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Server Configuration

When to Use

Use this when creating or configuring a Search API server entity.

Decision

Property Config Key Purpose
Machine name id Unique identifier
Name name Human-readable label
Backend backend Backend plugin ID (search_api_db, search_api_solr, etc.)
Backend config backend_config Backend-specific settings
Status status Enabled/disabled

Pattern

Key server methods:

Method Purpose
getBackend() Get backend plugin instance
getBackendIfAvailable() Get backend safely (no exception)
getIndexes() Get all indexes using this server
isAvailable() Is the backend reachable?
supportsFeature($feature) Check backend capabilities

Database backend settings:

Setting Purpose
Matching mode "Whole words only" (faster) or "Partial matching"
Min chars for search Minimum characters for fulltext search

Solr backend settings:

Setting Purpose
Solr host/port/path Connection details
Core/collection name Solr core or collection
Authentication Basic auth, API keys, or none
Retrieve data from Solr Skip entity loads (index-only mode)
Highlighting Enable Solr-native highlighting

Common Mistakes

  • Wrong: Editing Solr config files directly → Right: Use search_api_solr_admin sub-module. Direct edits are overwritten on module updates.
  • Wrong: Partial matching on DB backend for large sites → Right: "Whole words only" is significantly faster. Only use partial if required.

See Also