You can combine record search and dimension search queries into one consolidated MDEX Engine query.
You can combine search queries to give your users additional information as they navigate through your site.
Combining search queries enables you to retrieve not only a refined record set with follow-on query information, but also a separate set of navigable dimension values based on the same keyword(s). You can present this separate set of dimension values to the end user as a more targeted list of potential follow-on queries (in addition to the standard follow-on queries that accompany a record search).
When you pass multiple types of search to the MDEX Engine in one query, the exact handling of the queries is determined by your application tier components:
The Oracle Commerce Assembler attempts to aggregate queries prior to sending them as a request to the MDEX Engine. The Assembler then processes the returned result objects into ready-to-render content items.
The Oracle Commerce Presentation API treats each search as an individual request to the MDEX Engine. The search queries are completely independent of each other, and the MDEX Engine returns a result object for each search type. The Presentation API then combines these multiple result objects into one query result object.
Note
When combining record search and dimension search, keep in mind that record searches require a search key and one or more search terms. Dimension searches use only search terms.