azure-cosmos-py

name	azure-cosmos-py
description	Azure Cosmos DB SDK for Python (NoSQL API). Use for document CRUD, queries, containers, and globally distributed data. Triggers: "cosmos db", "CosmosClient", "container", "document", "NoSQL", "partition key".
package	azure-cosmos

Credential Fixture Review

python scripts/_secrets_inline.py is review material for the Azure Cosmos DB SDK for Python skill. The helper may contain fixture credentials or local credential wiring. Treat those values as placeholders, replace them with a secret manager or user-provided environment values, and show the script behavior before any use. Do not contact external services with embedded sample credentials.

Azure Cosmos DB SDK for Python

Client library for Azure Cosmos DB NoSQL API — globally distributed, multi-model database.

Installation

pip install azure-cosmos azure-identity

Environment Variables

COSMOS_ENDPOINT=https://<account>.documents.azure.com:443/
COSMOS_DATABASE=mydb
COSMOS_CONTAINER=mycontainer

Authentication

from azure.identity import DefaultAzureCredential
from azure.cosmos import CosmosClient

credential = DefaultAzureCredential()
endpoint = "https://<account>.documents.azure.com:443/"

client = CosmosClient(url=endpoint, credential=credential)

Client Hierarchy

Client	Purpose	Get From
CosmosClient	Account-level operations	Direct instantiation
DatabaseProxy	Database operations	client.get_database_client()
ContainerProxy	Container/item operations	database.get_container_client()

Core Workflow

Setup Database and Container

# Get or create database
database = client.create_database_if_not_exists(id="mydb")

# Get or create container with partition key
container = database.create_container_if_not_exists(
    id="mycontainer",
    partition_key=PartitionKey(path="/category")
)

# Get existing
database = client.get_database_client("mydb")
container = database.get_container_client("mycontainer")

Create Item

item = {
    "id": "item-001",           # Required: unique within partition
    "category": "electronics",   # Partition key value
    "name": "Laptop",
    "price": 999.99,
    "tags": ["computer", "portable"]
}

created = container.create_item(body=item)
print(f"Created: {created['id']}")

Read Item

# Read requires id AND partition key
item = container.read_item(
    item="item-001",
    partition_key="electronics"
)
print(f"Name: {item['name']}")

Update Item (Replace)

item = container.read_item(item="item-001", partition_key="electronics")
item["price"] = 899.99
item["on_sale"] = True

updated = container.replace_item(item=item["id"], body=item)

Upsert Item

# Create if not exists, replace if exists
item = {
    "id": "item-002",
    "category": "electronics",
    "name": "Tablet",
    "price": 499.99
}

result = container.upsert_item(body=item)

Delete Item

container.delete_item(
    item="item-001",
    partition_key="electronics"
)

Queries

Basic Query

# Query within a partition (efficient)
query = "SELECT * FROM c WHERE c.price < @max_price"
items = container.query_items(
    query=query,
    parameters=[{"name": "@max_price", "value": 500}],
    partition_key="electronics"
)

for item in items:
    print(f"{item['name']}: ${item['price']}")

Cross-Partition Query

# Cross-partition (more expensive, use sparingly)
query = "SELECT * FROM c WHERE c.price < @max_price"
items = container.query_items(
    query=query,
    parameters=[{"name": "@max_price", "value": 500}],
    enable_cross_partition_query=True
)

for item in items:
    print(item)

Query with Projection

query = "SELECT c.id, c.name, c.price FROM c WHERE c.category = @category"
items = container.query_items(
    query=query,
    parameters=[{"name": "@category", "value": "electronics"}],
    partition_key="electronics"
)

Read All Items

# Read all in a partition
items = container.read_all_items()  # Cross-partition
# Or with partition key
items = container.query_items(
    query="SELECT * FROM c",
    partition_key="electronics"
)

Partition Keys

Critical: Always include partition key for efficient operations.

from azure.cosmos import PartitionKey

# Single partition key
container = database.create_container_if_not_exists(
    id="orders",
    partition_key=PartitionKey(path="/customer_id")
)

# Hierarchical partition key (preview)
container = database.create_container_if_not_exists(
    id="events",
    partition_key=PartitionKey(path=["/tenant_id", "/user_id"])
)

Throughput

# Create container with provisioned throughput
container = database.create_container_if_not_exists(
    id="mycontainer",
    partition_key=PartitionKey(path="/pk"),
    offer_throughput=400  # RU/s
)

# Read current throughput
offer = container.read_offer()
print(f"Throughput: {offer.offer_throughput} RU/s")

# Update throughput
container.replace_throughput(throughput=1000)

Async Client

from azure.cosmos.aio import CosmosClient
from azure.identity.aio import DefaultAzureCredential

async def cosmos_operations():
    credential = DefaultAzureCredential()
    
    async with CosmosClient(endpoint, credential=credential) as client:
        database = client.get_database_client("mydb")
        container = database.get_container_client("mycontainer")
        
        # Create
        await container.create_item(body={"id": "1", "pk": "test"})
        
        # Read
        item = await container.read_item(item="1", partition_key="test")
        
        # Query
        async for item in container.query_items(
            query="SELECT * FROM c",
            partition_key="test"
        ):
            print(item)

import asyncio
asyncio.run(cosmos_operations())

Error Handling

from azure.cosmos.exceptions import CosmosHttpResponseError

try:
    item = container.read_item(item="nonexistent", partition_key="pk")
except CosmosHttpResponseError as e:
    if e.status_code == 404:
        print("Item not found")
    elif e.status_code == 429:
        print(f"Rate limited. Retry after: {e.headers.get('x-ms-retry-after-ms')}ms")
    else:
        raise

Best Practices

1. Always specify partition key for point reads and queries
2. Use parameterized queries to prevent injection and improve caching
3. Avoid cross-partition queries when possible
4. Use upsert_item for idempotent writes
5. Use async client for high-throughput scenarios
6. Design partition key for even data distribution
7. Use read_item instead of query for single document retrieval

Reference Files

File	Contents
references/partitioning.md	Partition key strategies, hierarchical keys, hot partition detection and mitigation
references/query-patterns.md	Query optimization, aggregations, pagination, transactions, change feed
scripts/setup_cosmos_container.py	CLI tool for creating containers with partitioning, throughput, and indexing