What Access Skippr Needs to Read from MongoDB

June 2026

MongoDB access is mostly about the connection user and database scope, with change streams adding topology requirements rather than a second auth system.

Short Answer

Skippr needs a MongoDB connection string plus a user that has read access to the selected database and collection, and the runner must be able to reach the MongoDB endpoint. If you enable CDC, MongoDB also has to be running as a replica set or sharded cluster because change streams depend on the oplog.

A typical setup is a user that can read collection events in database appdb through MONGODB_CONNECTION_STRING. That is enough for batch reads, and the same database-level read access continues to matter when you later consume insert, update, and delete notifications from a change stream.

Why Teams Struggle with This

MongoDB access problems tend to be hidden by connection-string success. A URI can be valid and the server can be reachable, yet the user may not be reading the intended database or the deployment may not support change streams because it is not a replica set.

• The connection user needs read access to the exact database and collection you configure.
• The runner must be able to reach the MongoDB endpoint referenced in the connection string.
• CDC needs a replica set or sharded cluster, because change streams are backed by the oplog.
• An optional filter can make a correct connection look empty if the collection scope is right but the predicate is too narrow.

How Skippr Handles It

Skippr keeps MongoDB access review concrete by using only the fields the server already understands: connection string, database, collection, and optional filter. That makes it easy to ask the right question during setup review: can this user read this collection from this environment.

For CDC, Skippr then leans on MongoDB change streams rather than inventing a polling layer. The same source remains understandable because the database access is still direct, while restart safety comes from stored resume tokens after committed batches.

• Reads documents from one named database and collection.
• Uses a standard MongoDB connection string with environment-variable interpolation.
• Supports change-stream CDC when the deployment topology supports it.
• Stores MongoDB resume tokens for restart continuity.

What the First Useful Version Looks Like

The first useful version is one collection with predictable document shape, one connection user with read access, and one run that confirms the source namespace matches the collection your team actually cares about.

Once that is stable, decide whether change streams are worth enabling or whether a simple collection read already covers the business need.