Query

Desktop has two tools built in, Query and Explore. Both of them allow you to interact with your data directly from the UI in Desktop.

As the name suggests, Query is the tool to use to query your data and visualize the results. This functionality exists both built in to the Neo4j Aura console and as a standalone tool called Neo4j Browser. For more information about the standalone tool, see Neo4j Browser documentation.

In Desktop, you can find Query in the sidebar, under Tools.

queryui
Figure 1. The Query UI

The UI consists of a sidebar, a Cypher editor, and one or more reusable result frames.

Sidebar

The sidebar contains five drawers:

  • Database information - Information about the contents of the active database, i.e. the number of nodes and relationships, their labels and types, as well as a list of property keys.

  • Saved Cypher® - A list of your saved Cypher queries. By saving Cypher queries, you can access them directly from this drawer and populate the Cypher editor by clicking on them. You can download and upload them, and delete them when they are no longer needed.

  • History - A list of all queries you have executed. Note that this list is not limited to any specific database or instance, but shows all your executed Cypher queries.

  • Cypher Reference - An in-product quick reference to the Cypher qquery language.

  • Parameters - Where you can set parameters for most of the property types in Neo4j.

Cypher editor

The primary interface for entering and running Cypher queries and commands. You enter your Cypher and then execute it with the play button. Should you want to edit your query, you can do so and run it again. But you can also start a new query in a new editor, as it can be instantiated multiple times. The editor also has a […​] menu that allows you to save your query to the Saved Cypher drawer, do a quick history search, expand your current editor to the full screen, and format your query.

cypher editor menu
Figure 2. Cypher editor […​] menu

Reusable result frames

The reusable result frames in Query allow you to edit the query of an existing result directly in the result fram and rerun it to update the result in situ. You can also use Cmd/Ctrl + click to send it back to the main editor and re-run it from there.

Query supports different result frame views:

  • Graph — Display the result as nodes and relationships and allow styling to be configured.

  • Table — Display the result as JSON formatted rows.

  • RAW — Display the submitted request, the Neo4j Server version and address, and the response.

For more detailed information on how to use Query, see the Query section in the Neo4j Aura documentation. Note that not all features of Query in Aura are applicable to Query in Desktop.