This document provides an overview of using Apache Solr for search with Drupal. It describes what Drupal and Solr are, how they integrate, and presents case studies of different organizations that implemented Drupal + Solr solutions. Key aspects covered include preprocessing data, creating custom Solr fields and facets, extracting content from documents using Tika, and setting up separate Solr indexes. The document demonstrates how Drupal and Solr can be configured to provide powerful search capabilities for a variety of use cases and content types.

1. Drupal 7 + Solr
Tools’ overview / Integration / Usage /
Case studies

2. Introduction
Digital agency established since
2008 in Mauritius
Recognized as one of the most
expert offshore web agencies in
Drupal
More than 150 projects in Drupal

3. Introduction
Technical Director at Esokia
10 years of experience in PHP
7 years of experience in Drupal

4. Introduction

5. What is Drupal?
Free, community-built website development
tool
Modular and extensible content management
Open source
Built on PHP
Created by Dries Buytaert
First release in January 2001

6. Showcase

7. Showcase

8. Showcase

9. More closer

10. Key concept in Drupal
Flexibility / Simplicity / Utility
High standard of usability for developers, administrators, and users
Modularity / Extensibility / Maintenability
Slim and powerful core that can be readily extended through custom modules

11. Drupal in the future?
Drupal 8 expected on October, 2015 (approx.)
Big architectural changes
Built with

12. What is Solr?
Standalone enterprise search server
Full-text search, faceted navigation
REST-like API
Open source
Written in Java
Supported by Apache Software Foundation
First release in January 2007

13. Main Features
Full-Text Search
Powerful matching capabilities including
phrases, wildcards, joins, grouping...
Faceted Search
Slicing of data using a large array of faceting algorithms

14. Main Features
High Volume Traffic
Proven on a high scale all over the world
Extensible Plugin Architecture
Well-defined extension points for indexing,
analysis, request handling, query parsing...

15. Main Features
Geospatial Search
Make location-based search with built-in support for
spatial search
Rich Document Parsing
Index rich content such as Adobe
PDF, Microsoft Word and more

16. Other features
Query suggestions
Providing suggestions to users as they type in their queries
Spell checking
“Did you mean… ?”
Highlighting
Help users to focus on their search
External configuration via XML
Adjust and extend setup with XML files

17. What’s next?
Now in version 5.0 (since February, 2015)
Cluster oriented with ZooKeeper & SolrCloud
Easier installation
Better admin UI
Solr is now a mature product,
with an easier handling

18. Drupal & Solr - How it works?
HTTP
POST/GET
DB
INDEX
Drupal Application
Apache SOLR Server

19. Drupal & Solr - How it works?
Drupal send content to Solr on cron’s run.
Each new or updated content is marked for
indexation.
Deleted content is removed from the index on
cron’s run.

20. Drupal & Solr - How it works?
In Solr, a Document is the unit of search and
index.
An index consists of one or more Documents, a
Document consits of one or more Fields.
Each Drupal’s entity is a Document.

21. Drupal & Solr - How it works?
Index & Analysis in Solr:
➩Solr store keywords instead of pages and
build an inverted index
➩All data go through many transformations
during the analysis phase

22. Drupal & Solr - Drupal’s side
One module: Apache Solr Search
Custom XML files for Solr’s configuration
Full entity support
Hooks for indexing, querying, displaying data
Many related modules to extend capabilities

23. Drupal & Solr - Drupal’s side
Drupal’s specific fields for Solr

24. Drupal & Solr - Drupal’s side
Example of hook

25. Drupal & Solr - Drupal’s side
Example of hook

26. Drupal & Solr - Drupal’s side
Example of hook

27. Drupal & Solr - Solr’s side
Solr 4.x supported by Drupal
Multicore support (one core per application)
Least amount of software dependencies

28. Drupal & Solr - Solr’s side
Solr Admin UI in 3.x

29. Drupal & Solr - Solr’s side
Solr Admin UI in 4.x

30. Drupal & Solr - Solr’s side
Requirements for Solr:
✓Apache Solr
✓Java (just the JRE)
✓… And that’s all!
An embeded Jetty comes with Solr.

31. Case Study n°1: La Lettre M

32. Context
✓ Business directory
➩ Thousands companies to index
➩Not only company, but also companies’ directors
➩Financial data and number of employees
✓ External database
➩ Huge database with different update sources
✓ Unstructured data
➩ Unusable for faceted search

33. Solutions
✓ Preprocessing data
➩Using hook to format data
✓ Custom Solr field
➩Created custom data to index in Solr
✓ Custom facets
➩ Add custom facet for filtering purpose

34. Solutions
Preprocessing data with hook implementation
➩ Standardization of financial data
➩ Standardization of number of employees
✓ For faceted search, data was structured
in range

35. Solutions
Add custom indexable Solr field
➩ Hooks
➩ Class functions
✓ New indexable
data

36. Solutions
Create custom facet for user experience
➩ Defining new widget
➩ Use class inherit
✓ Better user experience
in frontend

37. Case Study n°2: Eramet

38. Context
✓ International listed company with official documents
➩Need to publish financial and official reports
➩Create public charter and politic documents
➩Strategic and essential data in documents
➩French and english documents

39. Solutions
✓ Extract and index data from documents
➩Using Apache Tika as dependency
✓ Distinction between french and english documents
➩ Use of Drupal’s File API and i18n functionnalities

40. Solutions
Extract data from document with Tika
➩ Extract metadata and text
➩ Extracted datas are added to the index
➩ Tika’s call in integrated to Solr config XML file
✓ Easy to increase search capability

41. Solutions
Separation of files based on language
➩ Creation of indexable entity
➩ Add language as an indexable field
✓ Default behavior of Apache Solr Attachment
module

42. Interlude
What is Tika?
A content analysis toolkit
Supported by Apache Software Foundation
Open source
Written in Java

43. Interlude
Supported formats (non exhaustive list)

44. Case study n°3: GFM

45. Context
✓ B2B directory
➩Thousands entries to index
➩Cross data capabilities
➩Sticky and highlighted entries
✓ Migration context
➩From SQL Server to Solr
✓ Unstructured data
➩Old database with different mainteners

46. Solutions
✓ Preprocessing data
➩Using hook to format data
✓ Dual Solr index
➩One for sticky entries, one for standard entries
✓ Usage of taxonomy
➩Categorized content for cross data

47. Solutions
Data standardization for search purposes
➩ Storing entries’ number
➩ Managing data update
✓ Volume and recency as search criteria

48. Solutions
Create specific indexes
➩ Separate Solr query
for result’s limitation
➩ Maintain a display
counter
✓ One query per index and
combining results

49. Solutions
Transform taxomony result in search result
➩ Create a query on Solr
✓ Full transparency
for the user

50. Other applications
Training catalog
Search by filtering sessions by topics and/or date
Product catalog
Fine search based on various attributes and scope
Video database
Catchup TV
User directory
Filtering by function, localization
...

51. Other solutions
Open source / Full-text
search / Written in C++
Open source / Rich
document parsing / Written
in C++
Open source / Full-text
search / RESTful API

52. Other solutions
Module available for Drupal
Less popular than Solr
Elasticsearch as an outsider

53. Questions?

54. Thank you!