Working with Search Groups and Search Contexts

When implementing Global Search, it is highly recommended to employ search contexts and search groups. These constructs work together to refine the user interaction with the Global Search search category.

A search group is a type of search category that is exposed to Global Search to help manage search definitions deployed to the search engine. Search groups provide a way to show relevant categories based on the context the user is in on the target frame. A search definition can belong to multiple search groups. You manage search groups in the Search Framework Administration Activity Guide. In a cluster environment, for example, search groups can be formed to include search definitions deployed across content systems.

Using search contexts, you can configure search groups such that based on the context in the target frame, only a subset of all possible search groups are available to the user in the Global Search Bar. For example, if the end user is accessing content from a PeopleSoft Financial application, then only search groups relevant to that application will be available. Likewise if a user is accessing content from a PeopleSoft Human Capital Management application, then only search groups related to that application will be available.

At any given time, end users have these types of search groups available:

• All: This search group will always be available and is a group of search categories that span across all the indexes that have been deployed and made searchable for a PeopleSoft application.

• Component Specific: This type of search group will match the component the user is currently viewing in the target frame. For example, if a user is viewing an expense report, then the Expense Report component would be the search group that is available, if the component is indexed, and it does not apply already to the Home Page context.

Note:

Search groups are listed in a different order in the suggestions search compared to the global search. For more information, see Working with Suggestions Search.

Note:

Only Home Page search context can be used. Template level and Node level search contexts are no longer valid. If a search context is not defined for Home Page, then only the All search group is displayed.

In a cluster environment, Portal’s Home Page search context is used always.

Global Search shows search groups in the Global Search Bar based on a user's role. To set up permissions to search groups, you use PeopleTools Security permission lists. Setting up role-based search group access is discussed in the Security topics in this document.

To view what search group permissions have been defined for delivered search categories, see Application Fundamentals (your pillar).