--- title: "How-to Guide: Data Topology Save and Restore" description: A how-to guide on using the "Write Once and Create Anywhere" capability of Kubernetes Operator. pubDate: 2026-08-17T09:53:44.266Z antora: editUrl: https://github.com/couchbase/docs-operator/edit/release/2.9/modules/ROOT/pages/howto-guide-save-restore.adoc xref: xref:operator::howto-guide-save-restore.adoc[] --- [Consult the llms.txt file for a full list of contents](/llms.txt) [View original HTML](/operator/current/howto-guide-save-restore.html) # How-to Guide: Data Topology Save and Restore > A how-to guide on using the "Write Once and Create Anywhere" capability of Kubernetes Operator. ## [](#overview)Overview This guide will show you how to save the configuration of one Couchbase cluster, and how to restore it on a different Couchbase cluster using the "Write Once and Create Anywhere" capability of Couchbase Kubernetes Operator (CAO). ## [](#prerequisites)Prerequisites * If you are new to Couchbase Kubernetes Operator (CAO), refer to the [Kubernetes Operator Introduction](overview.md) * Couchbase Scopes and Collections was added in Version 7.0\. Refer to the [Couchbase Scopes and Collections](concept-scopes-and-collections.md) page to learn more about these * Some of the examples in this guide use the `cao` tool, see the installation page [here](tools/cao.md) for more details. Setup two Couchbase clusters. One with the sample bucket `travel-sample` configured, and a second cluster to restore the configuration of the first one. See [Load the Sample Dataset](../../server/current/getting-started/do-a-quick-install.md#load-the-sample-dataset) to learn how to load a sample bucket. > [!NOTE] > This requires the `disableBucketManagement` configuration in Couchbase to be set to `false`. In the images below, the `travel-sample` bucket is loaded along with its scopes and collections in the `first` cluster. ![data topology prereq buckets](_images/data-topology-prereq-buckets.png) ![data topology prereq scopes collections](_images/data-topology-prereq-scopes-collections.png) In the next section we will save the configuration of the `travel-sample` bucket. ## [](#save-configuration)Save Configuration To save the configuration of a Couchbase Cluster, use the `cao` tool provided by Couchbase. ```console cao save --couchbase-cluster cluster-name --filename save.yaml ``` The command above allows a specific cluster to be probed, and all data topology resources saved, directly from the Couchbase cluster. Saved data topology represents data as Kubernetes native resource types, and can later be used to restore data topology, allow it to be managed by the Operator, or even replicated to a completely new cluster. Here is an example YAML file generated by the above command: ```yaml --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseBucket metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: bucket-27496aea-80f2-4a5a-aa24-a2329b036bbc spec: compressionMode: passive conflictResolution: seqno evictionPolicy: valueOnly ioPriority: low maxTTL: 0s memoryQuota: 200Mi minimumDurability: none name: travel-sample replicas: 1 scopes: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-702aed74-1426-49d1-b95d-b9b3e7707bfe - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-9a3bff9b-0729-4104-9a0c-990213693540 - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-99429731-bdfd-42f2-8d22-7f66cbe04f8c - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-82867883-fa7b-4a1b-99e7-9895f0ff7b96 - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-acd9b010-ba1a-44d4-a075-f1761ff9e413 - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-68665dce-b85a-402e-a55d-fa13e3e7890a - kind: CouchbaseScope name: scope-9d41b1dd-1789-488f-8acf-d72719ac3647 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-702aed74-1426-49d1-b95d-b9b3e7707bfe spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-7ea0d93a-3f1a-4f93-acdc-0ffa00400357 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-058ec3ce-e9cb-4830-981f-5093989ea52d - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-12ac4726-1df3-44e6-a930-1bac2dc43273 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-d1059a0e-05ec-4788-89df-00efcc1d1a9e - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-1c51f7fc-240d-45ca-9c4c-57eb8f40bd08 name: inventory --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-7ea0d93a-3f1a-4f93-acdc-0ffa00400357 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: route --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-058ec3ce-e9cb-4830-981f-5093989ea52d spec: maxTTL: 0s name: landmark --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-12ac4726-1df3-44e6-a930-1bac2dc43273 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: hotel --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-d1059a0e-05ec-4788-89df-00efcc1d1a9e spec: maxTTL: 0s name: airport --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-1c51f7fc-240d-45ca-9c4c-57eb8f40bd08 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: airline --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-9a3bff9b-0729-4104-9a0c-990213693540 spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-43653400-44c1-4917-96fd-a4a226fe48c3 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-0cdf40ae-1021-4755-8ba9-70af7d6cd6a3 name: tenant_agent_00 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-43653400-44c1-4917-96fd-a4a226fe48c3 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: users --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-0cdf40ae-1021-4755-8ba9-70af7d6cd6a3 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: bookings --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-99429731-bdfd-42f2-8d22-7f66cbe04f8c spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-5ffe2f10-0938-4a6d-b10d-c32fdc46e7c3 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-ef2d2b08-3f8e-42d9-b53d-dbe10c25a550 name: tenant_agent_01 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-5ffe2f10-0938-4a6d-b10d-c32fdc46e7c3 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: users --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-ef2d2b08-3f8e-42d9-b53d-dbe10c25a550 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: bookings --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-82867883-fa7b-4a1b-99e7-9895f0ff7b96 spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-b630cfb5-b14a-432a-8a42-0630998b7172 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-0c565252-14a8-450e-80e9-345b21317c93 name: tenant_agent_02 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-b630cfb5-b14a-432a-8a42-0630998b7172 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: users --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-0c565252-14a8-450e-80e9-345b21317c93 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: bookings --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-acd9b010-ba1a-44d4-a075-f1761ff9e413 spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-19d05195-4020-44fa-bfb2-ea0ddedef885 - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-2fac624e-9acf-48ae-8cf5-fdf859fa8e63 name: tenant_agent_03 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-19d05195-4020-44fa-bfb2-ea0ddedef885 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: users --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-2fac624e-9acf-48ae-8cf5-fdf859fa8e63 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: bookings --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-68665dce-b85a-402e-a55d-fa13e3e7890a spec: collections: managed: true resources: - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-e98d2b17-166e-4412-914e-72dff6b67fdb - kind: CouchbaseCollection name: collection-c3ac4637-2531-4ca8-bd8e-47e71017d5f6 name: tenant_agent_04 --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-e98d2b17-166e-4412-914e-72dff6b67fdb spec: maxTTL: 0s name: users --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseCollection metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: collection-c3ac4637-2531-4ca8-bd8e-47e71017d5f6 spec: maxTTL: 0s name: bookings --- apiVersion: couchbase.com/v2 kind: CouchbaseScope metadata: creationTimestamp: null name: scope-9d41b1dd-1789-488f-8acf-d72719ac3647 spec: collections: managed: true preserveDefaultCollection: true defaultScope: true ``` ## [](#restore-configuration)Restore Configuration From the previous step, we now have a Couchbase cluster named `cb-example` with `travel-sample` bucket loaded. To create an exact mirror copy of this cluster, we will use the file created by the `cao save` command, and perform the restore on a different Couchbase cluster. In the image below, we can see that there are no buckets in the second cluster. ![data topology restore configuration](_images/data-topology-restore-configuration.png) To perform the restore, we'll use the `cao restore` command. This command allows existing save data (as generated by `cao save`) to be applied to the selected cluster. As a precaution, the tool will only function if your cluster's buckets are unmanaged, there is no label selector set and there are no existing resources, or a label selector is already in use. ```console cao restore -f save.yaml ``` Output ```console Data topology solution: / └── travel-sample (bucket) create ├── _default (scope) create ├── inventory (scope) create │ ├── airline (collection) create │ ├── airport (collection) create │ ├── hotel (collection) create │ ├── landmark (collection) create │ └── route (collection) create ├── tenant_agent_00 (scope) create │ ├── bookings (collection) create │ └── users (collection) create ├── tenant_agent_01 (scope) create │ ├── bookings (collection) create │ └── users (collection) create ├── tenant_agent_02 (scope) create │ ├── bookings (collection) create │ └── users (collection) create ├── tenant_agent_03 (scope) create │ ├── bookings (collection) create │ └── users (collection) create └── tenant_agent_04 (scope) create ├── bookings (collection) create └── users (collection) create WARNING! resources marked as delete may result in data loss. OK to proceed? (y/N) y couchbasebuckets/bucket-7ecdc1c1-66b6-4493-ba51-9dd57ccd2d14 created couchbasescopes/scope-eec7b781-700b-4979-a915-2ef71858f60f created couchbasescopes/scope-f9b3f83c-2d22-4a53-acd7-bb649dc5c4b0 created couchbasescopes/scope-510ac404-95a0-4eed-8aa5-4a499ed40273 created couchbasescopes/scope-333723a6-ce38-4b91-a18e-7b8dd57a82e3 created couchbasescopes/scope-f4958b25-c579-4e31-b205-c29a47bdcc8d created couchbasescopes/scope-9a78e23c-0c60-4cda-8757-d84183b75328 created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-ce4637f8-bd4f-427a-9b28-4d96a4f79510 created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-0f893d3e-8e1f-4b95-96cc-57690f70045c created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-20650eff-3499-43ad-9d73-905417f6b75e created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-6569eb8b-8900-46aa-8059-031f04865934 created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-cbc51cb7-b086-442d-a8a4-c0dd56763da3 created couchbasecollectiongroups/collectiongroup-d25dc4d8-06d7-4664-8ae8-83ba08a9d1fd created couchbasecluster/cb-example updated ``` Once the configuration is restored, we can check the Couchbase UI of this cluster to verify. ![data topology restore buckets](_images/data-topology-restore-buckets.png) ![data topology restore scopes coll](_images/data-topology-restore-scopes-coll.png) ## [](#further-reading)Further Reading * [Data Topology Save, Restore and Synchronization](concept-data-save-restore.md) * [Scopes and Collections](../../server/current/learn/data/scopes-and-collections.md)