Quickstart

Two ways to run DocumentForge: embedded in your .NET process, or as a server behind an HTTP API. Pick whichever matches how you want to deploy — the storage engine and query language are identical.

Add the package

dotnet add package DocumentForge

Open a database and insert a document

using DocumentForge.Engine;

using var db = DocumentForgeDb.OpenOrCreate("app.dfdb");

db.Insert("orders", """
{
  "pnr": "ABC123",
  "passenger": { "firstName": "John", "lastName": "Smith" },
  "flights": [{ "flightNumber": "AA100", "from": "JFK", "to": "LAX" }]
}
""");

Add an index and query

db.CreateIndex("orders", "pnr", "idx_pnr", unique: true);

var result = db.Execute("SELECT * FROM orders WHERE pnr = 'ABC123'");
foreach (var doc in result.Documents)
    Console.WriteLine(doc);

The index makes WHERE pnr = … a direct lookup rather than a scan, and it persists across restarts — no rebuild on startup.

Prefer LINQ? db.Collection<Order>("orders").Where(o => o.Pnr == "ABC123").FirstOrDefault() works against the same data. See the .NET SDK reference.

Next steps

Understand the building blocks in Concepts.
See every endpoint in the REST reference.
Take it to production with the deployment guide.