Working With Microsoft FAST Search

Part 2a: Create a Collection for the Content Source

Before creating the FAST Search Connector, create a collection for the Ektron content source. The collection lets you clear only Ektron content from the index. To learn more, see Manage content collections (FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint).

1. On the Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 server, go to Start > All Programs.
2. Right click Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint and click Run as Administrator. A PowerShell window for managing Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 appears.
   —Image—

   

3. Enter the following command:
New-FastSearchContentCollection –Name ektroncms –Pipeline ”Office14 (webcluster)”

   NOTE: * The Name is the new collection name.
   * Surround the Pipeline name in quotes (as shown above).
   * Surround webcluster with curly brackets ().
   * See Also: New-FASTSearchContentCollection
   

Part 2b: Create a FAST Search Connector Service Application for Crawling Content

1. Open SharePoint 2010 Central Administration home page.
2. Under Application Management, click Manage Service Applications.
3. On the Manage Service Applications page, click New > Search Service Application.
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4. Complete the screen.

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   • Name—Enter a unique name for this application.
   • Fast Service Application—Select Fast Search Connector.
   • Search Service Account—Click Register new managed account to create a new account for this search service.
   • Application Pool for Search Admin Web Service—Select Create new application pool and enter a name. Under Select a security account, select Configurable and select the account under which the SharePoint search service is running. You created this account in Part 1: Install SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
   • Content Distributors—On the Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 server, open the %FASTSEARCH%\Install_Info.txt file. Copy the value of Content Distributors (for GUI SSA creation) to this field.
     —Example—

     ===============================================================
     FASTSearch: Installation Details
     ===============================================================
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     FAST Search Query Search Service Application configuration
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     Query Service Location HTTP (default): 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13287
     Query Service Location HTTPS:
       https://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13286
     Administration Service Location HTTP (default): 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13257
     Administration Service Location HTTPS: 
       https://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:1325
     8Resource Store Location: 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13255
     Account for Administration Service: 
       fsqa\fsuser
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     FAST Search Content Search Service Application configuration
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     Content Distributors (for PowerShell SSA creation): 
       ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13391
     Content Distributors (for GUI SSA creation): 
       ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13391
     Default Content Collection Name: sp
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     Other services.....

     NOTE: Keep the Install_Info.txt file open—you need it in Part 2d: Create a Search Service Application for Querying.

   • Content Collection Name—Enter the name you entered for the Name parameter in Part 2a: Create a Collection for the Content Source.

Part 2c: Set up SSL-Enabled Communication

To authorize SSLSecure Sockets Layer (https) communication between SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010: Source: Create and set up the Content Search Service Application (FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint)

Prerequisite

You need the password you supplied when setting up Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.

1. Log on to the Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 server.
2. Open \FASTSearch\installer\scripts.
3. Copy securefastsearchconnector.ps1 to any folder on the SharePoint server.
4. Open \FASTSearch\data\data_security\cert.
5. Copy FASTSearchCert.pfx to any folder on the SharePoint server.
6. Log onto the SharePoint server.
7. Open a Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Management Shell using Start >All Programs > Microsoft SharePoint 2010 Products.
8. Right click SharePoint 2010 Management Shell and click Run as Administrator.
9. Navigate to the directory to which you copied the securefastsearchconnector.ps1 script in Step 3.
10. Run the script, replacing parameters with your environment's values. For example:

    .\SecureFASTSearchConnector.ps1 
      –certPath "path of the certificate\FASTSearchCert.pfx" 
      –ssaName "name of your content SSA" 
      –username “domain\username”

    Replace the following parameter values:

    • certPath—the folder path to which you copied the certificate in Step 5.
    • ssaName—the Name you assigned to your FAST Search Connector service application in Part 2b: Create a FAST Search Connector Service Application for Crawling Content.
    • username—the domain and username under which the SharePoint 2010 service runs. You set up this account in Part 1: Install SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
11. When prompted to enter a certificate password, enter the password you supplied when you ran the post-setup configuration of Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.

Part 2d: Create a Search Service Application for Querying

(Source: Create and set up the Query Search Service Application (FAST Search Server 2010 for SharePoint))

1. Open the SharePoint 2010 Central Administration home page.
2. Under Application Management, click Manage Service Applications.
3. On the Manage Service Applications page, click New > Search Service Application.
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4. Complete the screen.
   —Image—

   

   • Name—Enter a unique name for this application.
   • Fast Service Application—Select Fast Search Query.
   • Search Service Account—Click Register new managed account to create a new account for this search service.
   • Application Pool for Search Admin Web Service—Select Create new application pool and enter a name, such as EktQueryAdmin. Under Select a security account, select Configurable and select the account under which the SharePoint search service is running. The application pool must run in the context of a FAST Search administrator.
   • Application Pool for Search Query and Site Settings Web Service—Select Create new application pool and enter a name, such as EktQuerySettings. Under Select a security account, select Configurable and select the account under which the SharePoint search service is running.The application pool must run in the context of a FAST Search administrator.
   • Query Service Location—Open the %FASTSEARCH%\Install_Info.txt file to obtain the value for this field. (See example below.) Use the HTTPS value if you want to use secure communications between the SharePoint 2011 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 servers.
     —Example—

     ===============================================================
     FASTSearch: Installation Details
     ===============================================================
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     FAST Search Query Search Service Application configuration
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     Query Service Location HTTP (default): 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13287
     Query Service Location HTTPS: 
       https://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13286
     Administration Service Location HTTP (default): 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13257
     Administration Service Location HTTPS: 
       https://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13258
     Resource Store Location: 
       http://ektsqa20.fsqa.ektron.com:13255
     Account for Administration Service: 
       fsqa\fsuser
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     FAST Search Content Search Service Application configuration
     ---------------------------------------------------------------
     Content Distri.......
     ---------------------------------------------------------------

   • Administration Service Location—Obtain the value for this field from %FASTSEARCH%\Install_Info.txt. (See example above.) Use the HTTPS value if you want to use secure communications between the SharePoint 2011 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 servers.
   • Resource Store Location—Obtain the value for this field from %FASTSEARCH%\Install_Info.txt. (See example above.)
   • Account for Administration Service—specify a domain account for a user who is a member of the FAST Search Administrators group on the Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 server.

5. You see a confirmation that a new Query Search service application is created.

Part 6a: Set up the Ektron Search Connection on the SharePoint Server

EktronSearchConfiguration.exe enables communications between your site and the FAST search service.

1. From the Ektron server, copy the following file to any folder on the SharePoint server.

   %SystemDrive%\Program Files (x86)\Ektron\Utilities\SearchServer
     \EktronSearchConfiguration.exe

2. From the SharePoint folder, run the file.

Part 6b: Set Credentials for the Ektron Search Server Service

1. On the SharePoint server, open the Windows Services control panel.
2. Right click Ektron Search Server Service.
3. Click Properties.
4. Select the Log On tab.
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5. Select This account.
6. Enter the credentials of the user under whom the SharePoint Server Search service runs. You created this user in Part 1: Install SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
7. Click OK.
8. Restart the Ektron Search Server Service.

Part 6c: Run the Ektron Search Configuration Utility

1. Log on to the Ektron server as an administrator.
2. Click the Windows Start menu > All Programs > Ektron > CMS400vreleasenumber > Utilities > Search Config. The Step 1 configuration screen appears.
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3. Enter the Ektron server name.
4. Enter the SharePoint Administration URL. See Also: Logging into Ektron's Search Configuration Screen
5. Click Next. The Step 2 configuration screen appears.
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6. At the Content Service Application field, select the application you created in Part 2b: Create a FAST Search Connector Service Application for Crawling Content.
7. At the Query Service Application field, select the application you created in Part 2d: Create a Search Service Application for Querying.
8. Click Next. The Ektron Search Configuration screen appears. For documentation, see Updating the Site Registration Panel.
9. When you complete the screen, click Register Site. Progress appears in a window.
   —Image—

   

   During this process, the FAST search index is populated with your data, and the schema is modified to include your site’s searchable properties. This process can be lengthy when registering a site for the first time. You can monitor these activities in the Workarea. See Also: Setting Up Microsoft Search Server 2010

Part 7a: Update web.config with Query Service Application

1. On the SharePoint server, navigate to %CommonProgramFiles%\Microsoft Shared\Web Server Extensions\14\ISAPI\EktronWebService.
2. Open the web.config file.
3. Find the following entry: <add key="QuerySSA" value="FAST Query SSA" />
4. Replace the value property with the name of the Query Service application you entered in Part 2d: Create a Search Service Application for Querying. To continue that example, the line would look like this: <add key="QuerySSA" value="EktQuery" />
5. Restart the Ektron search site application pool. See Also: Start or Stop an Application Pool (IIS 7)

Part 7b: Set FAST Search Query as Default Search Service Application

1. Open the SharePoint 2010 Central Administration Page.
2. Navigate to Application Management >Service Applications > Configure service application associations.
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3. Under Web Application, click SharePoint-80. The Configure Service Application screen appears.
4. If EKTQUERYSSA is the default, exit the screen. Otherwise, click the Edit the following group of connections pulldown and choose [custom]. The screen refreshes and the check boxes are active.
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5. Check EKTQUERYSSA[default] then click OK.

Creating Facets

1. Create searchable Ektron metadata definitions. See Also: Creating and Deploying a Search Tag Definition.

   IMPORTANT: Carefully plan capitalization, spelling, spacing, and so on of metadata definitions for Faceted Search. Minor inconsistencies can result in duplicate entries, as shown below.
   

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2. Apply metadata values to appropriate content.
3. Run a full crawl. The metadata become managed properties within Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
4. Update search server controls to look for the metadata/managed property. They appear as selectors on your search results page.
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Creating a Faceted Search

1. Create a metadata definition in the Workarea. See Working with Metadata. This example uses a text metadata definition called region.
2. Apply the new metadata definition to a folder. See Assigning Metadata to a Folder.
3. Within that folder, apply the new metadata definition to appropriate content. See Adding Metadata to Content
4. Sign on to Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
5. Navigate to Search Central Administrator > Manage Service Applications > click the query content source > Fast Search Administration > Managed Properties.
6. In the Search field, enter emt followed by the metadata definition you created in Step 1. To continue the example, enter emtregion.

   NOTE: You enter emt because this is a text-style metadata definition. Use these prefixes for other styles.

   Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 prefixes for Ektron metadata definition styles:

   • Text, select from list, multiple selections—emt
   • Integer and number—emi
   • Boolean—emb
   • Date—emd
   • Double— emf
   • If the content is an XML Smart Form, use these prefixes instead:
     • Text, select from list, multiple selections—est
     • Integer and number—esi
     • Boolean—esb
     • Date—esd
     • Double—esf
7. Click the metadata definition/managed property.
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8. Scroll down to Refiner Property.
9. Check it and the Deep Refiner box.
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10. Complete Steps 1 through 9 for all metadata definitions that you want to add.
11. Run a full crawl. See Events that Start a Full Crawl.
12. To enable a search server control to display a metadata selector, modify the SearchController control using a <Refiners> tag as shown. The tag references the managed property name, emtregion in our example.
    

    <ektron:SiteSearchController ID="controller" runat="server"> 
      <Refiners> 
        <ektron:Refiner Name="emtregion"/> 
      </Refiners> 
    </ektron:SiteSearchController> 
    <ektronUI:Pager runat="server" ResultsPerPage="50" 
      PageableControlID="controller" >
    </ektronUI:Pager>

    Here are sample search results. If you click a checkbox next to a region, the page refreshes and displays only content to which that metadata property is applied.

    —Image—

    

Increasing the Search Rank of a Content Item

Here is an overview of how to increase the search rank for selected content.

1. Create a metadata definition to define searchable properties.
2. Apply metadata values to selected content. When the content is crawled, the metadata values become managed properties in Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
3. Use Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 to create a Rank Profile. While defining the profile, you
   • list the metadata values/managed properties
   • modify the search rank of the managed properties, which in turn, modifies the search rank of content to which they are applied
4. Update a search server control or the API to use the rank in the search results algorithm.

Removing a Boost

1. Set a variable to the profile. Use the same profile name that you used in Part 1: Install SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.
   

   $rp = Get-FASTSearchMetadataRankProfile -name (your profile name)

2. Set to a variable the Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010 type and name of the metadata value used to increase search rank.
   

   $mp = Get-FASTSearchMetadataManagedProperty 
   -name Name (your managed property)

3. Set a variable for the boost you want to delete.
   The $_.BoostValue command has 2 parameters: string,int and boost number. Use the same values you used when creating the Rank Profile. See Part 1: Install SharePoint 2010 and Microsoft FAST Search Server 2010.

   $boost1 = $rp.GetManagedPropertyBoosts() 
     | Where-Object{$_.BoostValue -like '*(string/int),(boost number)*'}

4. Delete the boost.
   

   $boost1.Delete()

5. Update your profile.
   

   $rp.Update()

   Here’s an example:

   $rp = Get-FASTSearchMetadataRankProfile -name departments
   $mp = Get-FASTSearchMetadataManagedProperty -name emtadmissions
   $boost1 = $rp.GetManagedPropertyBoosts() 
     | Where-Object{$_.BoostValue –like '*admissions,20000*'}
   $boost1.Delete()
   $rp.Update()
   

Viewing all Boosts

Run this query: $rp.GetManagedPropertyBoosts()

Troubleshooting Boosts

• Problem: The boost does not affect search results
• Solution: Verify that the FreshnessResolution is set to second. See Also: Change the freshness resolution and weight by using Windows PowerShell