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Description

Error 182, 'Invalid View Definition', indicates that MongoDB encountered an issue when attempting to create or modify a view. This typically occurs when the underlying aggregation pipeline for the view is malformed, references invalid data, or violates view creation rules.

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Error Message

Invalid View Definition

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Known Causes

4 known causes

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Malformed Aggregation Pipeline

The aggregation pipeline specified in the view definition contains syntax errors, invalid stages, or incorrect operators that MongoDB cannot process.

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Invalid Source or Reference

The view attempts to reference a non-existent collection, a system collection, or fields that are not accessible or do not exist in the source data.

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Recursive View Definition

A view definition attempts to reference itself, either directly or indirectly through another view, which is not permitted in MongoDB.

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Forbidden Pipeline Operations

The view's aggregation pipeline includes stages or operations that are explicitly not allowed within a view definition, such as `$out` or `$merge`.

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Solutions

3 solutions available

1. Review and Correct View Pipeline Syntax medium

Manually inspect the aggregation pipeline used to define the view for syntax errors.

1

Identify the view definition. You can do this by querying the `system.views` collection or by examining your application code that creates the view.

db.getCollection('system.views').find({ _id: 'yourDatabase.yourViewName' }).pretty()

2

Examine the `pipeline` field in the document returned. This is an array of aggregation stages. Pay close attention to:
- Correct operator names (e.g., `$match`, `$project`, `$group`).
- Correct field names within operators.
- Correctly formatted expressions (e.g., `$add`, `$multiply` with correct operands).
- Correct use of aggregation data types (e.g., ensuring dates are treated as dates, numbers as numbers).

/* Example of a potentially problematic pipeline stage */
{
  $match: {
    status: "Active",
    // Incorrectly typed date or field name
    createdAt: { $gt: "2023-01-01" } 
  }
}

3

Correct any identified syntax errors. For instance, if a date string was used where a Date object was expected, convert it. If a field name was misspelled, correct it.

/* Corrected pipeline stage */
{
  $match: {
    status: "Active",
    createdAt: { $gt: new Date("2023-01-01") } 
  }
}

4

Recreate the view with the corrected pipeline.

db.createView('yourViewName', 'yourCollectionName', [
  // your corrected pipeline stages here
])

2. Validate View Definition Against Source Collection Schema medium

Ensure the fields and data types referenced in the view's pipeline exist and match in the source collection.

1

Get the definition of the view, specifically its aggregation pipeline.

var viewDefinition = db.getCollection('system.views').findOne({ _id: 'yourDatabase.yourViewName' }).pipeline;

2

Examine the source collection for the view. Check the schema of the collection that the view is based on.

db.getCollection('yourCollectionName').findOne()

3

Iterate through the stages of the view's pipeline. For each stage, verify that all referenced fields exist in the source collection or in a preceding stage's output. Also, confirm that the data types are compatible for operations (e.g., comparing numbers with numbers, strings with strings).

/* Example check: Ensure 'user_id' exists in the source collection or is projected */
if (!db.getCollection('yourCollectionName').findOne({}, { user_id: 1 })) {
  // Field might be missing or misspelled
}

4

If discrepancies are found, either modify the view's pipeline to reference existing fields/correct data types, or update the source collection's schema if appropriate.

/* Example fix: If 'user_id' is actually 'userId' in the collection */
{
  $project: {
    _id: 0,
    userId: "$user_id" // Renaming to match collection if needed
  }
}

5

Recreate the view after making necessary adjustments.

db.createView('yourViewName', 'yourCollectionName', [
  // your corrected pipeline stages here
])

3. Simplify and Debug Complex Aggregation Pipelines advanced

Break down a complex view pipeline into smaller, testable parts to isolate the error.

1

Retrieve the full aggregation pipeline for the view.

var pipeline = db.getCollection('system.views').findOne({ _id: 'yourDatabase.yourViewName' }).pipeline;

2

Start with the first stage of the pipeline and execute it against the source collection. Check the output for correctness. Gradually add subsequent stages one by one, testing the output after each addition.

var sourceCollection = db.getCollection('yourCollectionName');

// Test first stage
var result1 = sourceCollection.aggregate([
  pipeline[0]
]).toArray();
console.log('Result after stage 1:', result1);

// Test first two stages
var result2 = sourceCollection.aggregate([
  pipeline[0], pipeline[1]
]).toArray();
console.log('Result after stage 2:', result2);

3

When an error occurs after adding a specific stage, that stage (or its interaction with the previous one) is likely the cause. Focus your debugging efforts on that problematic stage.

/* Example: If error occurs after adding a $group stage */
{
  $group: {
    _id: "$category",
    totalSales: { $sum: "$amount" }
  }
}

4

Use `$project` stages with specific fields to inspect intermediate results and ensure expected data structures and types are being passed between stages.

/* Example: Inspecting output of a $match stage before a $group */
[
  { $match: { status: "Completed" } },
  { $project: { _id: 0, amount: 1, category: 1, date: 1 } } // Inspecting fields
]

5

Once the problematic stage is identified and corrected, rebuild the entire pipeline and recreate the view.

db.createView('yourViewName', 'yourCollectionName', [
  // your corrected pipeline stages here
])

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Related Errors

5 related errors

MongoDB Error 182: Invalid View Definition