BSON, which stands for Binary JSON, is a binary-encoded serialization of JSON-like documents. It was developed by MongoDB to address some limitations of JSON while maintaining compatibility with JSON data structures.
History and Development
- BSON was first introduced by MongoDB in 2007 to provide a more efficient way to store and query documents in their database system.
- The need for BSON arose from the requirement for a format that could handle data types not supported by JSON, such as Date, Binary data, and Regular Expression.
Key Features
- Efficiency: BSON is designed to be efficient for storage and transmission over networks, reducing the overhead associated with JSON's textual representation.
- Extended Data Types: Supports additional data types including:
- Compatibility: While BSON includes additional data types, it remains compatible with JSON by allowing for straightforward conversion between the two formats.
- Indexing: BSON supports efficient indexing due to its binary format, which is particularly useful in database applications like MongoDB.
Structure
The structure of BSON includes:
- A fixed-length header that contains information about the document size.
- A series of type-specific elements, each consisting of:
- A type byte
- A field name (in UTF-8, null-terminated)
- The actual value in a format specific to the type
- A null terminator to signify the end of the document.
Usage
BSON is primarily used within:
- MongoDB as the standard data representation format.
- Applications requiring efficient storage and retrieval of JSON-like data.
- Scenarios where binary data needs to be embedded within JSON-like structures.
External Links
Related Topics