Search Filters

Overview

Search filters are the most flexible way to search through large amounts of data by creating and editing search conditions.

This page is intended to explain the basics of the Matrix42 platform search filters and how any user who wants faster access to specific information can benefit from it.

Any user of the Matrix42 platform, would it be end-users, application administrators or any other person who has access the application can create, run, save and reuse the search filters.

At the same time, search filters are not intended to substitute the other provided by default search options of the Matrix42 platform.

Search options can be conventionally classified as:

simple search has a set of forms that a user fills in, such as global search, keyword search on particular pages or through columns with specific data where the page layout is based on the Dataset View;
advanced search or the search filters.

The search filters are yet another search option, which additionally provides numerous opportunities for:

All users:

configuring advanced search criteria;
creating simple queries with provided in the application hints;
immediately retrieving results;
saving and reusing search filters;
providing quick access to the filters right from the application's navigation;

Application Administrators:

creating, managing and sharing search filter settings to other users;
mastering data queries by creating complex conditions defined as ASQL expressions in the search filters.

Instant data filtering

The main purpose of the advanced search is data filtering and instant retrieval of the results. Filtering criteria may include a number of complex conditions manually defined by a user. Search filter query can be:

run and tested immediately;
saved and reused as a part of the application navigation (locally, for the current user) or shared with other users of the application (globally, by an Administrator).

Search Filters list

A Search Filter is an object that allows users to define search criteria for Dataset Views and then use these predefined criteria in corresponding Advanced Searches, where users can run any combination of previously created and editable Search Filters.

You can view available Search Filters at:

Administration application→ User Interface → Search Filters page with available search filters for all applications. You can access this page provided you have the required permissions.
Any application of the Matrix42 platform:
- a page with a Dataset View layout → advanced search icon → Queries tab lists all available for the Dataset View queries;
- Navigation: users can also choose to display Search Filters in Navigation for easy access. Shown in Navigation search filters are marked with icon:
- Query filter icon lists all search filters that are available for the current Dataset View but are not displayed in the navigation and don't have a icon in a list of all search queries:

Creating Search Filters

You can create and reuse Search Filters from:

the User Interface of any application via:
- Customize Navigation option;
- Advanced Search;
Administration application from the:
- User interface menu → Search Filters page;
- User interface menu → Layouts → Dataset Views settings → Filters tab.

User interface

To create a Search Filter for a specific page from the User Interface:

Customize Navigation: right-click the Navigation Item → Customize Navigation Item → click Add Child Filter icon;
Advanced Search: on any page that has advanced search icon open Search tab → set a necessary condition and click Save:

Fill out the following fields:

Create a search filter example	Field	Description
	Title*	name of the search filter. Required field. This title is displayed in the application's navigation if enabled.
	Description	optional field that characterizes the search filters and describes their purpose.
	Position	when the search filters are enabled in the application's navigation you may need to reorder their displaying position. Specify an integer to change the position of the search filters placed on the same nesting level of the navigation items hierarchy. Skip the field and the position will be assigned automatically.
	Apply parent filters for all nested items	This option is available just for root-parent queries. disabled (default): specified filter conditions in the query will not affect nested navigation filter items; enabled: all nested items will use all parent filters by chain as well. There is no way to differentiate this logic in the same chain with the same root-parent.
	Show query in Navigation	enabled (default): created search filter is available in the list of the Advanced search filters and additionally displayed in the application's navigation, although technically it remains a search filter even though it is listed along with the other navigation items. This option is default enabled and cannot be edited if the child filter is added from the Customize Navigation. disabled: created filter is available in the list of the Advanced search filters only.
	Set as default filter for navigation item	disabled (default): created search filter is available in the list of the Advanced search filters and can be applied to the Navigation Item's data manually. enabled: when the user clicks on the corresponding navigation item this search filter is applied by default. Click one more time on the Navigation Item to see results without the default filtering. not available: this option is possible when the search filter is a part of a navigation item that ready has a default search filter, either assigned by the user or by the Administrator of the Application. Search filter can also be assigned as default by an Administrator user while configuring a Navigation Item.
	Specify Query conditions*	specify data filtering conditions in the provided query builder.

Click Save or Done to apply changes.

Created search filters are not available for all users of the application by default.

End-user: creates and applies search filter settings locally. No other user has access to them, except for the application Administrator.
Administrator: creates search filters locally, for displaying only in his/her user account. Additionally, the Administrator can share access to any filters created by any user of the system globally, for the entire application, user roles, user groups, etc. When a filter owner deletes the search filter it is deleted for everyone who had shared access to this filter.

Advanced options

Administrator only can see the list of advanced search filter settings by clicking More button:

Administration

To create a Search Filter from the Search Filters grid go to Administration application→ User Interface → Search Filters → Add Data Query Filter and fill out the following fields:

The set of fields and settings is mostly the same as in the User Interface.

Additional settings are:

Setting	Description
Dataset View	Choose a page layout of Dataset View type for which you would like to create a Search Filter. Start typing the name of the Dataset View for suggestions of the layout and application where it is used. The User Interface does not require this field as the Dataset View is automatically detected by the system based on the page you have opened.
Data Query	Data Query is automatically detected and assigned based on the selected Dataset View. Data Query pre-defines a set of fields that can be queried by the search filter.
Use as Quick Filter	checkbox options: disabled (default): skip this setting if you are configuring a search filter; enabled: select the Use as Quick Filter check box to create a Quick Filter.
Filters	click ADD ITEM and specify the Name, Description, Position, and query conditions for the Search Filter.

Click DONE to save the changes and close the page.

At this stage, the search filter is not available anywhere except for the Administration application Search Filters list.

Set audience by default is set to restricted and therefore the search filter is not visible in the advanced search tab or in the Navigation even if its display is enabled.

Localization

The Data Query Filter dialog does not support the localization of the Filters in the "Localization Mode". The localizing of the Filters can be fulfilled in the "Administration / User Interface / Localization" area. To show only the Data Query Filter in the grid, filter the Localization string Context to "PDRDataQueryClassFilter : Name"

Specifying search query conditions

Basic terms and principles

Search filters are based on queries or questions with one or multiple conditions expressed in a formal way. Search filters allow users to create complex questions and as a result, retrieve more specific information that meets their goals and facilitates their day-to-day work in the Matrix42 applications.

A query has the following parts:

Field: a specific type of information which serves as a source of the data that will be searched through. In a technical sense, this information is an attribute or the column name of a database table, for example, user id, incident summary, service description etc. Displayed in the drop-down list fields are pre-defined by the corresponding to the current layout Data Query. Only columns with the Search Display Type option set to "Yes" are available.
Value: the actual data or an equivalent of the search keyword you are looking for in the filtered data. Value may also be pre-defined according to the selected field type (e.g. true/false) or may require manual data input;
Operator: a reserved word that is used to perform the comparison, arithmetical or logical operations and relate the selected field to a specified value. Common operators include equals, not equals, is set, contains, less than, etc. and are auto-suggested.

Query builder of the advanced search provides hints with all available for the selected field operators.
Condition: query builder provides AND condition and OR condition which can be combined in Group and used to filter records based on more than one condition. When combining conditions Group acts just as parentheses in maths so that the database knows in what order to evaluate each condition.

Editing search filter query conditions in the User Interface

Add as many conditions to the new Search Filter as you need and click Save.

You can add and set up as many Search Filters for the same Dataset View as you need.

Operators in Search Filters

Advanced options: Expressions

Advanced Users have the option to create a Search Filter based on the Expression condition, where they can provide any ASQL based query.

This option allows creating complex queries and is available for Administrators only.

So the Expression field takes an ASQL query as its value as follows:

Description of an entered query is required as the value, in this case, may nor be self-descriptive as in the other set of fields provided for a Dataset Query.

Attribute-based operators

When a user selects one of the suggested fields, the available operators are automatically provided based on the type of the selected data attribute:

So depending on the field the user selects in condition picker, different operators are available:

Field/ attribute type	Available operators
Date time	Between: date&time picker defining the beginning and the end of the required time span; Floating Date: usually refers to a range of possible time values that share a specific relationship to the defined moment in time that the floating value represents, for example, filtering data that has been created during the last 24 hours; Not Set: dates which are not defined will be matched; Is Set: dates which are defined will be matched;
Pickup	IN Not IN
Text	Contains Not Contains Equals Not Equals Starts With Ends With Not Set (texts which are not defined or empty will be matched) Is Set (texts which are defined and not empty will be matched)
Relation
Boolean	True False

Search Filters In Navigation

Displaying in Navigation

To add a Search Filter to Navigation enable Show in Navigation check-box of the Search filter settings.

Assigning default search filters

Use the Set as default filter for Navigation item property setting to change the application's navigation.

Using Search Filters

Instant advanced search

Specify conditions and Run the Search Filter from the Advanced Search panel to instantly retrieve the results, without having to save and configure the search filter additional properties:

Advanced Search Queries

To use Search Filters in Advanced Search:

Open the corresponding Dataset View;
Click the Advanced Search icon;
Queries tab lists all the previously created Search Filters.
Click the Run Query button to instantly retrieve the results:

Query Filter

Search filters which are available for the current Dataset view but not shown in the application's navigation can be applied via Query filter icon:

Navigation

Some of the search filters are displayed in the application's navigation. The filter is applied automatically when you click on it: