Version: User Guides (Cloud)

Get & Scalar Query

This guide demonstrates how to get entities by ID and conduct scalar filtering. A scalar filtering retrieves entities that match the specified filtering conditions.

Overview

A scalar query filters entities in a collection based on a defined condition using boolean expressions. The query result is a set of entities that match the defined condition. Unlike a vector search, which identifies the closest vector to a given vector in a collection, queries filter entities based on specific criteria.

On Zilliz Cloud, a filter is always a string compising field names joined by operators. In this guide, you will find various filter examples. To learn more about the operator details, go to the Reference section.

Preparations

The following steps repurpose the code to connect to a Zilliz Cloud cluster, quickly set up a collection, and insert over 1,000 randomly generated entities into the collection.

Step 1: Create a collection

Python
Java
NodeJS

import random, time
from pymilvus import MilvusClient

CLUSTER_ENDPOINT = "YOUR_CLUSTER_ENDPOINT"
TOKEN = "YOUR_CLUSTER_TOKEN"

# 1. Set up a Milvus client
client = MilvusClient(
    uri=CLUSTER_ENDPOINT,
    token=TOKEN 
)

# 2. Create a collection
client.create_collection(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    dimension=5, # The dimension value should be greater than 1
)

String CLUSTER_ENDPOINT = "YOUR_CLUSTER_ENDPOINT";
String TOKEN = "YOUR_CLUSTER_TOKEN";

// 1. Connect to Milvus server
ConnectConfig connectConfig = ConnectConfig.builder()
    .uri(CLUSTER_ENDPOINT)
    .token(TOKEN)
    .build();

MilvusClientV2 client = new MilvusClientV2(connectConfig);  

// 2. Create a collection in quick setup mode
CreateCollectionReq quickSetupReq = CreateCollectionReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .dimension(5) // The dimension value should be greater than 1
    .metricType("IP")
    .build();

client.createCollection(quickSetupReq);

const { MilvusClient, DataType, sleep } = require("@zilliz/milvus2-sdk-node")

const address = "YOUR_CLUSTER_ENDPOINT"
const token = "YOUR_CLUSTER_TOKEN"

// 1. Set up a Milvus Client
client = new MilvusClient({address, token}); 

// 2. Create a collection in quick setup mode
await client.createCollection({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    dimension: 5, // The dimension value should be greater than 1
}); 

Step 2: Insert randomly generated entities

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 3. Insert randomly generated vectors 
colors = ["green", "blue", "yellow", "red", "black", "white", "purple", "pink", "orange", "brown", "grey"]
data = []

for i in range(1000):
    current_color = random.choice(colors)
    current_tag = random.randint(1000, 9999)
    data.append({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [ random.uniform(-1, 1) for _ in range(5) ],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": f"{current_color}_{str(current_tag)}"
    })

print(data[0])

# Output
#
# {
#     "id": 0,
#     "vector": [
#         0.7371107800002366,
#         -0.7290389773227746,
#         0.38367002049157417,
#         0.36996000494220627,
#         -0.3641898951462792
#     ],
#     "color": "yellow",
#     "tag": 6781,
#     "color_tag": "yellow_6781"
# }

res = client.insert(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    data=data
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# {
#     "insert_count": 1000,
#     "ids": [
#         0,
#         1,
#         2,
#         3,
#         4,
#         5,
#         6,
#         7,
#         8,
#         9,
#         "(990 more items hidden)"
#     ]
# }

// 3. Insert randomly generated vectors into the collection
List<String> colors = Arrays.asList("green", "blue", "yellow", "red", "black", "white", "purple", "pink", "orange", "brown", "grey");
List<JSONObject> data = new ArrayList<>();

for (int i=0; i<1000; i++) {
    Random rand = new Random();
    String current_color = colors.get(rand.nextInt(colors.size()-1));
    int current_tag = rand.nextInt(8999) + 1000;
    JSONObject row = new JSONObject();
    row.put("id", Long.valueOf(i));
    row.put("vector", Arrays.asList(rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat()));
    row.put("color", current_color);
    row.put("tag", current_tag);
    row.put("color_tag", current_color + '_' + String.valueOf(rand.nextInt(8999) + 1000));
    data.add(row);
}

InsertReq insertReq = InsertReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .data(data)
    .build();

InsertResp insertResp = client.insert(insertReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(insertResp));

// Output:
// {"insertCnt": 1000}

// 3. Insert randomly generated vectors
const colors = ["green", "blue", "yellow", "red", "black", "white", "purple", "pink", "orange", "brown", "grey"]
var data = []

for (let i = 0; i < 1000; i++) {
    current_color = colors[Math.floor(Math.random() * colors.length)]
    current_tag = Math.floor(Math.random() * 8999 + 1000)
    data.push({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random()],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": `${current_color}_${current_tag}`
    })
}

console.log(data[0])

// Output
// 
// {
//   id: 0,
//   vector: [
//     0.16022394821966035,
//     0.6514875214491056,
//     0.18294484964044666,
//     0.30227694168725394,
//     0.47553087493572255
//   ],
//   color: 'blue',
//   tag: 8907,
//   color_tag: 'blue_8907'
// }
// 

res = await client.insert({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    data: data
})

console.log(res.insert_cnt)

// Output
// 
// 1000
// 

Step 3: Create partitions and insert more entities

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 4. Create partitions and insert more entities
client.create_partition(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    partition_name="partitionA"
)

client.create_partition(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    partition_name="partitionB"
)

data = []

for i in range(1000, 1500):
    current_color = random.choice(colors)
    data.append({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [ random.uniform(-1, 1) for _ in range(5) ],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": f"{current_color}_{str(current_tag)}"
    })

res = client.insert(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    data=data,
    partition_name="partitionA"
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# {
#     "insert_count": 500,
#     "ids": [
#         1000,
#         1001,
#         1002,
#         1003,
#         1004,
#         1005,
#         1006,
#         1007,
#         1008,
#         1009,
#         "(490 more items hidden)"
#     ]
# }

data = []

for i in range(1500, 2000):
    current_color = random.choice(colors)
    data.append({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [ random.uniform(-1, 1) for _ in range(5) ],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": f"{current_color}_{str(current_tag)}"
    })

res = client.insert(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    data=data,
    partition_name="partitionB"
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# {
#     "insert_count": 500,
#     "ids": [
#         1500,
#         1501,
#         1502,
#         1503,
#         1504,
#         1505,
#         1506,
#         1507,
#         1508,
#         1509,
#         "(490 more items hidden)"
#     ]
# }

// 4. Create partitions and insert some more data
CreatePartitionReq createPartitionReq = CreatePartitionReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .partitionName("partitionA")
    .build();

client.createPartition(createPartitionReq);

createPartitionReq = CreatePartitionReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .partitionName("partitionB")
    .build();

client.createPartition(createPartitionReq);

data.clear();

for (int i=1000; i<1500; i++) {
    Random rand = new Random();
    String current_color = colors.get(rand.nextInt(colors.size()-1));
    int current_tag = rand.nextInt(8999) + 1000;
    JSONObject row = new JSONObject();
    row.put("id", Long.valueOf(i));
    row.put("vector", Arrays.asList(rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat()));
    row.put("color", current_color);
    row.put("tag", current_tag);
    data.add(row);
}

insertReq = InsertReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .data(data)
    .partitionName("partitionA")
    .build();

insertResp = client.insert(insertReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(insertResp));

// Output:
// {"insertCnt": 500}

data.clear();

for (int i=1500; i<2000; i++) {
    Random rand = new Random();
    String current_color = colors.get(rand.nextInt(colors.size()-1));
    int current_tag = rand.nextInt(8999) + 1000;
    JSONObject row = new JSONObject();
    row.put("id", Long.valueOf(i));
    row.put("vector", Arrays.asList(rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat(), rand.nextFloat()));
    row.put("color", current_color);
    row.put("tag", current_tag);
    data.add(row);
}

insertReq = InsertReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .data(data)
    .partitionName("partitionB")
    .build();

insertResp = client.insert(insertReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(insertResp));

// Output:
// {"insertCnt": 500}

// 4. Create partitions and insert more entities
await client.createPartition({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    partition_name: "partitionA"
})

await client.createPartition({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    partition_name: "partitionB"
})

data = []

for (let i = 1000; i < 1500; i++) {
    current_color = colors[Math.floor(Math.random() * colors.length)]
    current_tag = Math.floor(Math.random() * 8999 + 1000)
    data.push({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random()],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": `${current_color}_${current_tag}`
    })
}

res = await client.insert({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    data: data,
    partition_name: "partitionA"
})

console.log(res.insert_cnt)

// Output
// 
// 500
// 

await sleep(5000)

data = []

for (let i = 1500; i < 2000; i++) {
    current_color = colors[Math.floor(Math.random() * colors.length)]
    current_tag = Math.floor(Math.random() * 8999 + 1000)
    data.push({
        "id": i,
        "vector": [Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random(), Math.random()],
        "color": current_color,
        "tag": current_tag,
        "color_tag": `${current_color}_${current_tag}`
    })
}

res = await client.insert({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    data: data,
    partition_name: "partitionB"
})

console.log(res.insert_cnt)

// Output
// 
// 500
// 

Get Entities by ID

If you know the IDs of the entities of your interests, you can use the get() method.

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 5. Get entities by ID
res = client.get(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    ids=[0, 1, 2]
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "id": 0,
#         "vector": [
#             0.7371108,
#             -0.72903895,
#             0.38367003,
#             0.36996,
#             -0.3641899
#         ],
#         "color": "yellow",
#         "tag": 6781,
#         "color_tag": "yellow_6781"
#     },
#     {
#         "id": 1,
#         "vector": [
#             -0.10924426,
#             -0.7659806,
#             0.8613359,
#             0.65219676,
#             -0.06385158
#         ],
#         "color": "pink",
#         "tag": 1023,
#         "color_tag": "pink_1023"
#     },
#     {
#         "id": 2,
#         "vector": [
#             0.402096,
#             -0.74742633,
#             -0.901683,
#             0.6292514,
#             0.77286446
#         ],
#         "color": "blue",
#         "tag": 3972,
#         "color_tag": "blue_3972"
#     }
# ]

// 5. Get entities by ID
GetReq getReq = GetReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .ids(Arrays.asList(0L, 1L, 2L))
    .build();

GetResp entities = client.get(getReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(entities));

// Output:
// {"getResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "white",
//         "color_tag": "white_4597",
//         "vector": [
//             0.09665024,
//             0.1163497,
//             0.0701347,
//             0.32577968,
//             0.40943468
//         ],
//         "tag": 8946,
//         "id": 0
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "green",
//         "color_tag": "green_3039",
//         "vector": [
//             0.90689456,
//             0.4377399,
//             0.75387514,
//             0.36454988,
//             0.8702918
//         ],
//         "tag": 2341,
//         "id": 1
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "white",
//         "color_tag": "white_8708",
//         "vector": [
//             0.9757728,
//             0.13974023,
//             0.8023141,
//             0.61947155,
//             0.8290197
//         ],
//         "tag": 9913,
//         "id": 2
//     }}
// ]}

// 5. Get entities by id
res = await client.get({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    ids: [0, 1, 2],
    output_fields: ["vector", "color_tag"]
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     vector: [
//       0.16022394597530365,
//       0.6514875292778015,
//       0.18294484913349152,
//       0.30227693915367126,
//       0.47553086280822754
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'blue', tag: 8907, color_tag: 'blue_8907' },
//     id: '0'
//   },
//   {
//     vector: [
//       0.2459285855293274,
//       0.4974019527435303,
//       0.2154673933982849,
//       0.03719571232795715,
//       0.8348019123077393
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'grey', tag: 3710, color_tag: 'grey_3710' },
//     id: '1'
//   },
//   {
//     vector: [
//       0.9404329061508179,
//       0.49662265181541443,
//       0.8088793158531189,
//       0.9337621331214905,
//       0.8269071578979492
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'blue', tag: 2993, color_tag: 'blue_2993' },
//     id: '2'
//   }
// ]
// 

Get entities from partitions

You can also get entities from specific partitions.

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 5. Get entities from partitions
res = client.get(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    ids=[1000, 1001, 1002],
    partition_names=["partitionA"]
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "color": "green",
#         "tag": 1995,
#         "color_tag": "green_1995",
#         "id": 1000,
#         "vector": [
#             0.7807706,
#             0.8083741,
#             0.17276904,
#             -0.8580777,
#             0.024156934
#         ]
#     },
#     {
#         "color": "red",
#         "tag": 1995,
#         "color_tag": "red_1995",
#         "id": 1001,
#         "vector": [
#             0.065074645,
#             -0.44882354,
#             -0.29479212,
#             -0.19798489,
#             -0.77542555
#         ]
#     },
#     {
#         "color": "green",
#         "tag": 1995,
#         "color_tag": "green_1995",
#         "id": 1002,
#         "vector": [
#             0.027934508,
#             -0.44199976,
#             -0.40262738,
#             -0.041511405,
#             0.024782438
#         ]
#     }
# ]

// 5. Get entities by ID in a partition
getReq = GetReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .ids(Arrays.asList(1001L, 1002L, 1003L))
    .partitionName("partitionA")
    .build();

entities = client.get(getReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(entities));

// Output:
// {"getResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "yellow",
//         "vector": [
//             0.4300114,
//             0.599917,
//             0.799163,
//             0.75395125,
//             0.89947814
//         ],
//         "id": 1001,
//         "tag": 5803
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "blue",
//         "vector": [
//             0.009218454,
//             0.64637834,
//             0.19815737,
//             0.30519038,
//             0.8218663
//         ],
//         "id": 1002,
//         "tag": 7212
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color": "black",
//         "vector": [
//             0.76521933,
//             0.7818409,
//             0.16976339,
//             0.8719652,
//             0.1434964
//         ],
//         "id": 1003,
//         "tag": 1710
//     }}
// ]}

// 5.1 Get entities by id in a partition
res = await client.get({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    ids: [1000, 1001, 1002],
    partition_names: ["partitionA"],
    output_fields: ["vector", "color_tag"]
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     id: '1000',
//     vector: [
//       0.014254206791520119,
//       0.5817716121673584,
//       0.19793470203876495,
//       0.8064294457435608,
//       0.7745839357376099
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'white', tag: 5996, color_tag: 'white_5996' }
//   },
//   {
//     id: '1001',
//     vector: [
//       0.6073881983757019,
//       0.05214758217334747,
//       0.730999231338501,
//       0.20900958776474,
//       0.03665429726243019
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'grey', tag: 2834, color_tag: 'grey_2834' }
//   },
//   {
//     id: '1002',
//     vector: [
//       0.48877206444740295,
//       0.34028753638267517,
//       0.6527213454246521,
//       0.9763909578323364,
//       0.8031482100486755
//     ],
//     '$meta': { color: 'pink', tag: 9107, color_tag: 'pink_9107' }
//   }
// ]
// 

Use Basic Operators

In this section, you will find examples of how to use basic operators in scalar filtering. You can apply these filters to vector searches and data deletions too.

Filter entities with their tag values falling between 1,000 to 1,500.

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 6. Use basic operators

res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter="1000 < tag < 1500",
    output_fields=["color_tag"],
    limit=3
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "id": 1,
#         "color_tag": "pink_1023"
#     },
#     {
#         "id": 41,
#         "color_tag": "red_1483"
#     },
#     {
#         "id": 44,
#         "color_tag": "grey_1146"
#     }
# ]

// 6. Use basic operators

QueryReq queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("1000 < tag < 1500")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("color_tag"))
    .limit(3)
    .build();

QueryResp queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "white_7588",
//         "id": 34
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "orange_4989",
//         "id": 64
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "white_3415",
//         "id": 73
//     }}
// ]}

// 6. Use basic operators
res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: "1000 < tag < 1500",
    output_fields: ["color_tag"],
    limit: 3
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'pink', tag: 1050, color_tag: 'pink_1050' },
//     id: '6'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'purple', tag: 1174, color_tag: 'purple_1174' },
//     id: '24'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'orange', tag: 1023, color_tag: 'orange_1023' },
//     id: '40'
//   }
// ]
// 

Filter entities with their color values set to brown.

Python
Java
NodeJS

res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter='color == "brown"',
    output_fields=["color_tag"],
    limit=3
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "color_tag": "brown_5343",
#         "id": 15
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "brown_3167",
#         "id": 27
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "brown_3100",
#         "id": 30
#     }
# ]

queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("color == \"brown\"")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("color_tag"))
    .limit(3)
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "brown_7792",
//         "id": 3
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "brown_9695",
//         "id": 7
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "brown_2551",
//         "id": 15
//     }}
// ]}

res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: 'color == "brown"',
    output_fields: ["color_tag"],
    limit: 3
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'brown', tag: 6839, color_tag: 'brown_6839' },
//     id: '22'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'brown', tag: 7849, color_tag: 'brown_7849' },
//     id: '32'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'brown', tag: 7855, color_tag: 'brown_7855' },
//     id: '33'
//   }
// ]
// 

Filter entities with their color values not set to green and purple.

Python
Java
NodeJS

res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter='color not in ["green", "purple"]',
    output_fields=["color_tag"],
    limit=3
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "color_tag": "yellow_6781",
#         "id": 0
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "pink_1023",
#         "id": 1
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "blue_3972",
#         "id": 2
#     }
# ]

queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("color not in [\"green\", \"purple\"]")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("color_tag"))
    .limit(3)
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));   

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "white_4597",
//         "id": 0
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "white_8708",
//         "id": 2
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "brown_7792",
//         "id": 3
//     }}
// ]}

res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: 'color not in ["green", "purple"]',
    output_fields: ["color_tag"],
    limit: 3
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'blue', tag: 8907, color_tag: 'blue_8907' },
//     id: '0'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'grey', tag: 3710, color_tag: 'grey_3710' },
//     id: '1'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'blue', tag: 2993, color_tag: 'blue_2993' },
//     id: '2'
//   }
// ]
// 

Filter articles whose color tags start with red.

Python
Java
NodeJS

res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter='color_tag like "red%"',
    output_fields=["color_tag"],
    limit=3
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_6443",
#         "id": 17
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_1483",
#         "id": 41
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_4348",
#         "id": 47
#     }
# ]

queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("color_tag like \"red%\"")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("color_tag"))
    .limit(3)
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));  

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_4929",
//         "id": 9
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_8284",
//         "id": 13
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_3021",
//         "id": 44
//     }}
// ]}

res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: 'color_tag like "red%"',
    output_fields: ["color_tag"],
    limit: 3
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 8773, color_tag: 'red_8773' },
//     id: '17'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 9197, color_tag: 'red_9197' },
//     id: '34'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 7914, color_tag: 'red_7914' },
//     id: '46'
//   }
// ]
// 

Filter entities with their colors set to red and tag values within the range from 1,000 to 1,500.

Python
Java
NodeJS

res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter='(color == "red") and (1000 < tag < 1500)',
    output_fields=["color_tag"],
    limit=3
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_1483",
#         "id": 41
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_1100",
#         "id": 94
#     },
#     {
#         "color_tag": "red_1343",
#         "id": 526
#     }
# ]

queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("(color == \"red\") and (1000 < tag < 1500)")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("color_tag"))
    .limit(3)
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));  

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_8124",
//         "id": 83
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_5358",
//         "id": 501
//     }},
//     {"entity": {
//         "color_tag": "red_3564",
//         "id": 638
//     }}
// ]}

res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: '(color == "red") and (1000 < tag < 1500)',
    output_fields: ["color_tag"],
    limit: 3
})

console.log(res.data)

// Output
// 
// [
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 1436, color_tag: 'red_1436' },
//     id: '67'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 1463, color_tag: 'red_1463' },
//     id: '160'
//   },
//   {
//     '$meta': { color: 'red', tag: 1073, color_tag: 'red_1073' },
//     id: '291'
//   }
// ]
// 

Use Advanced Operators

In this section, you will find examples of how to use advanced operators in scalar filtering. You can apply these filters to vector searches and data deletions too.

Count entities

Counts the total number of entities in a collection.

Python
Java
NodeJS

# 7. Use advanced operators

# Count the total number of entities in a collection
res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    output_fields=["count(*)"]
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "count(*)": 2000
#     }
# ]

// 7. Use advanced operators
// Count the total number of entities in the collection
queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("count(*)"))
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [{"entity": {"count(*)": 2000}}]}

// 7. Use advanced operators
// Count the total number of entities in a collection
res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    output_fields: ["count(*)"]
})

console.log(res.data)   

// Output
// 
// [ { 'count(*)': '2000' } ]
// 

Counts the total number of entities in specific partitions.

Python
Java
NodeJS

# Count the number of entities in a partition
res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    output_fields=["count(*)"],
    partition_names=["partitionA"]
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "count(*)": 500
#     }
# ]

// Count the number of entities in a partition
queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .partitionNames(Arrays.asList("partitionA"))
    .filter("")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("count(*)"))
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [{"entity": {"count(*)": 500}}]}

// Count the number of entities in a partition
res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    output_fields: ["count(*)"],
    partition_names: ["partitionA"]
})

console.log(res.data)     

// Output
// 
// [ { 'count(*)': '500' } ]
// 

Counts the number of entities that match a filtering condition

Python
Java
NodeJS

# Count the number of entities that match a specific filter
res = client.query(
    collection_name="quick_setup",
    filter='(color == "red") and (1000 < tag < 1500)',
    output_fields=["count(*)"],
)

print(res)

# Output
#
# [
#     {
#         "count(*)": 3
#     }
# ]

// Count the number of entities that match a specific filter
queryReq = QueryReq.builder()
    .collectionName("quick_setup")
    .filter("(color == \"red\") and (1000 < tag < 1500)")
    .outputFields(Arrays.asList("count(*)"))
    .build();

queryResp = client.query(queryReq);

System.out.println(JSONObject.toJSON(queryResp));

// Output:
// {"queryResults": [{"entity": {"count(*)": 7}}]}

// Count the number of entities that match a specific filter
res = await client.query({
    collection_name: "quick_setup",
    filter: '(color == "red") and (1000 < tag < 1500)',
    output_fields: ["count(*)"]
})

console.log(res.data)   

// Output
// 
// [ { 'count(*)': '10' } ]
// 

Reference on scalar filters

Basic Operators

A boolean expression is always a string comprising field names joined by operators. In this section, you will learn more about basic operators.

Operator	Description
add (&&)	True if both operands are true
or (\|\|)	True if either operand is true
*+, -, , /**	Addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division
/**	Exponent
%	Modulus
<, >	Less than, greater than
==, !=	Equal to, not equal to
<=, >=	Less than or equal to, greater than or equal to
not	Reverses the result of a given condition.
like	Compares a value to similar values using wildcard operators. For example, like "prefix%" matches strings that begin with "prefix".
in	Tests if an expression matches any value in a list of values.

Advanced operators

count(*)

Counts the exact number of entities in the collection. Use this as an output field to get the exact number of entities in a collection or partition.

📘Notes
This applies to loaded collections. You should use it as the only output field.

Overview​

Preparations​

Step 1: Create a collection​

Step 2: Insert randomly generated entities​

Step 3: Create partitions and insert more entities​

Get Entities by ID​

Get entities from partitions​

Use Basic Operators​

Use Advanced Operators​

Count entities​

Reference on scalar filters​

Basic Operators​

Advanced operators​