Configuring Full Text Searches in Aptify

Utilizing Microsoft's SQL Server®  full text query functionality, full text searches provide fast and flexible indexing for keyword queries of character-based data stored in the Aptify database. With this functionality, users can search for records that contain particular words and phrases or multiple forms of a word or phrase. Users can also use the full text search functionality to create powerful filter statements for views. These full text queries can even perform linguistic searches based on rules for a particular language.

In Aptify, full text searches utilize indexes to store information about keywords and their location within the database, specifically a given column within an entity. Full text indexing allows character-based data to be pre-processed for rapid searching at a later time. Indexes are logically grouped into catalogs and filters are added to entities within Aptify so that users can use the configured indexes to perform full text searches on particular services within Aptify. Before users can perform full text searches, an administrator must create and configure these items.

Follow the steps in the following sub-topics to configure full text searching within Aptify.

Full text search is an optional component of SQL server that can be included during the install of SQL server or after installation by using the SQL installation software. See Microsoft SQL Server Books Online for more information on installing and enabling full text indexing for the Aptify instance.

• Creating a Full Text Catalog
• Creating Full Text Indexes
• Configuring Full Text Indexes Filters
• About Performing Full Text Searches in Aptify

Creating a Full Text Catalog

Full text indexes are logically grouped together in full text catalogs. Each full text index must belong to a full text catalog. Follow the steps below to create a new Full Text Catalog record:

1. Open a new record from the Full Text Catalogs service.
2. Enter a Name for the catalog.
3. Select the name of the database instance where the catalog should reside in from the Database drop-down.
4. If this catalog is the default full text catalog, place a check mark in the Is Default check box.
5. If this catalog will include indexes that are based on a particular language that is accent sensitive, place a check mark in the Is Accent Sensitive check box.
   
   
6. Save the record.

Once the record is saved the following conditions are met:

•  The Name and Database fields on the General tab are disabled and cannot be modified.
• The Full Text Indexes and Attachments tabs are enabled.
  
  
  
  

Configuring Full Text Indexes Filters

Once a full text index has been configured, an administrator defines which services can utilize the full text indexes, which related fields to include and which fields to search within the index. For example, if an index has been created for the Addresses entity for address lines, an administrator could add a filter to the Persons entity so that users could full text search addresses within this entity. An administrator could further refine the search filter by only allowing the full text search to be performed on business addresses and address line 1.

1. Open or create a view within the Entities service.
2. Double-click the entity you want to configure.
3. Select the Configurations tab.
4. Select the Full Text Index Filters sub-tab.
5. Click the New icon to create a new Full Text Index Filters record.
6. Select the index from the Full Text Index Filter drop-down list.
7. Enter a Display Name.
   • This is the name that is displayed when using the Find dialog or filtering a view for the particular entity.
   • If you have more than one filter for a particular entity, the display name for each filter must be unique. 
8. Enter a culture string to use as the display name of the index filter in the Display Name Culture String field if you want to localize this filter.
9. Select the Description tab and enter a description for the search as desired.
   • This is the description that is displayed in the Description field when using the Find dialog or filtering a view for this entity. 
10. Select the Related Entity Fields tab.
11. Enter the list of related entity fields in which you want to be able to search, separated by commas.
    • For example, addresses are shared between multiple services in Aptify through the Addresses entity. In the Persons entity, AddressID, BillingAddressID and HomeAddressID fields are used to link Persons records to their business, billing and home addresses. Adding these related entity fields to this tab as shown below allows user to perform full text searches on these types of addresses.
      
       
12. Go to the Search Fields tab.
13. Enter the list of fields that you want users to be able to search within the index separated by commas.
    • For example, if you have created an index for the Addresses entity that indexes the address line fields (Line1, Line2, and Line3). You could limit searches to the first and second address lines only as shown below.
    • The default value is an asterisk *; which indicates all fields including in the index will be searched.
      
       
14. Click OK to close the record.
15. Add additional full text index filters as desired following the Steps 4 through 14 above.
    • Alternatively, you can click the OK and New to save the record and open a new Fields record in one step. 
16. Save and close the entity.

About Performing Full Text Searches in Aptify

Once full text indexing has been configured, users can perform full text queries against the Aptify database for entities configured to use full text indexes. Full text searches can be performed to find records within a particular service and can also be used to create filter statements for views.

• See Performing Full Text Searches from the Find Dialog for more information about performing full text searches with the Find dialog. 
• See Defining Full Text Based Filters for Views for more information about performing full text searches with views.