Working with Configurable Search

The implementation of configurable search requires you to specify system-wide search properties on the Configurable Search Options page and specify component content reference specific properties on the Manage Configurable Search page.

Use the Configurable Search Options page to specify system-wide configurable search properties.

You can also use this page to configure field labels and search attribute labels.

To specify configurable search properties at the CREF-level, use the Manage Configurable Search page. For more information, see Configuring a Search Page.

Note: CREF-level configurable search properties specified for a configurable search page will overwrite system-level configurable search properties for that CREF.

Access the Configurable Search Options page by selecting PeopleTools > Utilities > Administration > Configurable Search Options.

This example illustrates the fields and controls in the Configurable Search Options page. Descriptions of the properties appear after the example.

Configurable Search Options page

Field or Control

Description

Classic Search Page

The search page that you specify here acts as the system-wide search page for classic components.

Clone the delivered classic search page, PTS_CFGSRCH_CL, to create a custom search page. However, you may create your own search page without cloning the delivered search page.

Fluid Search Page

The search page that you specify here acts as the system-wide search page for fluid components configurable search.

Clone the delivered fluid search page, PTS_CFGSRCH_FL, to create a custom search page. However, you may create your own search page without cloning the delivered search page.

Maximum Number of Search results in Standard Search

Specify the maximum number of search results that should be displayed while performing a standard search.

You can choose between 0 and 999.

The default value is 100.

Maximum Number of Search results in Keyword Search

Specify the maximum number of search results that should be displayed while performing a keyword search.

You can choose between 0 and 999.

The default value is 50.

Maximum Number of Recent Searches

Specify the maximum number of recent searches that should appear in the recent search display area.

You can choose between 0 and 999.

The default value is 5.

Maximum Number of Saved Searches

Specify the maximum number of saved searches that can be stored for a component.

You can choose between 0 and 999.

The default value is 5.

Recent Search Format

Select a display option for recent searches:

  • Label value – Displays the name of the field and the value entered in the field.

  • Label operator value – Displays the name of the field along with the value entered in the field and the search operator.

Saved Search Format

Select a display option for saved searches:

  • Label value – Displays the name of the saved search along with the field name and the value entered in the field.

  • Label operator value – Displays the name of the saved search along with the field name and the value entered in the field along with the search operator.

Columnar Display

Specify whether search criteria should be displayed as a single or double column.

Use Keyword Search when available

Select this option to automatically turn on keyword search as the search type when the following conditions are met:

  • The search definition associated with the component is deployed and indexed and Real-Time Indexing is enabled.

  • CREF is not configured for the component.

Collapse Search Criteria after results displayed

Select to collapse the search criteria fields after search results are displayed.

Show Related Actions in Search Results

By default, related actions are not displayed in search results even if related actions are configured for the component. Select this option to display related actions for the components for which related actions are configured. See Configuring a Search Page.

Include Image in Search Results

Select this option to display images with search results.

Configuring Field Labels

On the Configurable Search Options page use the Configure Field Labels section to configure the label for a field. You have the option to apply the configured label either system-wide or to selected records only. Use the Records link to open a secondary page where you can apply the configured field label to specific records. If no record is selected, the configured field label will be used system-wide for all records that use the field.

Field or Control

Description

Field Name

Select a field to update its label.

Field Label

Enter a field label for the field.

Records

Select this link to apply the configured field label to selected records. This link opens a secondary page where you can choose the records to which the configured field label should be applied.

Configuring Search Attribute Labels

On the Configurable Search Options page use the Configure Search Attribute Labels section to configure the label for a search attribute. You have the option to apply the configured label either system-wide or to selected search definitions only. Use the Search Definitions link to open a secondary page where you can apply the configured search attribute label to specific search definitions. If no search definition is selected, the configured search attribute label will be used system-wide for all search definitions that use the search attribute.

Field or Control

Description

Search Attribute Name

Select a search attribute to update its label.

Search Attribute Label

Enter a search attribute label for the search attribute.

Search Definition

Select this link to apply the configured search attribute label to selected search definitions. This link opens a secondary page where you can choose the search definitions to which the configured search attribute label should be applied.

Use the Manage Configurable Search page to list configured content references, to add a new configuration, and to review, edit, or delete an existing configuration.

Access the Manage Configurable Search page by selecting PeopleTools > Utilities > Manage Configurable Search.

Note: Manage Configurable Search page requires the PTPORTALREGISTRY search definition, so you must ensure that the search definition is deployed and indexed.

This example illustrates the Manage Configurable Search page. Descriptions of the fields appear after the example.

Manage Configurable Search page

New Content References

The New Content References section enables you to search for content references that you want to configure for configurable search. When you select a content reference, the Search Configuration page displays the details of the selected content reference if the following conditions are met:

  • Add, or Update/Display, or both action modes are enabled on the Use tab of the Component Properties dialog box in Application Designer.

  • Search record contains search keys.

See Setting Component Properties.

If any of these conditions are not met, the system does not display the Search Configuration page, but displays the following error message: Search and Add modes are not enabled for component, cannot configure the content reference.

Configured Searches

The Configured Searches section lists the content references that have been configured for configurable search. You may edit the configuration or delete the configuration. The list of configured content references could be quite long, so you can use the filter option to identify the content reference you require.

Use the Search Configuration page to configure a search page and specify how the configured search page should appear for an end user to interact with when accessing the component.

Note: In the case of a component having multiple content references, the entered value is not applicable to other content references of the same component.

Note: System-level configured values are used as defaults in content reference-level configuration. When specified, CREF-level configurable search properties specified for a configurable search page will overwrite system-level configurable search properties for that CREF.

Access the Search Configuration page by selecting PeopleTools > Utilities > Manage Configurable Search and then selecting the content reference for which you want to configure a search page.

This example illustrates the Search Configuration page. Descriptions of the fields appear after the example.

Search Configuration page

Field or Control

Description

Status

If you select Active, the search configuration is applied to the content reference and the configured search page is displayed based on conditions, which are described in the guidelines topic. See Guidelines on Using Configurable Search for Classic Components and Guidelines on Using Configurable Search for Fluid Components.

If you select Inactive, the search configuration is not applied to the content reference and the system displays the search page specified in the component.

Preview

Use the Preview button to view the configured search page. It opens a new window to display the newly configured search page.

In the case of multiple effective-dated configurations for a content reference, selecting the Preview button displays the current effective-dated configuration.

Effective Date

PeopleSoft's effective-dating logic enables you to configure an effective-dated configuration for a future date. You can configure multiple effective-dated configurations for a content reference and use the effective-dating logic to enable the configuration on a future date. For example, you could configure two configurations for a content reference. While one configuration is based on keyword search and is set for a future date, the other configuration can be based on standard search and set for current effective date. Or you could set any of the configurable options and specify a future date for the configuration.

Use the plus sign (+) to create a new search configuration for the content reference to which you can apply effective-dating logic.

See Using Effective Dates.

Search or Add New

The Search Configuration page displays the Search or Add New, or both tabs based on the configuration of the selected component. That is, if the Update/Display action mode is selected on the Component Properties page, the Search tab appears and if the Add action mode is selected, the Add New tab appears.

While the Search tab displays the Search Configuration page, the Add New tab displays the Add Configuration page. Search is the default tab.

Main Options

Field or Control

Description

Search Type

The system displays the search type configured for the component.

The following options are available:

  • Keyword Search: Uses a search definition to perform a search.

  • Standard Search: Uses a search record to perform a search.

If you select a content reference that has a component mapped to a search definition and real-time indexing is enabled, then the default search type is Keyword Search. However, you can change the search type to Standard Search and specify a search record for it.

Search Record or Search Definition

The Search Record or Search Definition field appears based on the search type.

The Search Record field displays the search record specified on the Component Properties page. However, you may specify a different search record for the content reference. In this case, the search record specified on the Search Configuration page is used when a user accesses this content reference provided the status of this configuration is set to active. If the status is set to inactive, the search record specified on the Component Properties page is used.

The Search Definition field displays the search definition mapped to the component. Similarly, if a search definition mapped to a component is enabled for real-time indexing, this field displays the search definition, which is enabled for real-time indexing. If a search definition is not mapped to a component, the field is blank.

You may specify a different search definition for the content reference, but you should ensure that the search definition is mapped to the component. If you select an unmapped search definition, the following error message displays: Search definition is not mapped to component.

See Mapping Components to Search Definitions.

Search as default view

Use this option to specify whether search should be the default view. If you enable this feature, search will be the default view and Add as the default view is automatically disabled.

When a component is configured for Search and Add action modes, you can set only one action mode as the default view.

Search Page Heading

Specify a heading that will appear at the top of the search page. The heading should not exceed 100 characters.

If you do not specify a page heading, the page displays the default heading, Find an Existing Value.

Search Page Instructions

Enter instructions for an end-user, for example information on how to complete the process.

Advanced Options

Field or Control

Description

Configured Search Presentation

Valid values for search lookup type:

  • Advanced

  • Basic

  • Basic and Advanced

Default search lookup type is Basic and Advanced.

For descriptions of search lookup types, see Understanding Search Pages.

Default Search Presentation

This field appears when you select the Basic and Advanced option in the Configured Search Presentation field.

Valid values for default search presentation:

  • Advanced

  • Basic

See Understanding Search Pages.

Columnar Display

Specify whether search criteria should be displayed as a single or double column.

Maximum Number of Recent Searches

This field displays the value specified on the PeopleTools Options page.

The default value is 5.

However, you may specify the number of recent searches that should appear in the Recent Search Display area. Valid values are 0 to 999.

The value entered here is applicable to the selected component and overrides the system-wide configurable search property.

Recent Search Format

Select a display option for the recent search:

  • Field label with value - Displays the name of the field and the value entered in the field.

  • Field label with value and operator - Displays the name of the field along with the value entered in the field and the search operator.

Maximum Number of Saved Searches

This field displays the value specified on the PeopleTools Options page.

The default value is 5.

However, you may specify the number of saved searches that should appear in the Saved Searches area. Valid values are 0 to 999.

The value entered here is applicable to the selected component and overrides the system-wide configurable search property.

Saved Search Format

Select a display option for a saved search:

  • User supplied name and field label with value - Displays the name of the saved search along with field name and value entered in the field.

  • User supplied name, field label with value and operator - Displays the name of the saved search and field name and the value entered in the field along with the search operator.

Maximum Number of Search Results

This field displays the value specified on the PeopleTools Options page.

The recommended values for keyword search and standard search are 50 and 100, respectively.

Specify the maximum number of search results to display. The value entered here is applicable to the selected component content reference and overrides the system-wide configurable search property.

Execute Auto Search

Select this option to display pre-search results based on the most recent search criteria.

For initial auto search results, default search criteria is used. Subsequently, the most recent search criteria is used.

Collapse Search Criteria (applicable when the Search Type is set to Standard Search)

Select this option to collapse the search criteria fields. However, search criteria is collapsed after search results are fetched.

Collapse Search Criteria after results displayed (applicable when the Search Type is set to Keyword Search)

Select to collapse the search criteria fields after search results are displayed.

Show Related Actions in Search Results

By default, related actions are not displayed in search results even if related actions are configured for the component. To display related actions, you should ensure that related actions are configured for the component and enable this option .

Small Form Factor Options

Field or Control

Description

Default Search Presentation

Specify the default lookup search for small form factor devices.

Image Options

Field or Control

Description

Include Image in Search Results

Specify whether to display an image with the search results.

When you enable this option, two fields are displayed to provide the record and field information.

Source Record

The source record keys should be keys in the search record.

Source Field Name

Select a field of the record.

Search Criteria and Result Options

Select the Load Fields button to display the fields of the configured search record (standard search) or attributes of the configured search definition (keyword search).

The Search Criteria tab enables you to configure the appearance of fields or attributes and the sequence in which they should appear on the search page.

Field or Control

Description

Field Name or Attribute Name

Lists the fields of the configured search record for standard search or the attributes of the configured search definition for keyword search.

Field Label or Attribute Label

Lists the labels of the fields or attributes.

Modify Field Label or Modify Attribute Label

Select this option, which enables you to edit the field or attribute label.

Required

Specify whether the field or attribute should be marked as a required field on the search page.

The Required button for a corresponding record field is not enabled if the Required check box (on the Edits tab) and the Search Edit check box (on the Use tab) are selected in the Record Field Properties page in Application Designer.

However, the Required button is enabled if the Required check box or the Search Edit check box is not selected in the Record Field Properties page.

If you select the Required button, the Include in Criteria button is automatically selected if it was not previously selected. If you deselect the Required button, the Include in Criteria button is not automatically deselected.

Hidden

Specify whether the field or attribute should be hidden on the search page.

You can set a field or attribute as hidden if the field or attributes has a default value associated with it.

Display Only

Specify whether the field or attribute should be display only.

You can set a field or attribute as display only if the field or attribute has a default value associated with it.

Default Value

Lists the default value for a field or attribute if configured.

Include in Criteria

Specify whether the field or attribute should be used as search criteria on the search page.

The Include in Criteria button corresponding to a record field is not enabled if the Required check box (on the Edits tab) and the Search Edit check box (on the Use tab) are selected in the Record Field Properties page in Application Designer.

However, the Include in Criteria button is enabled if the Required or the Search Edit check box is not selected in the Record Field Properties page.

If you deselect the Include in Criteria button, the Required button is automatically deselected if it was previously selected.

Criteria Sequence

Specify the sequence in which the fields or attributes should be displayed on the search page.

A field or attribute with the lowest numeric value is displayed at the top.

Field Appearance in or Attribute Appearance in

Specify the search presentation for each field or attribute.

For standard search, the default search presentation is Basic and Advanced.

Note: For Keyword Search, this field is only available when the Configured Search Presentation is set to Advanced.

The Result Fields tab enables you to configure the appearance of fields or attributes and the sequence in which they should appear on the search results page.

Field or Control

Description

Include in Results

Specify whether the field or attribute should be displayed in search results.

Include in Small FF

Specify whether the field or attribute should be displayed in search results on small form factor devices.

Results Sequence

Specify the order in which the fields or attributes should appear on search results.

The field or attribute with the lowest numeric value appears from left to right.

The Show All tab displays a combined list of configurable fields from the Search Criteria and Result Fields tabs.

Facets

For search type Keyword Search, you can modify the Facet Label or hide a facet, or both, using the Facets section in the Manage Configurable Search page.

Field or Control

Description

Facet Name

Displays the name of the facet.

Facet Label

Displays the current label used for the facet.

Modify Label

Select to make the Facet Label column editable and modify the facet label.

Hidden

Select to hide the facet. from the search results page.

Configure Links

Select the Add Link button to launch the Configure a link dialog where you can specify a content reference that will appear on the search page. This functionality enables you to provide links to other components that are relevant to the current component or the next task a user needs to perform.

Field or Control

Description

Order of Appearance

Specify the sequence in which the configured links should appear when you configure multiple links on the search page.

Open in New Window

Specify whether the configured content reference should appear in a new window. If you select No, the content reference opens in the current window.

Link Label

Enter the label for the content reference.

After completing the configuration, save the changes. Use the Preview button to preview the new page, which opens a new window to display the newly configured page.

Use the Add Configuration page to configure a page to add a new value to the PeopleSoft table and specify how the page should appear for an end user.

Click Add New on the Search Configuration page.

This example illustrates the Add Configuration page. Descriptions of the fields appear after the example.

Add Configuration page

Field or Control

Description

Status

The status specified on the Search Configuration page is extended to the Add Configuration page. Therefore, you cannot set or edit the status on this page.

Main Options

Field or Control

Description

Search Record

The Search Record field displays the search record specified on the Component Properties page. However, you may specify a different search record for the content reference. In this case, the search record specified on the Search Configuration page is used when a user accesses this content reference provided the status of this configuration is set to active. If the status is set to inactive, the search record specified on the Component Properties page is used.

If the search record does not contain a key or keys, the Load Fields button is disabled. Choosing a search record that contains a key or keys enables the Load Fields button.

For descriptions of the fields in the Configure Criteria and Configure Links areas, which are similar to the Search Configuration page, see Configuring a Search Page.

Configure Criteria

Select the Load Fields button to display the fields of the configured search record (standard search) or attributes of the configured search definition (keyword search).

The Configure Criteria group box enables you to configure the appearance of fields or attributes and the sequence in which they should appear on the Add a New Value page.

Field or Control

Description

Field Name

Lists the fields of the configured search record for standard search or the attributes of the configured search definition for keyword search.

Field Label

Displays the labels of the fields or attributes.

Modify Field Label

Set this option to Yes, which enables you to edit the field or attribute label.

Required

Specify whether the field or attribute should be marked as a required field on the Add a New Value page.

The Required button for a corresponding record field is not enabled if the Required check box (on the Edits tab) and the Search Key are selected in the Record Field Properties page in Application Designer.

However, the Required button is enabled if the Required check box or the Search Key is not selected in the Record Field Properties page.

If you select the Required button, the Include in Criteria button is automatically selected if it was not previously selected. If you deselect the Required button, the Include in Criteria button is not automatically deselected.

Hidden

Specify whether the field or attribute should be hidden on the Add a New Value page.

You can set a field or attribute as hidden only if the field or attribute has a default value associated with it.

Display Only

Specify whether the field or attribute should be display only.

You can set a field or attribute as display only if the field or attribute has a default value associated with it.

Include in Criteria

Specify whether the field or attribute should be used as search criteria on the Add a New Value page.

The Include in Criteria button corresponding to a record field is not enabled if the Required check box (on the Edits tab) and the Search Key check box (on the Use tab) are selected in the Record Field Properties page in Application Designer.

However, the Include in Criteria button is enabled if the Required check box or the Search Key check box is not selected in the Record Field Properties page.

If you deselect the Include in Criteria button, the Required button is automatically deselected if it was previously selected.

Sequence

Specify the sequence in which the fields or attributes should be displayed on the Add a New Value page.

Default Value

Lists the default value for a field or attribute if configured.

Add Button Override

Use the Add button override area to override the behavior of the Add button. Specify an application class or method for the target component where you want to redirect the user when they select the Add button.

Field or Control

Description

Package Name

Specify the root package where the application class is created.

Path

Specify the path, represented by a colon (:).

Class Name

Choose the relevant application class.

Method

Specify the method to be invoked.

Configure Links

Select the Add Link button to launch the Configure a link dialog where you can specify a content reference that will appear on the Add a New Value page. This functionality enables you to provide links to other components that are relevant to the current component or the next task a user needs to perform.

Field or Control

Description

Order of Appearance

Specify the sequence in which the configured links should appear when you configure multiple links on the search page.

Open in New Window

Specify whether the configured content reference should appear in a new window. If you select No, the content reference opens in the current window.

Link Label

Enter the label for the content reference.

After completing the configuration, save the changes. Use the Preview button to preview the new page, which opens a new window to display the newly configured page.