Best Practices - Module 4: Simple Queries¶

Query Construction Best Practices¶

Query Design Principles¶

Start Simple: Begin with basic queries and add complexity gradually
Be Specific: Use targeted fields rather than searching all fields when possible
User Intent: Design queries to match user search intent and behavior
Performance First: Consider performance implications of query choices

Query Syntax Guidelines¶

Consistent Syntax: Use consistent query syntax throughout your application
Escape Special Characters: Properly escape special characters in user input
Validate Input: Always validate and sanitize user input before querying
Error Handling: Implement robust error handling for malformed queries

Field Selection Strategy¶

// Good: Specific field targeting
{
  search: "luxury hotel",
  searchFields: "title,description",
  select: "id,title,rating,price"
}

// Avoid: Searching all fields unnecessarily
{
  search: "luxury hotel"
  // This searches all searchable fields
}

Performance Optimization¶

Query Efficiency¶

Limit Result Sets: Use appropriate top values to limit result sizes
Field Selection: Only retrieve fields you actually need
Avoid Wildcards: Minimize use of leading wildcards (e.g., *term)
Cache Results: Implement caching for frequently executed queries

Search Mode Selection¶

// For broad matching (default)
{
  search: "luxury hotel",
  searchMode: "any"  // Matches documents with "luxury" OR "hotel"
}

// For precise matching
{
  search: "luxury hotel",
  searchMode: "all"  // Matches documents with "luxury" AND "hotel"
}

Resource Management¶

Connection Pooling: Use connection pooling for better resource utilization
Batch Operations: Group related queries when possible
Monitor Usage: Track query patterns and optimize accordingly
Rate Limiting: Implement appropriate rate limiting for user queries

User Experience Best Practices¶

Search Interface Design¶

Progressive Enhancement: Start with basic search and add advanced features
Clear Feedback: Provide clear feedback for search operations
Loading States: Show loading indicators for search operations
Error Messages: Display helpful error messages for failed searches

Result Presentation¶

// Good: Optimized result presentation
{
  search: "hotel",
  highlight: "title,description",
  select: "id,title,description,rating,price,location",
  top: 20,
  count: true
}

Search Suggestions¶

Autocomplete: Implement autocomplete for better user experience
Spell Correction: Provide spell correction suggestions
Query Suggestions: Offer related query suggestions
No Results Handling: Provide helpful alternatives when no results are found

Query Types and When to Use Them¶

Simple Query Syntax (Default)¶

Best for: - Basic keyword searches - User-friendly search boxes - Most common search scenarios

{
  search: "luxury hotel seattle",
  queryType: "simple"  // Default
}

Full Lucene Syntax¶

Best for: - Advanced search features - Complex boolean logic - Proximity searches - Wildcard and fuzzy searches

{
  search: "title:(luxury AND hotel) OR description:resort",
  queryType: "full"
}

Boolean Logic Best Practices¶

Operator Usage¶

// Clear boolean logic
{
  search: "hotel AND (luxury OR premium) NOT budget",
  queryType: "full"
}

// Grouped conditions
{
  search: "(title:hotel OR title:resort) AND rating:[4 TO 5]",
  queryType: "full"
}

Precedence and Grouping¶

Use Parentheses: Always use parentheses to make precedence clear
Logical Grouping: Group related conditions together
Avoid Complexity: Keep boolean expressions as simple as possible
Test Thoroughly: Test complex boolean queries with various data scenarios

Field-Specific Search Strategies¶

Single Field Searches¶

// Searching specific fields
{
  search: "luxury",
  searchFields: "title",  // Only search in title field
  select: "id,title,description"
}

Multi-Field Searches with Weighting¶

// Weighted field searches (using scoring profiles)
{
  search: "hotel",
  searchFields: "title^3,description^1,tags^2",  // Title has 3x weight
  scoringProfile: "titleBoost"
}

Field-Specific Boosting¶

Title Fields: Typically get higher weight for relevance
Content Fields: Standard weight for main content
Metadata Fields: Lower weight for supplementary information
Tag Fields: Medium weight for categorization

Fuzzy and Wildcard Search Guidelines¶

Fuzzy Search Best Practices¶

// Fuzzy search for typo tolerance
{
  search: "hotel~1",  // Allow 1 character difference
  queryType: "full"
}

// Fuzzy search with distance control
{
  search: "seattle~2",  // Allow up to 2 character differences
  queryType: "full"
}

Wildcard Search Guidelines¶

Avoid Leading Wildcards: *term is slower than term*
Use Sparingly: Wildcards can impact performance
Combine Wisely: Combine with other query techniques
Test Performance: Always test wildcard queries under load

// Good: Trailing wildcard
{
  search: "hotel*",
  queryType: "full"
}

// Avoid: Leading wildcard (slower)
{
  search: "*otel",
  queryType: "full"
}

Result Optimization¶

Hit Highlighting¶

// Effective hit highlighting
{
  search: "luxury hotel",
  highlight: "title,description",
  highlightPreTag: "<mark>",
  highlightPostTag: "</mark>"
}

Field Selection Optimization¶

// Optimized field selection
{
  search: "hotel",
  select: "id,title,rating,price",  // Only necessary fields
  top: 20,  // Reasonable page size
  count: true  // Include total count when needed
}

Pagination Strategy¶

Reasonable Page Sizes: Use 10-50 results per page typically
Skip Limitations: Be aware of skip limitations for deep pagination
Alternative Approaches: Consider search-after pattern for large datasets
User Experience: Provide clear pagination controls

Error Handling and Resilience¶

Query Validation¶

function validateQuery(query) {
  // Check for empty queries
  if (!query || query.trim().length === 0) {
    throw new Error("Query cannot be empty");
  }

  // Check for excessively long queries
  if (query.length > 1000) {
    throw new Error("Query too long");
  }

  // Sanitize special characters if needed
  return sanitizeQuery(query);
}

Error Recovery¶

Graceful Degradation: Provide fallback search options
User Feedback: Give clear error messages to users
Retry Logic: Implement appropriate retry mechanisms
Logging: Log errors for debugging and monitoring

Timeout Handling¶

// Implement query timeouts
const searchWithTimeout = async (query, timeout = 5000) => {
  const controller = new AbortController();
  const timeoutId = setTimeout(() => controller.abort(), timeout);

  try {
    const results = await searchClient.search(query, {
      signal: controller.signal
    });
    clearTimeout(timeoutId);
    return results;
  } catch (error) {
    clearTimeout(timeoutId);
    if (error.name === 'AbortError') {
      throw new Error('Search request timed out');
    }
    throw error;
  }
};

Security Best Practices¶

Input Sanitization¶

Validate Input: Always validate user input before processing
Escape Characters: Properly escape special characters
Length Limits: Implement reasonable query length limits
Rate Limiting: Prevent abuse with rate limiting

Access Control¶

Authentication: Ensure proper authentication for search operations
Authorization: Implement appropriate authorization checks
API Keys: Secure API keys and rotate them regularly
Audit Logging: Log search operations for security monitoring

Monitoring and Analytics¶

Query Performance Monitoring¶

// Monitor query performance
const monitoredSearch = async (query) => {
  const startTime = Date.now();

  try {
    const results = await searchClient.search(query);
    const duration = Date.now() - startTime;

    // Log performance metrics
    logMetrics({
      query: query.search,
      duration,
      resultCount: results.length,
      success: true
    });

    return results;
  } catch (error) {
    const duration = Date.now() - startTime;

    logMetrics({
      query: query.search,
      duration,
      error: error.message,
      success: false
    });

    throw error;
  }
};

Usage Analytics¶

Query Patterns: Track common query patterns
Performance Metrics: Monitor response times and success rates
User Behavior: Analyze user search behavior
Result Quality: Track result click-through rates

Testing Strategies¶

Unit Testing¶

// Test query construction
describe('Query Construction', () => {
  test('should build basic search query', () => {
    const query = buildSearchQuery('hotel', { top: 10 });
    expect(query.search).toBe('hotel');
    expect(query.top).toBe(10);
  });

  test('should handle special characters', () => {
    const query = buildSearchQuery('hotel & spa');
    expect(query.search).toBe('hotel \\& spa');
  });
});

Integration Testing¶

End-to-End Tests: Test complete search workflows
Performance Tests: Test under realistic load conditions
Error Scenarios: Test error handling and recovery
Cross-Browser Tests: Ensure compatibility across browsers

A/B Testing¶

Query Variations: Test different query approaches
Result Presentation: Test different result formats
User Interface: Test different search interfaces
Performance Impact: Measure impact of changes

Common Anti-Patterns to Avoid¶

Query Construction Anti-Patterns¶

❌ Overly Complex Queries: Avoid unnecessarily complex boolean logic
❌ Unescaped Input: Never use raw user input without sanitization
❌ Hardcoded Values: Avoid hardcoding search parameters
❌ Ignoring Performance: Don't ignore query performance implications

Result Handling Anti-Patterns¶

❌ Loading All Results: Don't load all results at once for large datasets
❌ Ignoring Errors: Always handle search errors gracefully
❌ Poor Pagination: Avoid inefficient pagination strategies
❌ No Caching: Don't ignore caching opportunities

User Experience Anti-Patterns¶

❌ No Feedback: Don't leave users without search feedback
❌ Poor Error Messages: Avoid cryptic error messages
❌ Slow Responses: Don't ignore search performance
❌ No Fallbacks: Always provide fallback options

Checklist for Production Readiness¶

Query Implementation¶

[ ] Input validation and sanitization implemented
[ ] Appropriate query types selected for use cases
[ ] Error handling and recovery mechanisms in place
[ ] Performance optimization applied

User Experience¶

[ ] Clear search interface with appropriate feedback
[ ] Loading states and progress indicators
[ ] Helpful error messages and fallback options
[ ] Responsive design for different devices

Performance¶

[ ] Query performance optimized
[ ] Appropriate caching strategies implemented
[ ] Resource utilization monitored
[ ] Scalability considerations addressed

Security¶

[ ] Input validation and sanitization
[ ] Authentication and authorization
[ ] Rate limiting and abuse prevention
[ ] Audit logging and monitoring

Monitoring¶

[ ] Performance metrics collection
[ ] Error tracking and alerting
[ ] Usage analytics implementation
[ ] Regular performance reviews

By following these best practices, you'll create robust, performant, and user-friendly search experiences that scale with your needs and provide excellent search functionality for your users.