Data Durability for MongoDB with Simplyblock

MongoDB is one of the most popular NoSQL databases, designed for handling large volumes of unstructured and semi-structured data. It powers applications that demand flexibility and scalability, but performance often suffers if the underlying storage is slow or tied to a single zone. Replication, journaling, and sharded clusters all depend on durable and high-throughput storage.

Simplyblock delivers NVMe-over-TCP storage with zone-independent volumes, giving MongoDB deployments consistent performance and resilience across distributed environments.

Why Performance Hinges on MongoDB Storage

MongoDB uses journaling and write-ahead logs to guarantee durability. When the storage layer is slow, these logs cause replication lag, slow queries, and longer recovery after crashes.

By using simplyblock, MongoDB stores journals and collections on high-throughput, zone-independent volumes. This ensures replicas stay consistent and failovers happen without data loss.

🚀 Use simplyblock with MongoDB for Durable Persistence
Simplyblock enables predictable, fault-tolerant storage for MongoDB at scale.
👉 Use simplyblock for VMware Tanzu →

Step 1: Creating a Simplyblock Volume for MongoDB Data

To keep MongoDB’s data files and journals consistent, create a dedicated simplyblock volume:

sbctl pool create mongodb-pool /dev/nvme0n1

sbctl volume add mongodb-data 200G mongodb-pool

sbctl volume connect mongodb-data

Format and mount the volume to the MongoDB data directory:

mkfs.ext4 /dev/nvme0n1

mkdir -p /var/lib/mongodb

mount /dev/nvme0n1 /var/lib/mongodb

Add it to /etc/fstab for persistence:

/dev/nvme0n1 /var/lib/mongodb ext4 defaults 0 0

With this setup, MongoDB’s collections and journals are stored directly on high-speed simplyblock volumes, keeping replication and crash recovery reliable.

Step 2: Configuring MongoDB to Use Simplyblock

Point MongoDB to the simplyblock-backed directory for storage:

In /etc/mongod.conf:

storage:

  dbPath: /var/lib/mongodb

  journal:

    enabled: true

Restart MongoDB:

sudo systemctl restart mongod

This configuration ensures all writes and journals are persisted on simplyblock storage, reducing I/O bottlenecks. Details are available in the MongoDB storage configuration guide.

Step 3: Scaling MongoDB Volumes with Simplyblock

As MongoDB datasets grow, collections and journal files require more space. Expand simplyblock volumes without downtime:

sbctl volume resize mongodb-data 400G

resize2fs /dev/nvme0n1

This allows MongoDB to handle larger sharded clusters without reconfiguring storage. In hybrid setups, this aligns with Edge and Air-Gapped Storage for environments that require both growth and secure isolation.

Step 4: Using Zone-Independent Volumes for MongoDB Clusters

MongoDB replica sets and sharded clusters often run across multiple zones. Standard storage tied to a single zone can cause failover issues.

With simplyblock’s zone-independent volumes, MongoDB replicas continue to access data even when nodes move between zones.

This supports high availability and aligns with enterprise strategies like VMware Migration to Kubernetes.

Step 5: Replicating MongoDB Storage with Simplyblock

MongoDB replication protects data at the database layer. By adding simplyblock’s storage-level replication, durability improves further:

sbctl volume replicate mongodb-data –zones=zone-a,zone-b

This keeps MongoDB’s replica sets resilient against infrastructure failures. More details are available in the MongoDB replication documentation.

Streamlining MongoDB Scaling Using Simplyblock

At the enterprise level, MongoDB requires both resilience and operational simplicity. Simplyblock provides a CLI-driven workflow for provisioning, resizing, and replicating storage volumes, reducing administrative overhead.

Features like CloudStack support add flexibility for multi-cloud setups, while technical details are available in the simplyblock Documentation.

Questions and Answers