db.updateUser()¶

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Definition
Behavior
Required Access
Example

Definition¶

db.updateUser(username, update, writeConcern)¶

Updates the user’s profile on the database on which you run the method. An update to a field completely replaces the previous field’s values. This includes updates to the user’s roles array.

Warning

When you update the roles array, you completely replace the previous array’s values. To add or remove roles without replacing all the user’s existing roles, use the db.grantRolesToUser() or db.revokeRolesFromUser() methods.

The db.updateUser() method uses the following syntax:

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db.updateUser(
   "<username>",
   {
     customData : { <any information> },
     roles : [
       { role: "<role>", db: "<database>" } | "<role>",
       ...
     ],
     pwd: "<cleartext password>",
     authenticationRestrictions: [
        {
          clientSource: ["<IP>" | "<CIDR range>", ...],
          serverAddress: ["<IP>", | "<CIDR range>", ...]
        },
        ...
     ]
   },
   writeConcern: { <write concern> }
)

The db.updateUser() method has the following arguments.

Parameter	Type	Description
`username`	string	The name of the user to update.
`update`	document	A document containing the replacement data for the user. This data completely replaces the corresponding data for the user.
`writeConcern`	document	Optional. The level of write concern for the update operation. The `writeConcern` document takes the same fields as the `getLastError` command.

The update document specifies the fields to update and their new values. All fields in the update document are optional, but must include at least one field.

The update document has the following fields:

Field	Type	Description
`customData`	document	Optional. Any arbitrary information.
`roles`	array	Optional. The roles granted to the user. An update to the `roles` array overrides the previous array’s values.
`pwd`	string	Optional. The user’s password.
`authenticationRestrictions`	array	Optional. The authentication restrictions the server enforces upon the user. Specifies a list of IP addresses and CIDR ranges from which the user is allowed to connect to the server or from which the server can accept users. New in version 3.6.

Roles¶

In the roles field, you can specify both built-in roles and user-defined roles.

To specify a role that exists in the same database where db.updateUser() runs, you can either specify the role with the name of the role:

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"readWrite"

Or you can specify the role with a document, as in:

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{ role: "<role>", db: "<database>" }

To specify a role that exists in a different database, specify the role with a document.

Authentication Restrictions¶

New in version 3.6.

The authenticationRestrictions document can contain only the following fields. The server throws an error if the authenticationRestrictions document contains an unrecognized field:

Field Name	Value	Description
`clientSource`	Array of IP addresses and/or CIDR ranges	If present, when authenticating a user, the server verifies that the client’s IP address is either in the given list or belongs to a CIDR range in the list. If the client’s IP address is not present, the server does not authenticate the user.
`serverAddress`	Array of IP addresses and/or CIDR ranges	A list of IP addresses or CIDR ranges to which the client can connect. If present, the server will verify that the client’s connection was accepted via an IP address in the given list. If the connection was accepted via an unrecognized IP address, the server does not authenticate the user.

Important

If a user inherits multiple roles with incompatible authentication restrictions, that user becomes unusable.

For example, if a user inherits one role in which the clientSource field is ["198.51.100.0"] and another role in which the clientSource field is ["203.0.113.0"] the server is unable to authenticate the user.

For more information on authentication in MongoDB, see Authentication.

The db.updateUser() method wraps the updateUser command.

Behavior¶

Replica set¶

If run on a replica set, db.updateUser() is executed using majority write concern by default.

Encyption¶

Warning

By default, db.updateUser() sends all specified data to the MongoDB instance in cleartext. Use TLS transport encryption to protect communications between clients and the server, including the password sent by db.updateUser(). For instructions on enabling TLS transport encryption, see Configure mongod and mongos for TLS/SSL.

MongoDB does not store the password in cleartext. The password is only vulnerable in transit between the client and the server, and only if TLS transport encryption is not enabled.

Required Access¶

You must have access that includes the revokeRole action on all databases in order to update a user’s roles array.

You must have the grantRole action on a role’s database to add a role to a user.

To change another user’s pwd or customData field, you must have the changeAnyPassword and changeAnyCustomData actions respectively on that user’s database.

To modify your own password and custom data, you must have privileges that grant changeOwnPassword and changeOwnCustomData actions respectively on the user’s database.

Example¶

Given a user appClient01 in the products database with the following user info:

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{
   _id : "products.appClient01",
   userId : UUID("c5d88855-3f1e-46cb-9c8b-269bef957986"), // Starting in MongoDB 3.6.13
   user : "appClient01",
   db : "products",
   customData : { empID : "12345", badge : "9156" },
   roles : [
       {
         role : "readWrite",
         db : "products"
       },
       {
         role : "read",
         db : "inventory"
       }
   ],
   authenticationRestrictions : [ {
      clientSource: ["69.89.31.226"],
      serverAddress: ["172.16.254.1"]
   } ]
}

The following db.updateUser() method completely replaces the user’s customData and roles data:

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use products
db.updateUser( "appClient01",
{
   customData : { employeeId : "0x3039" },
   roles : [
      { role : "read", db : "assets"  }
   ]
} )

The user appClient01 in the products database now has the following user information:

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{
   _id : "products.appClient01",
   userId : UUID("c5d88855-3f1e-46cb-9c8b-269bef957986"), // Starting in MongoDB 3.6.13
   user : "appClient01",
   db : "products",
   customData : { employeeId : "0x3039" },
   roles : [
       {
         role : "read",
         db : "assets"
       }
   ],
   authenticationRestrictions : [ {
      clientSource: ["69.89.31.226"],
      serverAddress: ["172.16.254.1"]
   } ]
}

← db.revokeRolesFromUser() Role Management Methods →