> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs2.growthbook.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# FerretDB

> How to use FerretDB with GrowthBook

FerretDB is a MongoDB-compatible database that is open source and free to use. It serves as a drop-in replacement for MongoDB, converting MongoDB wire protocol queries to SQL and using PostgreSQL as its backend storage engine.

For organizations that require a 100% open-source stack, FerretDB provides a truly open-source MongoDB-compatible database alternative—free from SSPL licensing restrictions—allowing you to run GrowthBook without any proprietary database dependencies.

## Install FerretDB

Follow the the [FerretDB installation guide](https://docs.ferretdb.io/installation/ferretdb/docker/) to install FerretDB. Make sure your FerretDB instance is running and accessible before proceeding.

## Start GrowthBook with FerretDB

```bash theme={null}
docker run -d \
  --name growthbook \
  --network ferretdb \
  -p 3000:3000 \
  -p 3100:3100 \
  -v growthbook_uploads:/usr/local/src/app/packages/back-end/uploads \
  -e MONGODB_URI="mongodb://username:password@<ferretdb-host>:27017/growthbook" \
  growthbook/growthbook:latest
```

Replace `username`, `password`, and `<ferretdb-host>` with your FerretDB connection details.

<Note>
  **Container network access**

  Ensure that the FerretDB instance is accessible to the GrowthBook container. If both are running in Docker, make sure they're on the same network.
</Note>

## Launch GrowthBook

That's it! GrowthBook is now running with FerretDB. Access it at `http://localhost:3000`.

GrowthBook will automatically create the necessary collections in FerretDB to manage:

* User authentication and permissions
* Feature flags and their configurations
* Metrics and experiments
* Organization settings and metadata

## Verify the Connection

After setting up GrowthBook, you can verify that data is being stored correctly in FerretDB by:

* Creating a feature flag or experiment in GrowthBook
* Connecting to your FerretDB instance using a MongoDB client
* Checking the growthbook database for collections like experiments, features, and users

## Additional Resources

* [FerretDB Documentation](https://docs.ferretdb.io/)
* [FerretDB and GrowthBook Integration Blog Post](https://blog.ferretdb.io/enabling-feature-flags-ab-testing-growthbook-ferretdb/)
* [FerretDB GitHub Repository](https://github.com/FerretDB/FerretDB)
* [GrowthBook Self-Hosting Docs](/self-host)