Central Search
You can use the central search to search for business objects in the standalone CRM WebClient, as well as in the CRM WebClient integrated in SAP NetWeaver Portal. In both applications, the central search is located in the header area and hence visible at all times. You can always access it, regardless of the business object you are in.
Note
To improve the performance when you start searching for a business object, the table for the search objects that are displayed in the search menu is cached in a server cookie. This cache depends on the business role and language. Therefore, all Customizing changes that have been made in the central search might not be immediately visible in the CRM WebClient.
Integration
The look and feel of the central search in the portal-integrated CRM WebClient is similar to that in the CRM WebClient standalone application. The search menu consists of the hierarchical list of business objects. Additionally, you can search for documents, which means that a KM search starts
instead of a search in the CRM application. Saved searches are available at the top of the work area. You can also use the Advanced
link to navigate to a search page or to a saved search.
Features
When you open the central search menu in the CRM WebClient UI you see Saved Searches
in first position. In second position you see All Objects
and below, a hierarchical list of business objects. Click the Go
button
or link to start the search immediately.
If you want to change the search criteria before you start the search, you can use the Advanced
button or link to navigate to the search page of the selected business object, for example to the Account search page or to a saved search.
Note
Whether Go
and Advanced
appear as links or buttons on the CRM WebClient UI depends on the skin that you have selected in the layout settings
on the central personalization page.
Saved Searches
When you select Saved Searches
, the search menu contains all your saved searches and the field label changes to Saved Searches
.
All Objects
When you select All Objects
, the field label changes to Search for All Objects
. You can now search across all business objects that belong to your business role. Click Go
to start the simple
search.
Note
The All Objects
entry only appears if more than one searchable business objects have been registered in the central search Customizing.
Hierarchical List of Business Objects
When you select a business object with mouseover, a cascading menu with the search attributes assigned to that business object opens. After you have selected a search attribute, you can enter the search value in the input field. The field label changes accordingly, for example, to Search
for Accounts by Category
. Click Go
to start the advanced search.
Activities
Making Business Objects Available in the Central Search
For every business object that is to be supported by the central search, make the necessary settings in Customizing for Customer Relationship Management
, by choosing 
UI Framework
Technical Role Definition
Define Central Search
.
Making Business Objects Invisible in the Central Search
If you want to make business objects invisible at business role level in the central search, make the necessary settings in Customizing for Customer Relationship Management
, by choosing UI Framework
Business
Roles
Define Business Role
.
Defining Search Criteria
If you want to include or exclude search criteria from the search page of a business object, you can activate or deactivate the corresponding indicator in the UI configuration of the selected application component and view. For more information, see Search Pages.
Example
To configure the Account search criteria in the central search of your business role, start the UI Configuration Tool and select application component BP_HEAD_SEARCH and view MainSearch
. Activate the indicator Use in Central Search
,
for the search criteria that you want to be displayed in the central search.
Adjusting Entries in the Central Search Menu
You can change entries in the central search menu in the Online Text Repository (OTR). If you want to change these entries, start transaction SOTR_EDIT
for the Online Text Repository. Choose the correct language, search for the OTR text by entering the OTR ID
in the Alias
field, and change the SAP standard text. The following entries are available in the central search:
OTR ID |
SAP Standard Text |
Description |
|---|---|---|
CRM_CENTRAL_SEARCH/SEARCH_FOR_ALL_OBJECTS |
Search for All Objects |
Field label that appears when the user clicks |
CRM_CENTRAL_SEARCH/SEARCH_FOR_OBJECT |
Search for &1 |
Field label that appears when the user selects a business object in the search menu; &1 is replaced by the selected business object. |
CRM_CENTRAL_SEARCH/SEARCH_IN_ALL_FIELDS |
Free Text |
Entry in the search menu that allows the user to enter free text in the search field; this entry is used by the simple search. |
CRM_CENTRAL_SEARCH/ALL_OBJECTS |
All Objects |
Entry in the search menu that starts the search across all business objects |
CRM_CENTRAL_SEARCH/SEARCH_FOR_OBJECT_BY |
Search for &1 by &2 |
Field label that appears when the user selects a business object and a search attribute in the search menu; &1 is replaced by the business object and &2 is replaced by the search attribute. |