npm install sequelize sequelize-cockroachdb

Step 2. Start a single-node cluster

For the purpose of this tutorial, you need only one CockroachDB node running in insecure mode:

$ cockroach start \
--insecure \
--store=hello-1 \
--host=localhost

Step 3. Create a user

In a new terminal, as the root user, use the cockroach user command to create a new user, maxroach.

$ cockroach user set maxroach --insecure

Step 4. Create a database and grant privileges

As the root user, use the built-in SQL client to create a bank database.

$ cockroach sql --insecure -e 'CREATE DATABASE bank'

Then grant privileges to the maxroach user.

$ cockroach sql --insecure -e 'GRANT ALL ON DATABASE bank TO maxroach'

Step 5. Run the Node.js code

The following code uses the Sequelize ORM to map Node.js-specific objects to SQL operations. Specifically, Account.sync({force: true}) creates an accounts table based on the Account model (or drops and recreates the table if it already exists), Account.bulkCreate([...]) inserts rows into the table, and Account.findAll() selects from the table so that balances can be printed.

Copy the code or download it directly.

var Sequelize = require('sequelize-cockroachdb');

// Connect to CockroachDB through Sequelize.
var sequelize = new Sequelize('bank', 'maxroach', '', {
  dialect: 'postgres',
  port: 26257,
  logging: false
});

// Define the Account model for the "accounts" table.
var Account = sequelize.define('accounts', {
  id: { type: Sequelize.INTEGER, primaryKey: true },
  balance: { type: Sequelize.INTEGER }
});

// Create the "accounts" table.
Account.sync({force: true}).then(function() {
  // Insert two rows into the "accounts" table.
  return Account.bulkCreate([
    {id: 1, balance: 1000},
    {id: 2, balance: 250}
  ]);
}).then(function() {
  // Retrieve accounts.
  return Account.findAll();
}).then(function(accounts) {
  // Print out the balances.
  accounts.forEach(function(account) {
    console.log(account.id + ' ' + account.balance);
  });
  process.exit(0);
}).catch(function(err) {
  console.error('error: ' + err.message);
  process.exit(1);
});

Then run the code:

$ node sequelize-basic-sample.js

The output should be:

1 1000
2 250

To verify that the table and rows were created successfully, you can again use the built-in SQL client:

$ cockroach sql --insecure -e 'SHOW TABLES' --database=bank

+----------+
|  Table   |
+----------+
| accounts |
+----------+
(1 row)

$ cockroach sql --insecure -e 'SELECT id, balance FROM accounts' --database=bank

+----+---------+
| id | balance |
+----+---------+
|  1 |    1000 |
|  2 |     250 |
+----+---------+
(2 rows)

What's Next?

Read more about using the Sequelize ORM, or check out a more realistic implementation of Sequelize with CockroachDB in our examples-orms repository.

You might also be interested in using a local cluster to explore the following CockroachDB benefits:

• Client Connection Parameters
• Data Replication
• Fault Tolerance & Recovery
• Automatic Rebalancing
• Cross-Cloud Migration
• Follow-the-Workload
• Automated Operations

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