Defining how Master Index Query Blocks are Processed (Repository)

The block picker and pass controller define how query blocks are processed for matching. Default components are defined by Sun Master Index, but you can create your own Java classes to define custom versions of these components.

The block picker determines the blocking strategy to use for each match pass. Blocking strategies define how the queries are created that check the database for a subset of the records to be used for matching. The default Block Picker has access to the match results from previous match passes, as well as lists of applicable blocking definitions that have been executed and of those that have not. The default Block Picker class is com.stc.eindex.matching.impl.PickAllBlocksAtOnce, which selects all blocks during the first pass.

The pass controller determines whether to continue processing the defined blocks. The matching process can be executed in multiple stages. Each query block in the blocking query is executed in a separate match pass. After a block is evaluated, the pass controller determines if the results found are sufficient or if the query should continue by performing another match pass. The default pass controller is com.stc.eindex.matching.impl.PassAllBlocks. This class instructs the match engine to continue calculating match weights until all applicable block definitions have been processed.

These components can only be configured by modifying the XML file directly.

To Specify the Block Picker

1. In the Projects window, expand the Configuration node in the project you want to modify, and then double-click the Match Field file.

   The file opens in the NetBeans XML editor.

2. Scroll to the block-picker element in the MatchingConfig section.

3. In the class-name element, specify the Java class for the block picker you want to use, using the fully qualified class name.

   For example:

   <block-picker> <class-name>com.stc.eindex.matching.impl.PickAllBlocksAtOnce </class-name> </block-picker>

4. Save and close the file.

To Specify the Pass Controller Class

1. In the Projects window, expand the Configuration node in the project you want to modify, and then double-click the Match Field file.

   The file opens in the NetBeans XML editor.

2. Scroll to the pass-controller element in the MatchingConfig section.

3. In the class-name element, specify the Java class for the Pass Controller you want to use, using the fully qualified class name.

   For example:

   <pass-controller> <class-name>com.stc.eindex.matching.impl.PassAllBlocks </class-name> </pass-controller>

4. Save and close the file.