Using the Search service

This topic provides instructions for using the search service.

To enter a search query

Search queries are entered by using the Enter Generic Query page.

1. Click the Search icon to the left of the Search box at the top right of the UI.
   The Search Options in the drop down panel are displayed.
2. Click the Generic Search Query link.
3. Enter the query in the text entry field.
4. Click Run Query.
   The results are displayed in a report.
   • To export the results in a comma separated values (CSV) file, click Export (CSV).
   • To export the results in an XML file, click Export (XML).
   • In each case, a download dialog is displayed.
5. Save the file to your local file system.
   If you have entered queries before, a list of the your recent queries is provided below the text entry box.
   • Click on a link to fill in the text entry field so the query can be edited or run.
   • If a previous query link is bookmarked (by right-clicking or dragging to a bookmark bar in your browser), it acts as a bookmarklet. Selecting the bookmark while viewing any BMC Discovery UI page runs the query on that BMC Discovery instance. You can bookmark a query on one BMC Discovery instance and run it on another one.

To view current searches

You can view all searches and reports that are currently in progress on the appliance. To do this, From the main menu, click the Administration icon. The Administration page displays. From the Model section, click Search Management.

The Search Management page shows the searches and reports that are currently in progress on the appliance, depending on the permissions that you have been assigned. A system user can see searches belonging to all users. A normal user can see just their own searches. This behavior is controlled by using the model/search/list and model/search/cancel permissions. See Search Permissions for more information.

The page shows searches from all sources, including those submitted through the Generic Query page, ones due to reports, and ones that are implicitly triggered while browsing in the UI. System users can also see searches performed by patterns, which are considered to belong to the Reasoning Subsystem user.

To cancel a search

The Search Management page lists any searches that you are permitted to view. Any search that you can cancel is shown with a Cancel button at the right hand side of its row. To cancel a search, click the Cancel button that corresponds to the search that you want to cancel.

When the search has been cancelled, the window in which the search was entered is refreshed with a Search Cancelled message.

You can also cancel a search that you have just started by navigating away from the search-in-progress spinner.

Related topics

• Using the Search and Reporting service

• Context-sensitive reporting and linking