Search Function in Confluence Not working
Asked by Glenn Price:

Hi,

not sure if someone can help. We have an interesting issue for some of our users whereby the search function doesn't work for them - using at least 3 or four particular words. I have ran a re-index and logging in with my admin account it works fine across the board. I asked them to try a different browser on the off chance it was that but no luck.

Anyone have any suggestions for how to fix it?

Glenn


Answers:
author: waldorfmp
body: Hi Glenn,

I share in your frustration and am equally baffled by the issues you're facing. I've been trying to find a solution to a similar problem for some time now. As I've been exploring various platforms, it's clear that this issue with the search functionality, particularly when trying to search for keywords containing symbols like underscores or dashes (e.g., 'proj-launch' or 'kpc_media'), is a recurring theme. It's been a repetitive cycle of the same issues and similar posts. Having scoured forums, community threads, and various resources, I have finally found a workaround that might just be the solution we need. It involves an application called the [Okami ChatGPT](https://marketplace.atlassian.com/apps/1230358/kami?hosting=cloud&tab=overview) app. The remarkable thing about this app is that it has no issues parsing keywords with different symbols, be it underscores, dashes, or even special characters.

However, I would like to stress that this app, despite its usefulness, is not a standalone solution. It still heavily relies on the core Confluence indexing system, suggesting the root of the problem lies therein. I am hopeful that this matter will be duly addressed and rectified soon.

This has been my journey so far and it's the only solution I've managed to uncover amidst a sea of repetitive issues and posts. If you'd like to know more about the specifics, I'd recommend this comprehensive [article](https://medium.com/@mushons/playing-hide-and-seek-with-confluence-why-its-search-sucks-and-okamis-chatgpt-solution-b9565b7786ba) I came across during my search.

goodluck I guess :) Waldorf


author: Glenn Price
body: Permissions look ok, I can't see this causing an issue no to bring back any results unless they are not logged in.

![Confluence Permissions.JPG](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/22188iE046928754066EDF/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "Confluence Permissions.JPG")

comments: author: Thomas Schlegel
body: I will point other champions to your question. Maybe they have another idea.


author: Thomas Schlegel
body: Another idea from [@Sloan N_ B_](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/316409) - Recreate the index from scratch as described here:

<https://confluence.atlassian.com/confkb/how-to-rebuild-the-content-indexes-from-scratch-on-confluence-server-110035351.html>


author: Glenn Price
body: Yes,

one person gets the following:

![Search Error.JPG](https://community.atlassian.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/22086i5FCA5227684B7B8D/image-size/large?v=v2&px=999 "Search Error.JPG")

comments: author: Thomas Schlegel
body: And there is a starlight page and the user has the permission to view the page?

Maybe a dumb answer, but: is the user logged in?


author: Glenn Price
body: So no restrictions on that page, and yes it does exist. I'll double check to make sure the user is logged in.

Glenn


author: Glenn Price
body: Yes both users are logged in.


author: Thomas Schlegel
body: Have you also checked the space permissions for the users? You only mentioned, you checked the restrictions on the page.


author: Thomas Schlegel
body: Hi [@Glenn Price](/t5/user/viewprofilepage/user-id/1137395),

what does not work? Do they get any error messages?


Tags: confluence-server

server