Write privileges
AuraDB Business CriticalAuraDB Virtual Dedicated CloudEnterprise Edition

Write privileges are defined for different parts of the graph:

  • CREATE - allows creating nodes and relationships.

  • DELETE - allows deleting nodes and relationships.

  • SET LABEL - allows setting the specified node labels using the SET clause.

  • REMOVE LABEL - allows removing the specified node labels using the REMOVE clause.

  • SET PROPERTY - allows setting properties on nodes and relationships.

There are also compound privileges that combine the above specific privileges:

  • MERGE - allows MATCH, CREATE, and SET PROPERTY to apply the MERGE command.

  • WRITE - allows all WRITE operations on an entire graph.

  • ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES - allows all READ and WRITE operations on an entire graph.

For more details about how to read the administration commands syntax, see Reading the administration commands syntax and Components of the graph privilege commands.

The CREATE privilege

The CREATE privilege allows a user to create new node and relationship elements on a graph. For more details, see the Cypher Manual → CREATE clause.

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] CREATE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to CREATE elements on the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT CREATE ON GRAPH neo4j ELEMENTS * TO regularUsers

The CREATE privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] CREATE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers the ability to CREATE nodes with the label foo on all graphs, use:

DENY CREATE ON GRAPH * NODES foo TO regularUsers

If the user attempts to create nodes with a label that does not already exist on the database, then the user must also possess the CREATE NEW LABEL privilege. The same applies to new relationships: the CREATE NEW RELATIONSHIP TYPE privilege is required.

If a label or a relationship type does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The DELETE privilege

The DELETE privilege allows a user to delete node and relationship elements on a graph. For more details, see the Cypher Manual → DELETE clause.

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] DELETE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to DELETE elements on the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT DELETE ON GRAPH neo4j ELEMENTS * TO regularUsers

The DELETE privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] DELETE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers the ability to DELETE relationships with the relationship type bar on all graphs, use:

DENY DELETE ON GRAPH * RELATIONSHIPS bar TO regularUsers

Users with DELETE privilege, but restricted TRAVERSE privileges, will not be able to do DETACH DELETE in all cases. See delete restricted user for more info.

If a label or a relationship type does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The SET LABEL privilege

The SET LABEL privilege allows you to set labels on a node using the Cypher SET clause:

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] SET LABEL { * | label[, ...] }
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to SET any label on nodes of the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT SET LABEL * ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Unlike many of the other READ and WRITE privileges, it is not possible to restrict the SET LABEL privilege to specific ELEMENTS, NODES or RELATIONSHIPS.

The SET LABEL privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] SET LABEL { * | label[, ...] }
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers the ability to SET the label foo on nodes of all graphs, use:

DENY SET LABEL foo ON GRAPH * TO regularUsers

If no instances of this label exist on the database, then the CREATE NEW LABEL privilege is also required.

If a label does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The REMOVE LABEL privilege

The REMOVE LABEL privilege allows you to remove labels from a node by using the Cypher REMOVE clause:

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] REMOVE LABEL { * | label[, ...] }
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to REMOVE any label from nodes of the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT REMOVE LABEL * ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Unlike many of the other READ and WRITE privileges, it is not possible to restrict the REMOVE LABEL privilege to specific ELEMENTS, NODES or RELATIONSHIPS.

The REMOVE LABEL privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] REMOVE LABEL { * | label[, ...] }
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, denying the role regularUsers the ability to remove the label foo from nodes of all graphs, use:

DENY REMOVE LABEL foo ON GRAPH * TO regularUsers

If a label does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The SET PROPERTY privilege

The SET PROPERTY privilege allows a user to set a property on a node or relationship element in a graph by using the Cypher SET clause:

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] SET PROPERTY "{" { * | property[, ...] } "}"
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to SET any property on all elements of the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT SET PROPERTY {*} ON HOME GRAPH ELEMENTS * TO regularUsers

The SET PROPERTY privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] SET PROPERTY "{" { * | property[, ...] } "}"
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers the ability to SET the property foo on nodes with the label bar on all graphs, use:

DENY SET PROPERTY { foo } ON GRAPH * NODES bar TO regularUsers

If the user attempts to set a property with a property name that does not already exist on the database, the user must also possess the CREATE NEW PROPERTY NAME privilege.

If a label, a relationship type, or a property name does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The MERGE privilege

The MERGE privilege is a compound privilege that combines TRAVERSE and READ (i.e. MATCH) with CREATE and SET PROPERTY. This is intended to enable the use of the Cypher MERGE command, but it is also applicable to all reads and writes that require these privileges.

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] MERGE "{" { * | property[, ...] } "}"
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
    [
      ELEMENT[S] { * | label-or-rel-type[, ...] }
      | NODE[S] { * | label[, ...] }
      | RELATIONSHIP[S] { * | rel-type[, ...] }
    ]
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to MERGE on all elements of the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT MERGE {*} ON GRAPH neo4j ELEMENTS * TO regularUsers

It is not possible to deny the MERGE privilege. If you wish to prevent a user from creating elements and setting properties: use DENY CREATE or DENY SET PROPERTY.

If the user attempts to create nodes with a label that does not already exist on the database, the user must also possess the CREATE NEW LABEL privilege. The same applies to new relationships and properties - the CREATE NEW RELATIONSHIP TYPE or CREATE NEW PROPERTY NAME privileges are required.

If a label, a relationship type, or a property name does not exist in the database, the user cannot use the corresponding privilege until it is created. See Privileges for nonexistent labels, relationship types, and property names for more information.

The WRITE privilege

The WRITE privilege allows the user to execute any WRITE command on a graph.

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] WRITE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers the ability to WRITE on the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT WRITE ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Unlike the more specific WRITE commands, it is not possible to restrict WRITE privileges to specific ELEMENTS, NODES or RELATIONSHIPS. If you wish to prevent a user from writing to a subset of database objects, a GRANT WRITE can be combined with more specific DENY commands to target these elements.

The WRITE privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] WRITE
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers the ability to WRITE on the graph neo4j, use:

DENY WRITE ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Users with WRITE privilege but restricted TRAVERSE privileges will not be able to do DETACH DELETE in all cases. See delete restricted user for more info.

The ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES privilege

The ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES privilege allows the user to execute any command on a graph:

GRANT [IMMUTABLE] ALL [ [ GRAPH ] PRIVILEGES ]
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to grant the role regularUsers ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES on the graph neo4j, use:

GRANT ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Unlike the more specific READ and WRITE commands, it is not possible to restrict ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES to specific ELEMENTS, +NODES or RELATIONSHIPS. If you wish to prevent a user from reading or writing to a subset of database objects, a GRANT ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES can be combined with more specific DENY commands to target these elements.

The ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES privilege does not allow creating new labels, relationship types, or property names. These are instead managed by the NAME MANAGEMENT privileges.

The ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES privilege can also be denied:

DENY [IMMUTABLE] ALL [ [ GRAPH ] PRIVILEGES ]
  ON { HOME GRAPH | GRAPH[S] { * | name[, ...] } }
  TO role[, ...]

For example, to deny the role regularUsers all graph privileges on the graph neo4j, use:

DENY ALL GRAPH PRIVILEGES ON GRAPH neo4j TO regularUsers

Glossary

allocator

A component in the cluster that allocates databases to servers according to the topology constraints specified and an allocation strategy.

asynchronous replication

Asynchronous replication is used by secondary copies to poll for new transactions, which means they cannot be guaranteed to have received the most recent transactions. This enables efficient scale-out of read-performance.

Aura instance

A fully-managed DBMS represented by a single instance ID, that is running in the Neo4j Aura cloud.

auto-commit transaction

An automatically committed transaction that contains a single query.

Bolt protocol

Bolt is a protocol used for interaction between Neo4j instances and drivers.

bookmark

A marker the client can request from the cluster to ensure that it is able to read its own writes so that the application’s state is consistent and only databases that have a copy of the bookmark are permitted to respond.

category (Bloom)

A category is based on a node label and is defined in a Perspective as a way of visually distinguishing nodes with the same label(s).

causal consistency

All servers in a cluster agree on the order in which transactions take place. The position of a server on the causal chain can be guaranteed using a bookmark.

cluster

A Neo4j DBMS that spans multiple servers working together to increase fault tolerance and/or read scalability. Databases on a cluster may be configured to replicate across servers in the cluster thus achieving read scalability or high availability.

client application

Software that interacts with a Neo4j server.

commit

A commit is the successful completion of a transaction, which ensures durability of any changes made. For more details, visit Operations Manual → Transaction management.

composite database

Composite databases are the means to access partitioned graph data with a single Cypher query.

constraint

Constraints are sets of data modeling rules that ensure the data is consistent and reliable.

Cypher®

Neo4j’s graph query language.

data model

A data model defines how information is organized in a database. A good data model will make querying and understanding your data easier. In Neo4j, the data models have a graph structure.

database

A database is a container used by the DBMS to manage and store graph data. The physical structure of data is controlled by the database.

database vs graph

Databases are the physical containers of graph data. Graphs are the logical structure of data in Neo4j.

Database Management System

Database Management System, or DBMS, capable of managing multiple databases. A DBMS may run on a single server, or span several servers configured as a cluster.

database schema

The prescribed property existence and datatypes for nodes and relationships.

deallocate

An act of removing a database from a server or a server from a cluster without loss of data or reduced fault tolerance.

degree (of a node)

The number of relationships of a specific node; loops are counted twice.

disaster recovery

A manual intervention to restore availability of a cluster, or databases within a cluster.

driver

A software library that provides access to Neo4j from a particular programming language.

election

In the event that the Raft leader becomes unresponsive, followers automatically trigger an election and vote for a new leader.

entity

A node or a relationship.

expression (Cypher)

A component of a Cypher query which produces values. It may be used in projections, as a predicate, or when setting properties on graph elements.

fabric

Fabric is the architectural design of a unified system that provides a single access point to local or distributed graph data.

fault tolerance

A guarantee that a cluster can maintain a database’s persistence and availability in the event of one or more servers failing.

follower

A primary copy of a database acting as a follower, receives and acknowledges synchronous writes from the leader.

Generative AI (GenAI)

A type of artificial intelligence (AI) system that generates text, images, or other media in response to prompts.

graph

A logical representation of a set of nodes where some pairs are connected by relationships.

index

Data structure that improves read performance of a database.

knowledge graph

A specific type of graph that has an organizing principle so that a user (or a computer system) can reason about the underlying data. The organizing principle provides an additional layer of structure that adds context to support knowledge discovery.

label

Marks a node as a member of a named and indexed subset. A node may be assigned zero or more labels.

leader

A single primary copy of a database is designated as the leader. It receives all write transactions from clients and replicates writes synchronously to followers and asynchronously to secondary copies of the database.

main database

In terms of Neo4j Enterprise Studio, the database(s) containing the user’s data. Can exist in the same Neo4j deployment as the tool asset database.

motif

A description of a specific pattern within a graph.

node

A node represents an entity or discrete object in your graph data model. Nodes can be connected by relationships, hold data in properties, and are classified by labels.

operator

A symbol representing a mathematical or logical operation.

parameter

Named value provided when running a Cypher statement.

path

A sequence of nodes and the relationships connecting them, that does not contain duplicate relationships. Several paths can match a pattern.

pattern

A specific arrangement of nodes and relationships that can be matched in a graph. A pattern follows a motif.

perspective (Bloom)

A Perspective defines a certain business view or domain that can be found in the target Neo4j graph. A single Neo4j graph can be viewed through different Perspectives, each tailored for a different business purpose.

primary

A copy of the database that is able to process write transactions and is eligible to be elected as a leader. It participates in fault tolerant writes as it is part of the majority required to acknowledge and commit write transactions.

primary vs secondary

In a cluster, databases can operate in either primary or secondary mode. Primary databases are able to process write and read transactions, ensuring fault tolerance. Secondary databases are replicated asynchronously from primaries, and their main purpose is to provide read scaling within the cluster.

project (Aura)

An isolated environment in the unified Aura console that contains its own database instances, configurations, and resources. Preceded by tenant in the classic Aura console.

property

Properties are key-value pairs that are used for storing data on nodes and relationships.

query (Cypher)

A statement that retrieves or writes information to a database.

Raft group

A group of servers that are participating in hosting a particular database in primary mode.

Raft group member

A server that is participating in a Raft group. A server can be a member of one or more groups.

Raft log

A shared log between all Raft group members that is guaranteed to be consistently updated and viewed by those members. The log contains both database data and operational state of the Raft group.

Raft protocol

The networking mechanism that enables a database to replicate its data across multiple servers to give high availability for accessing the data and high durability to the data stored.

read scaling

Distributing query load by creating additional database copies hosted in secondary mode (read-only).

relationship

A relationship represents a connection between nodes in your graph data model. Relationships connect a source node to a target node, hold data in properties, and are classified by type.

secondary

An asynchronously replicated copy of the database that provides read scaling within the cluster.

seed

A seed is a database dump or a full backup used to create a database on a cluster. This is sometimes called seeding.

server

A physical machine, a virtual machine, or a container running an instance of Neo4j. Servers can be standalone or part of a cluster.

session

A causally linked sequence of transactions.

session consistency

An alternative name for Neo4j’s causal consistency.

standalone

A single server running Neo4j and not part of a cluster.

synchronous replication

Synchronous replication requires the leader primary to replicate a transaction and block the commit until a quorum of the follower primaries acknowledges that the transaction is successfully replicated. Once the transaction is replicated, the commit is allowed to proceed. This ensures data durability and consistency within the cluster.

system database

A database used by Neo4j to store system information.

tenant (Aura)

An isolated environment in the classic Aura console that contains its own database instances, configurations, and resources. Replaced by project in the unified Aura console.

tool asset database

In terms of Neo4j Enterprise Studio, the database where tools' assets are stored. This can be in the same Neo4j deployment as the main database(s) or in a separate deployment.

topology

A configuration that describes how the copies of a database should be spread across the servers in a cluster, see primary mode and secondary mode.

transaction

A transaction comprises a unit of work performed against a database. It is treated in a coherent and reliable way, independent of other transactions. Transactions comply with the ACID consistency model (atomic, consistent, isolated, and durable).