AOSPERF04-BP02 Use static mapping for your index - Amazon OpenSearch Service Lens
Implementation guidanceResources

AOSPERF04-BP02 Use static mapping for your index

Improve indexing performance and query efficiency by using fixed, static mappings instead of dynamic ones.

Level of risk exposed if this best practice is not established: Medium

Desired outcome: You use static mappings instead of dynamic mappings, employing efficient and optimized indexing and querying strategies.

Benefits of establishing this best practice:

  • Improve indexing performance: Using static mappings for your index in OpenSearch Service domains can improve indexing performance by defining a fixed mapping at creation time, which is more efficient than dynamic mappings.

  • Enhance query efficiency: By using static mappings, you can also enhance query efficiency and reduce the risk of slower query performance associated with dynamic mappings.

Implementation guidance

To improve indexing and query performance in OpenSearch Service domains, consider switching from dynamic to static mappings. Understand the difference between static and dynamic mappings to choose the best approach for your data.

  • Static mappings: Define a fixed mapping for an index at creation time. This approach is more efficient and can provide better performance.

  • Dynamic mappings: Allow OpenSearch to detect and create mappings automatically based on the data being indexed. While convenient, this approach can lead to slower query performance and increased storage and resources, such as CPU and memory, usage.

Implementation steps

  • Mappings are defined at index level. The following is an example of a static mapping: 

PUT sample-index1
        {
        "mappings": {
        "properties": {
        "year": { "type" : "text" },
        "age": { "type" : "integer" },
        "director":{ "type" : "text" }
        }
        }
        }

  • Mappings can be either created using PUT HTTP verb or added to an existing mapping using POST HTTP. But you cannot change the mapping of an existing field. If you need to change existing field types, consider using the _reindex API to copy the data to a new index.

Resources