JMeter Bolt Protocol

Apache JMeter version 5.2 introduced the Bolt sampler, enabling users to execute Cypher queries via the Bolt protocol. This functionality proves particularly valuable for testing Neo4j procedures.

Key Components

The Bolt implementation in JMeter consists of two primary elements:

1. Bolt Connection Configuration

This component handles database connectivity details:

Setting	Example Value
Name	Bolt Connection Configuration
URI	bolt://localhost:7687
Username	neo4j
Password	(your password)

2. Bolt Request

This section accepts Cypher statements and optional parameters formatted in JSON. Parameters remain optional but support dynamic query values when needed.

Example Cypher Statements

Data Insertion

CREATE (ee:Person { name: "Emil", from: "Sweden", klout: 99 })

Data Retrieval

MATCH (ee:Person) WHERE ee.name = "Emil" RETURN ee;

Parameterized Query

With parameters {"personName": "Emil"}:

MATCH (ee:Person) WHERE ee.name = $personName RETURN ee;

Use Cases

• Performance testing Neo4j stored procedures
• Load testing graph database queries
• Benchmarking Cypher query performance
• Testing graph traversal operations under load

Further Reading

• Neo4j Cypher Manual
• Bolt Protocol Specification
• JMeter Bolt Documentation