---
title: "Create a vector database"
description: "Create a Qdrant vector database in TIR with a default collection, a plan, 3 to 10 nodes, and optional disk encryption."
content_type: "how-to"
product: "vector-database"
platform: "TIR"
url: "/tir/vector-database/how-to/create-a-vector-database/"
topic: ["create-and-connect"]
---

# Create a vector database

Create a Qdrant database with a default collection, a plan, and 3 to 10 nodes. The database
becomes **Running** after a few minutes.

## Before you begin

- A TIR project in Delhi or Chennai, and a role with Create permission on Vector Database.
- On a prepaid account, credit for about 24 hours of the nodes' hourly price. If the credit falls
  short, TIR refuses the create and the message says how many credits to add.
- To use a private cluster, one of your private clusters. See
  [Allocate nodes to projects](/tir/tir-private-cluster/how-to/allocate-nodes-to-projects/).

On **E2E Cluster**, compute is billed per node, per hour, from the moment the database is created; see
[Vector Database billing](/tir/vector-database/concepts/vector-database-billing/).

## Open the create form

In TIR, open your project. In the side menu, under **Storage**, select **Vector
Database**. Select **Create Database**, or **Launch Database** for a project's first database.

## Name the database

TIR fills **Cluster Name** with a random name that starts with `tir-qdrant`. Keep it or type your
own. A name holds up to 50 characters, starts and ends with a lowercase letter or digit, and uses
only lowercase letters, digits and hyphens. The name must be unique in the project.

## Set up the default collection

TIR creates one collection for you when the database is ready, with the values you set here.

- **Collection name** is `default-collection` until you change it.
- **Distance** is how similarity between two vectors is measured. **Cosine** is selected by default. **Euclid** measures straight-line distance, **Dot** uses the dot product, and
  **Manhattan** adds up the differences along each dimension. Choose the one your embedding model
  recommends.
- **Vector Dimension** is the number of values in each vector, at least 1. Set it to the size your
  embedding model produces.
- **Shard Number** is how many partitions the collection is split into, at least 1. Setting it to a
  multiple of your node count spreads the data evenly.
- **Replication Factor** is how many copies of each shard the cluster keeps, at least 3.
- **Sharding method** is set to **Auto**.

## Choose a plan

Under **Select Plan**, choose where the database runs.

- **E2E Cluster** runs it on E2E's own capacity. Choose a plan by its price per hour and
  the RAM and vCPUs each node gets.
- **Private Cluster** runs it on your own private cluster. Choose the cluster in **Private Cluster**,
  then set the CPU and RAM each node gets. If you have yet to create a private cluster, the form says so.

## Set the node count and encryption

**Node Count** is 3 by default; use the slider or the number field to choose any value from 3 to 10.
You can add nodes later, and the node count only ever goes up; see
[Scale up a vector database](/tir/vector-database/how-to/scale-up-a-vector-database/).

Each node starts with a 30 GB disk. To make it bigger later, see
[Resize the disk](/tir/vector-database/how-to/resize-the-disk/).

**Enable Disk Encryption** is off by default. Turn it on to secure the disk with AES-256 encryption
managed by TIR. A dialog asks you to confirm with **Enable Encryption**. Encryption is permanent: once the database is
created, it stays on, so decide now.

Below the form, an estimate shows about how many million vectors your plan holds for a vector
dimension and replication factor you pick there. On **E2E Cluster**, the hourly, monthly and total
price for your nodes also appear; for the rates, see
[E2E's pricing page](https://www.e2enetworks.com/pricing).

## Launch the database

Select **Launch**. TIR returns to the list, where the database shows **Deploying** and then
**Running**. Select its row and open **Overview** to see its endpoint and keys.

## What to do next

[Connect to the database](/tir/vector-database/how-to/connect-to-a-vector-database/) with its endpoint
and API key. For help with a message, see
[Troubleshooting Vector Database](/tir/vector-database/troubleshooting/vector-database/).