Step-by-Step Guide to Installing and Configuring MongoDB on Linux

MongoDB is a distributed, high‑performance database written in C++ that bridges relational and non‑relational systems, offering rich features for web applications.

1. Disable the firewall

systemctl stop firewalld

systemctl disable firewalld

2. Extract the MongoDB package and move it to /opt

tar -zxvf mongodb-linux-x86_64-rhel70-4.4.2.tgz

mv mongodb-linux-x86_64-rhel70-4.4.2 /opt/mongodb

3. Add MongoDB binaries to the system PATH

vim /etc/profile

export PATH=$PATH:/opt/mongodb/bin

source /etc/profile

After sourcing, the mongod, mongo, mongos, and install_compass commands become available.

4. Create data and log directories

mkdir -p /opt/mongodb/data/db

touch /opt/mongodb/data/logs

5. Edit the MongoDB configuration file (mongodb.conf) vim /opt/mongodb/mongodb.conf Key sections to configure:

systemLog:
  destination: file
  logAppend: true
  path: /opt/mongodb/data/logs

storage:
  dbPath: /opt/mongodb/data/db
  journal:
    enabled: true

processManagement:
  fork: true   # run in background
  pidFilePath: /mongo/mongod.pid

net:
  port: 27017
  bindIp: 0.0.0.0

Make sure the dbPath, path, port, and bindIp values match your environment.

6. Start MongoDB

Foreground launch using the configuration file: ./mongod -f ../mongodb.conf Or start it as a background daemon:

mongod --dbpath /opt/mongodb/data/db --logpath /opt/mongodb/data/logs --fork

The output will indicate that the child process has started successfully.

Related reading links are provided at the end of the original article.