Heatmap patterns for document keys
This page shows examples of patterns that you might see in a Key Visualizer heatmap. These patterns can help you troubleshoot specific performance issues.
Evenly distributed usage
If a heatmap shows a fine-grained mix of dark and bright colors, then reads and writes are evenly distributed throughout the database. This heatmap likely represents an effective usage pattern for Firestore.
Sequential keys
A heatmap with a single bright diagonal line can indicate a database that uses strictly increasing or decreasing keys. Sequential keys are an anti-pattern that can create hotspots. To learn more about hotspots, see the best practices page.
When hotspotting, you might observe corresponding elevated latencies
when you compare a Ops/s metric with a latency metric.
Sudden traffic increase
A heatmap with a key range that suddenly changes from dark to bright indicates
a sudden spike in load. If Ops traffic increases faster than
Firestore can auto-scale resources, you might see
corresponding elevated latency metrics.
What's next
- Learn how to get started with Key Visualizer.
- Find out how to explore a heatmap in detail.
- Read about the metrics you can view in a heatmap.
- Learn about index key patterns