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SEARCH API: TIPS AND TRICKS - FROM BEGINNING TO CUSTOM SOLUTIONS
The document outlines best practices for implementing and customizing the Search API in Drupal, highlighting the importance of using Composer for dependency management. It discusses various search backends, facets, and processors, as well as customizing functionality through plugins. Additionally, the author emphasizes maintaining performance through strategies like indexing optimizations and caching techniques.
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SEARCH API: TIPS AND TRICKS - FROM BEGINNING TO CUSTOM SOLUTIONS
- 1. Search API: tipsand tricks - from beginning to custom solutions Oleg Bogut Drupal developer at AnyforSoft
- 2. 9+ years withDrupal Drupal Senior/Lead developer I'm giving Drupal lections in the University Some words about me
- 3. And we willtalk about Search in Drupal Search API Search backends Facets Custom extensions for Search API, and other stuff
- 4. In the beginningclient says... Convenient Flexible Fast Better than others - I want to have a search on my site. It should be:
- 5. Looks easy Uninstall CoreSearch Install Search API Select and setup search backend Setup Search API server and indexes Setup search pages, views and facets (if needed)
- 6. Uninstall Core Search Why?It’s already in core... Not flexible Not usable It should be killed firstly
- 7. Install Search APIand others Use composer: composer require 'drupal/search_api:1.x-dev' composer require 'drupal/facets:1.x-dev' composer require 'drupal/search_api_page:1.x-dev' and do the basic setup
- 8. Install Search APIand others Why not manually install? Using composer is a Drupal8-way solution It allows us to manage dependencies Easier updates and maintaining
- 9. Search architecture Search backend SearchAPI Server Index Index Fields Fields Content Nodes Taxonomy Users Paragraphs Processors Processors UI Users Views (blocks / pages) FacetsSearch Pages
- 10. Select search backend: DatabaseSearch Search API Solr Search required Elasticsearch Connector required
- 11. Search API Databasesearch backend Good solution for small and simple sites Fastest and easiest setup Simplest maintaining Already available (out of the box)
- 12. Apache SOLR searchbackend Full-text search Faceted search NoSQL features Dynamic clustering
- 13. Elastic search backend Distributedsearch Highlighting support Wildcard search Analytical search
- 14. A lot ofalternatives How to take a proper solution? What can be a criteria? Scared scared scared
- 15. Setup search serverand indexes Just setup the Search Server and Search Index (one or multiple) using your search backend integration
- 16. Search server setup UsingDB Search
- 17. Search index fieldssetup
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- 21. ...and we havea search on site
- 22. Setup the facetand facet source Facet source can be a Views item, Search Page, or custom solution Facet should be based on already indexed field
- 23. Setup facet widgetand block And a lot of other options are available in the facet configuration
- 24. ...and we havea faceted search Facets allows to filter search results by the selected values. Facet items can be configured for multiple choising with OR / AND logic
- 25. Simple and powerfulthing Your feelings, when you have set up the search from scratch and it works
- 26. But when youneed to extend something... … you will see that all things looks unclear at first view So, let’s do a little research
- 27. Explore the SearchAPI plugins structure Search API plugins Backends Datasources Processors Data types Displays Parse modes Trackers https://www.drupal.org/docs/8/modules/search-api/developer-documentation/ available-plugin-types
- 28. Search API plugindefinition (Processor) Plugin manager plugin.manager.search_api.processor Definitions namespace Drupalsearch_apiProcessor Plugins namespace DrupalMODULEPluginsearch_apiprocessor Annotation @SearchApiProcessor
- 29. Let’s check, howit’s made Let’s create custom Search API field, which will calculate the duration of Event using begin / end date fields in the Event node
- 30. Define Search APIprocessor
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- 34. Setup field valuelogic
- 35. Setup extended indexoptions
- 36. Example of using:Views
- 37. Example of using:Views output
- 38. Why and whenwe need to customize? When we don’t have this feature in contribs When we need some performance tweaks
- 39. Customization vs contribsolutions Wow! I can create a search using Search API UI and contribs Wow! I can create my own services for Search API I know, how to create complex solutions using contribs and custom code (without any “wow” reactions).
- 40. How to don’treinvent the wheel? Check for solutions from contrib modules Check it twice! Try to extend instead of create it from scratch Re-use contrib code in custom solutions Keep It Simple!
- 41. Some performance tweaks UseSearch API Fast for better performance of indexing Exclude unpublished content from index Do not use DB search backend, if you have too many entities Use caching best practices Using Ajax / async loading can be a good trick
- 42. So, if youwill follow the best practices...
- 43.