Search Suggestions tables

  • Release version: Yokohama
  • Updated January 30, 2025
  • 5 minutes to read
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    Summary of Search Suggestions tables

    The Search Suggestions feature in ServiceNow utilizes several system tables to generate, track, and analyze relevant search suggestions within your instance. These tables help you understand user search behavior, the effectiveness of suggestions, and the sources of search results. By reviewing data in these tables, you can optimize search configurations to improve the accuracy and relevance of suggestions offered to your users.

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    Note that because these are system tables, they are excluded from the Reporting module by default. To enable reporting on these tables, you must configure your instance accordingly.

    Key Tables and Their Functions

    • Search Event [syssearchevent]: Records each search query entered by users along with details such as whether results were found, which result was clicked (click rank), user and application context, language, refinements made, and specific AI Search data including Genius Result configurations evaluated and displayed. This table helps you analyze overall search effectiveness and user engagement with search results.
    • Search Event per source [syssearchsourceevent]: Stores records correlating search queries with results from individual data sources (tables) queried during a search. This enables you to pinpoint which data sources are providing results or failing to do so, facilitating targeted improvements in content or indexing for specific sources.
    • Search Suggestion [syssearchsuggestion]: Contains auto-complete and search suggestions generated from user searches. Suggestions are segregated by application and user group, ensuring relevance and privacy between internal and external users. Suggestions are ranked by a score reflecting their popularity and relevance, allowing you to understand which suggestions best meet user needs and tailor the search experience accordingly.

    Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers

    • Gain visibility into how users interact with search, including what queries yield results and which results users select.
    • Identify gaps where searches return no results and take corrective action to improve content or suggestion generation.
    • Use detailed AI Search metrics to optimize Genius Result configurations and enhance AI-driven answer cards.
    • Improve search suggestion relevance by analyzing suggestion scores and restricting suggestions by application and user group.
    • Leverage source-specific data to ensure suggestions and results are contextually appropriate for each application (e.g., Service Portal vs. Now Mobile).

    Search Suggestions uses tables to generate and track relevant search suggestions. You can review data from these tables to gain insight into search suggestions offered in your system.

    Note:
    Because the Search Suggestions tables are system tables, they are excluded from the Reporting module by default. To learn about enabling reporting on system tables, see Reporting on system tables.

    Search Event table

    The Search Event [sys_search_event] table stores search strings and their search results.
    Table 1. sys_search_event table
    Column Description
    Search query Search string that the user entered.
    Has results Boolean value that specifies whether the search did (true) or didn't (false) return results. For all false values, consider adding information so that the same search would return suggestions in the future.
    Click rank Click rank shows which search result you selected. If you click the first result in the list of search results, the click rank value is 1. If you click the 6th result listed, the click rank value is 6. If you click multiple search results, the click rank is the highest listing value. For example, if you click the first result, return to the search page and click the 6th result, return to the search page and click the 4th result and find an answer, the click rank is 6 (not 4). A click rank of 0 means that you didn't select any search result, or that you selected a Genius Result answer card in AI Search. Lower positive click rank values indicate that the top search results are the most relevant, so the goal is to reduce the average value for this field.
    User User who performed the search.
    Application ID Application where the search feature was used, for example, you did a search in the Service Portal. See UI source.
    Language Language of the query. Search only returns results that are in the same language as the search query.
    Refinements Number of actions that you took to reduce the number of search results. Actions include sorting and filtering. The goal is to reduce this number.
    UI source Specific page (mobile) or page (portal) where the search query came from. See Application ID.
    Session ID of the session, which specifies when the search happened.
    AI Search Profile Name of the search profile used for the search. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.
    GR Configurations Executed Shows the list of Genius Result configurations that the system evaluated for the search. Genius Result configurations in this list may or may not have displayed answer cards for the search. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.
    Genius Result Displayed Shows whether or not any Genius Result answer cards were displayed for the search. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.
    GR Configurations with Result Displayed Shows the list of evaluated Genius Result configurations that displayed answer cards for the search. A Genius Result configuration can appear multiple times in this list if it displayed multiple answer cards for the search. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.
    Last Clicked Genius Result Position Shows which Genius Result answer card you selected an action from. If you select an action from the first displayed Genius Result answer card, the position value is 1. If you select an action from the third answer card, the value is 3. A value of 0 means that you didn't select actions from any Genius Result answer card. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.
    Genius Result Events JSON document showing details of actions you selected from Genius Result answer cards displayed for the search. Only applicable for searches made with the AI Search engine.

    Search Event per source table

    The Search Event per source [sys_search_source_event] table stores records correlating search strings with results from a specific table, here called a data source. A search can query multiple tables. The sys_search_event table lists one record for the entire search, while the sys_search_source_event table lists one record for each data source (table) queried.

    Table 2. sys_search_source_event
    Column Description
    Search query Search string that you entered.
    Source System ID of the data source. For example, the system ID of the Knowledge Base might be c45067sample3c82eef3e. Suggestions from one source are used as suggestions for that source only. For example, a suggestion derived from the Service Portal wouldn't be used as a suggestion in Now Mobile.
    Has results Boolean value that specifies whether the source did (true) or didn't (false) supply search results. For all false values, consider adding information so that the same search query would return suggestions in the future.
    Created Time stamp of the search query.

    Search Suggestion table

    The Search Suggestion [sys_search_suggestion] table stores auto-complete suggestions and search suggestions. A scheduled job uses the sys_search_event table to build the content of the suggestion table. This job segregates generated suggestions by source. Suggestions generated from searches on the Service Portal, for example, are only returned for other Service Portal searches. These suggestions aren't returned for Now Mobile queries.

    Table 3. sys_search_suggestion
    Column Description
    Application ID Application where the search feature was used, for example, you did a search in the Service Portal.
    User group Specifies whether an internal or external user generated the search query. Suggestions for internal users aren't shared with external users and vice versa.
    Language Language of the query. Search only returns suggestions that are in the same language as the search query.
    Score Suggestion rank. The higher the score, the more relevant the suggestion. Once all suggestions are returned for a search query, the suggestions are sorted by Score, the highest listed first. Scores reflect how often you selected a suggestion. A popular suggestion implies that it answers the query.
    Source System ID of the data source. For example, the system ID of the Knowledge Base might be c45067sample3c82eef3e. Suggestions from one source are used as suggestions for that source only. For example, a suggestion derived from the Service Portal wouldn't be used as a suggestion in Now Mobile.