Microsoft Search Server
Encyclopedia
Microsoft Search Server (MSS) is an enterprise search
platform from Microsoft
, based on the search capabilities of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. MSS shares its architectural underpinnings with the Windows Search
platform for both the querying engine as well as the indexer. Microsoft Search Server was once known as SharePoint Server for Search.
Microsoft Search Server has been made available as Search Server 2008, which has was released in the first half of 2008. In 2010, Search Server 2010 http://www.microsoft.com/enterprisesearch/searchserverexpress/en/us/technical-resources.aspx became available, including a free version, named Search Server 2010 Express. The express edition will feature the same feature-set as the commercial edition, including no limitation on the number of files indexed; however, it is limited to a stand-alone installation and cannot be scaled out to a cluster
. A release candidate of Search Server Express 2008 was made available on November 7, 2007; it is scheduled to Release to Manufacturing (RTM) in sync with Search Server 2008.
A more detailed comparison of the feature differences between Search Server 2008, Search Server 2010, and Search Server 2010 Express can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/enterprisesearch/searchserverexpress/en/us/compare.aspx
MSS provides a search center interface to present the UI for querying. The interface is available as a web application
, accessed using a browser. The query can either be a simple query, or use advanced operators as defined by the AQS syntax. The matched files are listed along with a snippet from the file, with the search terms highlighted, sorted by relevance. The relevance determination algorithm has been developed by Microsoft Research
and Windows Live Search
. MSS also shows definitions of the search terms, where applicable, as well as suggests corrections for misspelled terms. Duplicate results are collapsed together. Alerts can be set for specific queries, where the user is informed of changes to the results of a query via email
or RSS
. The search center UI uses the ASP.NET
web part
infrastructure and can be customized using either Microsoft Visual Studio
or Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer. Custom actions can be defined on a per-filetype basis as well.
MSS can index any data source as long as an indexing connector for the data source is provided. The indexing connector includes protocol handlers, metadata handlers and iFilters
to enumerate the data items in the source and extract metadata from the items in the data source. If the file type in the source has a corresponding iFilter, then it is used to extract the text of the file for full text indexing as well. The handlers and iFilters MSS uses are the same as used by SharePoint, Microsoft SQL Server
and Windows Search
as well. The data sources that are to be indexed are identified by their URI
s and have to be configured prior to indexing. The indexer updates the search index as soon as an item is indexed (continuous propagation) so that the items can be queried against even before the indexing crawl is complete. MSS can also federate searches to other search services (including SharePoint and web search servers) that support the OpenSearch
protocol. Federated locations can be serialized
to a
The administration UI, which is also presented as a web application, can be used to review statistics such as most frequent queries, top destination hits, click through rates etc., as well as fine tune relevancy settings, indexing policies (including inclusion and exclusion filters) and schedules, and set up a cluster of the servers. It can also be used to back up either the configuration state or the search indices. ACL
s can also be defined to limit the search result according to the rights of the user initiating the query.
Enterprise search
Enterprise search is the practice of making content from multiple enterprise-type sources, such as databases and intranets, searchable to a defined audience.-Enterprise search summary:...
platform from Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
, based on the search capabilities of Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. MSS shares its architectural underpinnings with the Windows Search
Windows Search
Windows Search is an indexed desktop search platform released by Microsoft for the Windows operating system....
platform for both the querying engine as well as the indexer. Microsoft Search Server was once known as SharePoint Server for Search.
Microsoft Search Server has been made available as Search Server 2008, which has was released in the first half of 2008. In 2010, Search Server 2010 http://www.microsoft.com/enterprisesearch/searchserverexpress/en/us/technical-resources.aspx became available, including a free version, named Search Server 2010 Express. The express edition will feature the same feature-set as the commercial edition, including no limitation on the number of files indexed; however, it is limited to a stand-alone installation and cannot be scaled out to a cluster
Cluster Computing
Cluster Computing: the Journal of Networks, Software Tools and Applications is a journal for parallel processing, distributed computing systems, and computer communication networks....
. A release candidate of Search Server Express 2008 was made available on November 7, 2007; it is scheduled to Release to Manufacturing (RTM) in sync with Search Server 2008.
A more detailed comparison of the feature differences between Search Server 2008, Search Server 2010, and Search Server 2010 Express can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/enterprisesearch/searchserverexpress/en/us/compare.aspx
Overview
Web application
A web application is an application that is accessed over a network such as the Internet or an intranet. The term may also mean a computer software application that is coded in a browser-supported language and reliant on a common web browser to render the application executable.Web applications are...
, accessed using a browser. The query can either be a simple query, or use advanced operators as defined by the AQS syntax. The matched files are listed along with a snippet from the file, with the search terms highlighted, sorted by relevance. The relevance determination algorithm has been developed by Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research is the research division of Microsoft created in 1991 for developing various computer science ideas and integrating them into Microsoft products. It currently employs Turing Award winners C.A.R. Hoare, Butler Lampson, and Charles P...
and Windows Live Search
Windows Live Search
Bing is a web search engine from Microsoft. Bing was unveiled by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on May 28, 2009 at the All Things Digital conference in San Diego...
. MSS also shows definitions of the search terms, where applicable, as well as suggests corrections for misspelled terms. Duplicate results are collapsed together. Alerts can be set for specific queries, where the user is informed of changes to the results of a query via email
Email
Electronic mail, commonly known as email or e-mail, is a method of exchanging digital messages from an author to one or more recipients. Modern email operates across the Internet or other computer networks. Some early email systems required that the author and the recipient both be online at the...
or RSS
Web feed
A web feed is a data format used for providing users with frequently updated content. Content distributors syndicate a web feed, thereby allowing users to subscribe to it. Making a collection of web feeds accessible in one spot is known as aggregation, which is performed by an aggregator...
. The search center UI uses the ASP.NET
ASP.NET
ASP.NET is a Web application framework developed and marketed by Microsoft to allow programmers to build dynamic Web sites, Web applications and Web services. It was first released in January 2002 with version 1.0 of the .NET Framework, and is the successor to Microsoft's Active Server Pages ...
web part
Web part
A Web Part, also called a Web Widget, is an ASP.NET server control which is added to a Web Part Zone on Web Part Pages by users at run time. The controls enable end users to modify the content, appearance, and behavior of Web pages directly from a browser...
infrastructure and can be customized using either Microsoft Visual Studio
Microsoft Visual Studio
Microsoft Visual Studio is an integrated development environment from Microsoft. It is used to develop console and graphical user interface applications along with Windows Forms applications, web sites, web applications, and web services in both native code together with managed code for all...
or Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer. Custom actions can be defined on a per-filetype basis as well.
MSS can index any data source as long as an indexing connector for the data source is provided. The indexing connector includes protocol handlers, metadata handlers and iFilters
IFilters
An IFilter is a plugin that allows the Windows Indexing Service and the newer Windows Desktop Search to index different file formats so that they become searchable. Without an appropriate IFilter, contents of a file cannot be parsed and indexed by the search engine...
to enumerate the data items in the source and extract metadata from the items in the data source. If the file type in the source has a corresponding iFilter, then it is used to extract the text of the file for full text indexing as well. The handlers and iFilters MSS uses are the same as used by SharePoint, Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server
Microsoft SQL Server is a relational database server, developed by Microsoft: It is a software product whose primary function is to store and retrieve data as requested by other software applications, be it those on the same computer or those running on another computer across a network...
and Windows Search
Windows Search
Windows Search is an indexed desktop search platform released by Microsoft for the Windows operating system....
as well. The data sources that are to be indexed are identified by their URI
Úri
Úriis a village and commune in the comitatus of Pest in Hungary....
s and have to be configured prior to indexing. The indexer updates the search index as soon as an item is indexed (continuous propagation) so that the items can be queried against even before the indexing crawl is complete. MSS can also federate searches to other search services (including SharePoint and web search servers) that support the OpenSearch
OpenSearch
OpenSearch is a collection of technologies that allow publishing of search results in a format suitable for syndication and aggregation. It is a way for websites and search engines to publish search results in a standard and accessible format....
protocol. Federated locations can be serialized
Serialization
In computer science, in the context of data storage and transmission, serialization is the process of converting a data structure or object state into a format that can be stored and "resurrected" later in the same or another computer environment...
to a
.fld file.The administration UI, which is also presented as a web application, can be used to review statistics such as most frequent queries, top destination hits, click through rates etc., as well as fine tune relevancy settings, indexing policies (including inclusion and exclusion filters) and schedules, and set up a cluster of the servers. It can also be used to back up either the configuration state or the search indices. ACL
Access control list
An access control list , with respect to a computer file system, is a list of permissions attached to an object. An ACL specifies which users or system processes are granted access to objects, as well as what operations are allowed on given objects. Each entry in a typical ACL specifies a subject...
s can also be defined to limit the search result according to the rights of the user initiating the query.