Provision Couchbase VDBs in DCT

Provision a Couchbase virtual database (VDB) to create a writable copy of Couchbase data from a snapshot. Use this task when you need an isolated Couchbase environment for development, testing, masking, or troubleshooting without impacting production data.

Before you begin

• A linked Couchbase dSource exists

• A snapshot of the dSource is available

• Target environment meets Couchbase requirements:

  • Couchbase binaries installed with same version as source

  • expect utility installed on target host

  • Sufficient disk space for VDB data

  • SSH access and required sudo privileges configured

• Target cluster ports are available: management (8091), data/KV (11210)

• For 2026.1.0, the target and staging environment must run the supported Python 3.11 and vSDK 5.0.1 runtime.

Procedure

1. Navigate to Data > Data Management > VDBs.

2. Select Actions > Provision VDB in the top-right corner.

3. On the Source page, select the dSource to provision from.

4. On the Provision point page, select the snapshot to use for provisioning.

5. Configure target cluster settings:

   1. Target port – Port where Couchbase management service will listen (default 8091)

   2. Mount path – NFS mount location for VDB data (must be empty and writable)

   3. Cluster name – Display name for the target cluster

6. Configure cluster resource allocation:

   1. Cluster RAM – Total memory for data service (minimum 512 MB; recommended 25% above bucket size)

   2. Index RAM – Memory for indexing service (minimum 256 MB if Query service enabled)

   3. FTS RAM – Memory for Full-Text Search service (minimum 256 MB if FTS enabled)

   4. Eventing RAM – Memory for Eventing service (set to 0 if not using Event Functions)

   5. Analytics RAM – Memory for Analytics service (set to 0 if not using Analytics queries)

7. Configure authentication:

   1. Admin username – Username for cluster administrator account

   2. Admin password – Password for cluster administrator

8. Select services to enable on the target cluster:

   1. Full-Text Search (FTS) – For text search capabilities

   2. Eventing – For serverless event-driven functions

   3. Analytics – For analytical queries and reporting

9. Provide VDB configuration:

   1. VDB name – Display name for the virtual database

   2. Target group – Dataset group for permission management

   3. Snapshot policy – Policy for automatic snapshots and retention

10. Optionally configure:

    1. Masking – Apply data masking rules if needed

    2. Hooks – Pre or post-provisioning scripts

11. Review the provisioning summary and select Submit.

During provisioning

The Continuous Data Engine performs the following operations:

• Validates target environment and host access

• Mounts snapshot storage on target host via NFS

• Initializes Couchbase cluster on target with specified configuration

• Applies resource allocation and cluster settings

• Starts cluster services

• Applies masking and hooks if configured

Multi-node VDB provisioning

The Couchbase 2026.1.0 connector supports multi-node VDB provisioning. When you provision a multi-node VDB, configure the target cluster resources and node layout to match the desired cluster topology, then provision the VDB from the selected snapshot. Delphix provisions the target cluster and applies the saved configuration and metadata from the snapshot to the new target, without altering the source or requiring a service restart on the source Couchbase instance.

Snapshot behavior

Snapshots save the Couchbase cluster configuration and metadata required to rebuild or recover the target state. The snapshot process captures the configuration and metadata without stopping or starting the Couchbase server service. This means the source Couchbase instance remains running while the metadata needed for recovery is stored and later applied during provisioning.

Result

Your Couchbase VDB is provisioned and running. The VDB is ready for development, testing, or other use cases. Data from the snapshot is available in the cluster buckets.

If provisioning fails

If VDB provisioning encounters errors:

• Version mismatch – Verify target Couchbase version matches source exactly

• Port conflicts – Confirm target ports 8091 (management) and 11210 (data/KV) are available

• Insufficient disk space – Ensure target mount path has enough free space for VDB

• SSH access issues – Test SSH connectivity to target host

• expect utility missing – Verify expect is installed on target host

• Mount path inaccessible – Confirm mount path exists and is writable by environment user

Review Continuous Data Engine logs and Couchbase instance logs at /opt/couchbase/var/lib/couchbase/logs for detailed error messages.

What's next

• Perform Couchbase VDB operations in DCT