Search Preview UI for AI Search
Summarize
Summary of Search Preview UI for AI Search
The Search Preview UI is a tool included with AI Search that enables ServiceNow administrators to test and analyze AI Search queries using configurations from selected search applications or search profiles. It replaces the legacy Search Preview UI and offers enhanced functionality and a cleaner interface. This tool supports comprehensive query testing, debugging, and performance review within the ServiceNow platform.
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Access to the Search Preview UI requires specific AI Platform roles such as aisadmin, with additional roles needed for impersonation and bypassing security filters.
Key Features
- Preview Types: Choose between Full Visual View (using search application configurations) or Text View (using search profiles) to preview query results, with Full Visual View supporting features like auto-complete suggestions.
- Search Modes:
- Keyword Search: Traditional keyword matching search mode.
- Hybrid Search: Combines keyword and semantic vector searches for improved precision and contextual relevance. This applies to preconfigured indexed sources like Knowledge, Catalog Item, Skills, and External Content Connectors, with options to manually add more sources.
- Search Application / Profile Selection: Select a published search application configuration or search profile for query previewing; draft profiles are marked and require publishing to reflect changes.
- Result Display Options: View search results as detailed EVAM result cards, simplified result cards, or raw JSON output showing the full search response.
- Search Input Field: Enter queries with support for operators and syntax; auto-complete suggestions are available in Full Visual View mode.
- Debugger Integration: Launch AI Search session debugging and Script Debugger directly from the UI for in-depth query analysis.
- Genius Result Answers: Review AI-generated answers to queries, displayed in a carousel if multiple answers are produced, noting that answers may not appear for all queries.
- Administrator Tools: Access detailed insights including summary views, Genius Result configurations, query processing details (stop words, typos, synonyms), user and locale profiling, and more to diagnose and optimize search performance.
- Facet Filters: Apply or clear facet filters on search results based on facets defined in search applications or source table fields in search profiles to refine query output.
- Search Results Navigation: Page through results, sort them, and customize raw JSON output display with options like syntax highlighting and word wrap.
Practical Benefits for ServiceNow Customers
- Test and validate AI Search queries with realistic configurations to ensure accurate and relevant search results before deployment.
- Debug and optimize query behavior using integrated tools and detailed diagnostic views, improving search quality and user satisfaction.
- Leverage hybrid search capabilities to enhance search precision by combining keyword and semantic understanding.
- Customize search result presentation for better insight into query outcomes and AI-generated answers to user queries.
- Manage security and user context testing to ensure proper access controls and localized search experience.
The Search Preview UI enables you to test AI Search queries using settings from a selected search application configuration or search profile. Administrator tools help you review search query performance data and feedback, debug queries, and override default query settings for testing purposes.
Access the new Search Preview UI by navigating to .
Required ServiceNow AI Platform® roles
- The ais_admin role is required to view and use the Search Preview UI.
- The impersonator role is required for some AI Search administrator tools.
- The ais_high_security_admin role is required to bypass search source and content security filtering. For details on this procedure, see Diagnose search result access issues using the Search Preview UI.
Search Preview UI components
| Component | Description |
|---|---|
| 1. Preview types list | Select the type of preview you want to view.
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| 2. Search mode list | Select the search mode you want to use for your search query.
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| 3. Search Application / Search Profile list | Select the search application configuration or search profile that you want to apply when previewing search queries. When you select full visual view as the preview type, the name of this list is Search Application and it includes all available search application configurations that have published search profiles with one or more linked search sources. When you select
text view as the preview type, the name of this list is Search Profile and it includes all published search profiles with one or more linked search sources. Note: If a search profile has
unpublished changes, its entry in the list displays a warning icon |
| 4. Card view list | Select how you want to display the results from your search query:
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| 5. Search input field | Enter search query terms and operators in this field. To preview the query's results using settings from the selected search application configuration or search profile, press Enter or select the Submit search
icon For details on search query syntax and operators, see AI Search query language. When you select full visual view as the preview type, this field displays auto-complete suggestions from your selected search application configuration. When you select text view as the preview type, this field does not display auto-complete suggestions. |
| 6. Open Debugger button | Select this icon to enable session debugging for AI Search and launch the Script Debugger in a new browser tab. To learn about session debugging and using the Script Debugger, see Enable session debugging for AI Search and Script Debugger and Session Log. |
| 7. Genius Result answers | Review the Genius Result answers the search query produces when executed with the selected search application configuration or search profile. Note: Genius Result answers may not appear for all search queries.
If multiple Genius Result answers are produced for the search query, they appear in a carousel, with the currently selected answer displayed. |
| 8. AI Search administrator tools | Select the icon for the administrator tool that you want to use:
For more details on each administrator tool's output, controls, and fields, see Search Preview admin tools. |
| 9. Filters | View facet filters applicable to your current search results. To filter the query results, select a facet bucket. To remove the filter, clear the facet bucket selection, select Clear at
the facet level, or select Clear all. You can hide the filter list by selecting Hide filters and display it again by selecting Show filters. The filter list contents depend on whether you're previewing results for a search application configuration or a search profile.
To learn more about facet filters, see Create a facet in an AI Search application configuration. |
| 10. Search query results | View the results the search query produces when executed with the selected search application configuration or search profile. When viewing result cards, you can page through results by selecting Next or Previous, and use the Sort search results list to choose a sort order for the displayed search results. When viewing raw output, this section
displays the search query response object in JSON format. Select the Search icon |