---
title: Create a custom file index
description: Use the influxdb3 create file_index command to create a custom file indexing strategy for a database or a table.
url: https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb3/enterprise/admin/file-index/create/
estimated_tokens: 392
product: InfluxDB 3 Enterprise
version: enterprise
publisher: InfluxData
canonical: https://docs.influxdata.com/influxdb3/enterprise/admin/file-index/create/
date: '2026-05-15T15:46:14-06:00'
lastmod: '2026-05-15T15:46:14-06:00'
---

Use the [`influxdb3 create file_index` command](/influxdb3/enterprise/reference/cli/influxdb3/create/file_index/)to create a custom file indexing strategy for a database or table.

Provide the following:

* **Token** (`--token`): *(Required)* Your [admin token](/influxdb3/enterprise/admin/tokens/).
  You can also use the `INFLUXDB3_AUTH_TOKEN` environment variable to specify
  the token.
* **Database** (`-d`, `--database`): *(Required)* The name of the database to
  apply the index to. You can also use the `INFLUXDB3_DATABASE_NAME`environment variable to specify the database.
* **Table** (`-t`, `--table`): The name of the table to apply the index to.
  If no table is specified, the indexing strategy applies to all tables in the
  specified database.
* **Columns**: *(Required)* A comma-separated list of string columns to
  index on. These are typically tag columns but can also be string fields.

```bash
influxdb3 create file_index \
  --token AUTH_TOKEN \
  --database DATABASE_NAME \
  --table TABLE_NAME \
  COLUMNS
```

Replace the following placeholders with your values:

* `AUTH_TOKEN`:
  your [admin token](/influxdb3/enterprise/admin/tokens/)

* `DATABASE_NAME`:
  the name of the database to create the file index in

* `TABLE_NAME`:
  the name of the table to create the file index in

* `COLUMNS`:
  a comma-separated list of columns to index on–for example: `host,application`

#### Related

* [influxdb3 create file\_index](/influxdb3/enterprise/reference/cli/influxdb3/create/file_index/)

[indexing](/influxdb3/enterprise/tags/indexing/)