TL;DR: The server is connected; the collection name is wrong (or you are in the wrong database). Call `milvus_list_collections` to see what exists, fix the name, retry.

```text
Collection not found: my_vectors
```

## Fix it

1. List what actually exists:

```json
{ "name": "milvus_list_collections", "arguments": {} }
```

   Expected: a list of collection names. An empty list is normal on a fresh deployment.

2. Check you are in the right database:

```json
{ "name": "milvus_list_databases", "arguments": {} }
```

   Collections live inside databases. If yours is in a non-default database, switch with `milvus_use_database`.

3. Fix the name in your tool call. Watch for pluralization, prefixes, and case.

   Expected: the tool operates on the collection.

## When to use this

- The server connects (list-collections works) but a specific collection is reported missing.
- The name was typed by hand or came from another environment.

## When NOT to use this

- Connection or permission errors. Fix reachability and auth first.
- The list is empty and should not be. Then the data was never loaded, or you are in the wrong database.

## Compatibility

- zilliztech/mcp-server-milvus (milvus_list_collections, milvus_list_databases, milvus_use_database tools).

## Why it happens

Milvus scopes collections to databases, and the default database is `default`. Data loaded into a named database is invisible until you switch to it, which looks exactly like a missing collection. Add inexact names from agents and this is one of the most common Milvus MCP errors.

## Edge cases

- Collection names are case-sensitive.
- Dropped collections stay dropped. Recreate and reload if it was deleted.
- Some tools auto-create collections on first write. Reads never auto-create. A read failing on a fresh setup usually means the write path never ran.