Agent quick start
This guide is for developers who use AI agents to access DashVector. It provides a quick start guide and an API reference structured for a large language model (LLM).
What you can do
Using this guide, an AI agent can:
Understand the core capabilities of DashVector: Use the structured module overview to quickly learn about supported features, including cluster, collection, partition, and vector management.
Learn how to call the API: The documentation for each module includes a list of API operations, parameter descriptions, and usage examples. An LLM can directly learn how to call the API from this information.
Master authentication and authorization: Learn the authentication method supported by the DashVector API (API key) and how to configure credentials correctly.
Handle common errors: Review common error codes and troubleshooting methods to resolve issues independently.
Prerequisites
Before you use the DashVector API, complete the following:
Activate the service: Activate service.
Create an API key: Create an API key.
Install an SDK: We recommend using a DashVector SDK to call the API. Python and Java SDKs are supported. Install a DashVector SDK.
llms.txt
llms.txt is a documentation index file optimized by the DashVector team for large language models (LLMs). It consolidates the official DashVector documentation by scenario, API, and sub-document path, enabling a Coding Agent to load the file all at once and expand it on demand.
The llms.txt file contains the following:
# DashVector - Official Documentation Index
DashVector is a cloud-native, fully managed vector retrieval service that offers horizontal scalability. It is built on Proxima, a high-performance vector engine developed in-house by Tongyi Lab.
## Table of Contents
- [Product Introduction](#产品介绍) - What is DashVector, use cases, and features
- [Concepts and Terms](#概念术语) - Key concepts such as vector, partition, schema-free, and filtered search
- [Getting Started](#入门) - Activate service, create an API key, and quick start
- [Developer Reference](#开发参考) - SDK and API documentation for cluster, collection, partition, and vector management
- [Cluster Management](#cluster-管理)
- [Collection Management](#collection-管理)
- [Partition Management](#partition-管理)
- [Vector Management](#向量管理)
- [Appendix](#附录) - Data types, status codes, and constraints
- [DashText](#dashtext) - Text vectorization tool
- [Metering and Billing](#计量计费) - Product billing and product specifications
- [Best Practices](#最佳实践) - Build a question answering service, implement semantic search, and master multimodal retrieval
- [FAQ](#常见问题) - FAQ
## Product Introduction
- [What is Vector Retrieval Service](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510225.html)
- [Application Scenarios](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510226.html)
- [Features](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2839171.html)
## Concepts and Terms
- [Basic Concepts](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510229.html)
- [What is a Vector](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2584947.html)
- [Schema Free](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510228.html)
- [Conditional Filtered Retrieval](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2513006.html)
- [Keyword-aware Retrieval](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2586282.html)
- [Partition](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573907.html)
- [Grouped Vector Retrieval](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2709686.html)
- [Multi-Vector Retrieval](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2837745.html)
- [Advanced Vector Retrieval Parameters](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2838122.html)
## Getting Started
- [Activate Service](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2568083.html)
- [Create API key](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510230.html)
- [Quick Start](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510223.html)
## Developer Reference
### Cluster Management
- [Create Cluster](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2631966.html)
- [Upgrade Cluster](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2636033.html)
- [Release Cluster](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2636034.html)
### Collection Management
#### Create Collection
- [Create Collection with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573558.html)
- [Create Collection with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510242.html)
- [Create Collection with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510281.html)
#### Describe Collection
- [Describe Collection with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573566.html)
- [Describe Collection with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510243.html)
- [Describe Collection with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510294.html)
#### Get Collection
- [Get Collection with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573569.html)
- [Get Collection with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510244.html)
#### List Collections
- [List Collections with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573578.html)
- [List Collections with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510245.html)
- [List Collections with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510298.html)
#### Stats Collections
- [Stats Collections with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573579.html)
- [Stats Collections with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510246.html)
- [Stats Collections with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510304.html)
#### Delete Collection
- [Delete Collection with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573580.html)
- [Delete Collection with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510247.html)
- [Delete Collection with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510308.html)
### Partition Management
#### Create Partition
- [Create Partition with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573598.html)
- [Create Partition with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510256.html)
- [Create Partition with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510326.html)
#### Describe Partition
- [Describe Partition with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573599.html)
- [Describe Partition with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510257.html)
- [Describe Partition with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510327.html)
#### List Partitions
- [List Partitions with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573600.html)
- [List Partitions with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510258.html)
- [List Partitions with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510328.html)
#### Stats Partition
- [Stats Partition with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573601.html)
- [Stats Partition with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510259.html)
- [Stats Partition with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510329.html)
#### Delete Partition
- [Delete Partition with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573602.html)
- [Delete Partition with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510260.html)
- [Delete Partition with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510330.html)
### Vector Management
#### Insert Vectors
- [Insert Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573586.html)
- [Insert Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510249.html)
- [Insert Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510317.html)
#### Query Vectors
- [Query Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573592.html)
- [Query Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510250.html)
- [Query Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510319.html)
#### Grouped Query Vectors
- [Grouped Query Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2712893.html)
- [Grouped Query Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2709529.html)
- [Grouped Query Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2715274.html)
#### Upsert Vectors
- [Upsert Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573593.html)
- [Upsert Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510251.html)
- [Upsert Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510320.html)
#### Update Vectors
- [Update Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573594.html)
- [Update Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510252.html)
- [Update Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510321.html)
#### Fetch Vectors
- [Fetch Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573595.html)
- [Fetch Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510253.html)
- [Fetch Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510324.html)
#### Delete Vectors
- [Delete Vectors with the Java SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2573596.html)
- [Delete Vectors with the Python SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510254.html)
- [Delete Vectors with the HTTP API](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510325.html)
## Appendix
- [Data Type Definitions](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510262.html)
- [Return Status Code Descriptions](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510266.html)
- [Constraints and Limits](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510263.html)
## DashText
- [Install DashText SDK](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2712435.html)
- [DashText Quick Start](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2546039.html)
- [DashText Detailed Introduction](https://pypi.org/project/dashtext/)
## Metering and Billing
- [Product Billing](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510232.html)
- [Product Specifications](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2636861.html)
## Best Practices
- [Build a Question Answering Service Based on Proprietary Knowledge](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510235.html)
- [Implement Semantic Search from Scratch](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510234.html)
- [Master Multimodal Retrieval](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510236.html)
## FAQ
- [FAQ](https://help.aliyun.com/zh/document_detail/2510238.html)Module overview
DashVector features are organized by module.
Module | Description | Interfaces |
Cluster management | Create, upgrade, and release clusters | console |
Collection management | Create, describe, get, list, get statistics for, and delete collections | console, SDK, HTTP API |
Partition management | Create, describe, list, get statistics for, and delete partitions | console, SDK, HTTP API |
Vector management | Insert, query, run grouped queries, update, fetch, and delete vectors | console, SDK, HTTP API |
Common errors and troubleshooting
Code | Reason | Description | Troubleshooting |
-2021 | InexistentCollection | The collection does not exist. | Verify that the collection name is correct and that the collection has not been deleted. |
-2999 | InvalidArgument | Invalid argument. | Verify that the request parameters meet the requirements (type, length, required fields, etc.). |
-2980 | TokenDontExist | The API key is invalid. | Verify that the API key is configured correctly and check its status in the console. |
-2019 | MismatchedDimension | Mismatched vector dimension. | Verify that the dimension of the vector you are inserting or querying matches the dimension specified when the collection was created. |
-2022 | InexistentPartition | The partition does not exist. | Verify that the partition name is correct and that the partition has not been deleted. |
-2009 | InvalidQuery | Invalid query. | Verify that the query conditions are correct and comply with the query rules. |