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Typical tasks > Using search

# Using search

Service Request Catalog enables you to search across all catalogs and the Knowledge Base to find what you need. The results display on a dynamic Search Results page. Service Request Catalog classifies the results in general categories:

- Related Service Catalog items
- Related Support Catalog items
- Knowledge Base articles

Search Results will be divided in to different Catalogs. The Catalog attribute specifies the item shown in the search results. This value may be Service, Support, or Knowledge and you can use these to filter your results.

For example, to view search results for Knowledge Management, select Knowledge.

Search for an item

To search and view a Service item, a Support item, or a Knowledge article, follow these steps:

1. Type the search terms in the integrated Search Bar or the Search box and then press Enter. As you type, SRC will auto-suggest items that match your search terms.
2. When the search results are returned and the page loads, the search results are displayed in a list in the central portion of the screen. Select filters as appropriate for the item you are searching for. Similar items that belong to other categories will be shown on the right side of the screen under the corresponding header for that category.
3. Click an item to view the details for that item. After you view an item, you can click the Back to previous page button to return to the search results.

Your administrator configures the default results category that displays initially in the center pane.

## Search rules

- You can use the AND logical operator or the OR logical operator between search terms. Note that these boolean operators must be in capital letters and that you cannot combine the AND operators and the OR operators. See the following for examples of valid and invalid searches:
  - Valid Search: [Term1] AND [Term2] AND [Term3]
  - Valid Search: [Term1] OR [Term2] OR [Term3]
  - Invalid Search: [Term1] AND [Term2] OR[Term3]

  You can also use the question mark (?) character and the asterisk (*) character as wildcards. The question mark (?) represents any single character. The asterisk (*) represents zero or more characters. You can use double quotes to combine search terms into a specific phrase. For example, you would type "Inkjet printer" to obtain results that contain those two words together.

  Note: If you search for two words without using quotes, the search will be performed as if an OR operator was used (That is, Inkjet OR Printer).

Filter search results

The Search Results page organizes matches according to the source. There is a main panel in the center of the page and smaller panes on the right side. The left side panes enable you to control how you view the results. You make any panel the main panel by clicking:

- Service
- Support
- Knowledge

## Service Catalog results

You can filter Service catalog results using the tools on the left side of the main panel to narrow or expand the Service catalog results returned by the server.

The filter settings for Service items and a description of their function are summarized in the following tables.

Item type | Icon |
--- | --- | ---
Individual Items |  | Individual items are items that are not bundled together with other Catalog items.
Bundles |  | These items contain multiple sub-items, which may in turn contain other bundles or individual items.
Request Type | Icon |
Regular |  | Restrict the view to normal items only.
Info-Only |  | Restrict the view to Information-Only items.
Fast Track |  | Restrict the view to Fast Track items only. When these items are requested, they must be submitted directly. They cannot be ordered together with other items.

When you locate a item that you want to order, select it and then open it in a new browser tab or window.

## Support Catalog results

Support catalog results have no available filters. If you do not see a Support item that you need, you can click Request in the More Support area on the right.

## Knowledge Management results

When you select Knowledge, the main panel shows all results found in the knowledge base that you can narrow with the additional filters that you see on the left.

To search and view for a Knowledge article, follow these steps:

1. Type the search terms in the integrated Search Bar or the Search box and then press Enter.
2. When the search results are returned and the page loads, the search results are displayed in a list in the central portion of the screen. Select Knowledge from the Catalog box if it is not already selected.
3. To view an article, click the article you want from the center of your screen. This will open the article in a new browser window. When you view an article, you can click the Leave Comment button to add your comments on the article, or rate the article up or down.

Click All in any filter to see all related knowledge results. You can also narrow results by using the following options to filter search results:

Doc Type

The DocType attribute specifies the kind of document you wish to view. The demo data included with Service Manager provides samples, such as errormsg or howto among others. Other designations may exist depending on the content of your Service Manager Knowledge Management libraries.

Although an administrator can customize the types of documents that you see, the out-of-box filter settings are summarized in the following table.

Doc Type |
--- | ---
Error Message/Cause | Error conditions, causes, and possible solutions
External | Files added to the Knowledge Base by other users
Question/Answer | Frequently asked questions and answers
Problem/Solution | Reported problems and solutions
Reference | General reference information
Category* |
HR | Human Resources Documents
Service Manager Support Telecom Phone | Service Manager Documents
Knowledge Center | Resources from a Knowledge Base
Date |
All | Specifies all results.
Past Week | Specifies results only from the past day.
Past Month | Specifies results only from the past month.
Past Year | Specifies results only from the past year.

*The Category attribute further refines the type of document, based on the categories as specified in your Service Manager Knowledge Management libraries. These categories may also show hierarchies among the different documents. The demo data included with Service Manager provides samples, such as HR, Accounting, and Knowledge Center among others. Other designations may exist depending on the content of your Service Manager Knowledge Management libraries.

When you locate a knowledge article that you want to review, select it and it opens in a new browser tab or window.

Use the category browser

If you know the category that a Service or Support item belongs to, you can also use the category browser to locate that item. To do this, follow these steps:

1. Click the Services or Support button as appropriate, and then click Browse Catalog.
2. Expand the top level categories to locate the target category.
3. Expand that category to see the available sub-categories.
4. Choose a target sub-category to display the items in the category.
5. Click any item to see the item details.