Connect MongoDB on Windows from WSL2

Quick guide to connect MongoDB on Windows from WSL2.

Table of contents

Introduction

Recently, I encountered an issue connecting to MongoDB running on Windows from WSL2 (Windows Subsystem for Linux). Being new to the Windows and WSL ecosystem after using Apple machines for 15 years, I spent about 4 hours troubleshooting. After diving through various online threads, I managed to resolve the issue using the following steps.

Steps

Stop the MongoDB Service

• Stop the MongoDB service from Windows Services.

Locate MongoDB configuration file

• Locate mongod.cfg config file using File Explorer.

Typically it’s found at C:\Program Files\MongoDB\Server\8.0\bin. Replace 8.0 with your installed MongoDB version.

Edit mongod.cfg file

• Open command prompt with Administrator privilages and cd into the directory where mongod.cfg file is located.
• Run notepad mongod.cfg to open file in Notepad.
• Update bindIp parameter from

 bindIp: 127.0.0.1

to

bindIp: 0.0.0.0

Allow MongoDB through Windows Firewall

• Search for Allow an app through Windows Firewall in the Windows search bar.
• Click Change settings on top right corner.
• Click Allow another app... button at the bottom right.
• Click Browse to locate and select the mongod.exe.
• Click Network types and ensure both private and public network types are selected.
• Click Add to create a set of inbound rules for MongoDB in the Windows Defender Firewall.

Restart the MongoDB service

• Go back to Services and start the MongoDB service.

Find your Windows host IPv4 address

• Run ipconfig command in your command prompt.
• Note the IPv4 address under the active network adapter (e.g., 192.168.x.x)

Update MongoDB URI in WSL2

• Use the noted IPv4 address to modify your MongoDB connection URI in WSL2. For example

mongodb://<your-host-ipv4-address>:27017/<your-db-name>

Conclusion

By following these steps, I successfully connected to a local MongoDB instance running on Windows from my Serverless API project running inside WSL2. 🎉