Methods and apparatus for building a search index for a database
View Patent ↗Methods and apparatus for building a search index for a database are disclosed. When an incremental build trigger is detected (e.g., a threshold number of documents are added to database), the system determines which sub-indexes need to be updated and which sub-indexes do not need to be updated. Rather than update the affected sub-indexes directly, the system builds new sub-indexes to replace the affected sub-indexes. Database queries that occur during the generation of the replacement sub-indexes use the old sub-indexes. When the new sub-indexes are ready, the system moves pointers from the old sub-indexes to the new sub-indexes so that subsequent database queries use the new sub-indexes.
1. A method of incrementally building a Search-Index for a database without rendering the database inoperable, the method comprising:
detecting a trigger to begin an incremental build of the Search-Index;
determining that a particular sub-index of a plurality of sub-indexes that form the Search-Index is to be updated by the incremental build;
generating a new sub-index based on the particular sub-index and an update included in the incremental build, wherein generating the new sub-index enables the incremental build to be built without affecting the particular sub-index directly;
during the generation of the new sub-index, executing a first query of the Search-Index using the particular sub-index, and not the new sub-index; and
after the new sub-index is generated:
updating a pointer that pointed to the particular sub-index to point to the new sub-index, and
executing a second query of the Search-Index using the new sub-index, and not the particular sub-index.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes an addition of a plurality of documents to the database.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a deletion of a plurality documents from the database.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build is based on a fragmentation level.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a manual user input.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein after the third sub-index is generated, the first sub-index is deleted.
7. An apparatus for incrementally building a Search-Index for a database without rendering the database inoperable, the apparatus comprising:
a processor;
a network interface operatively coupled to the processor; and a memory device operatively coupled to the processor, the memory device storing instructions to cause the processor to:
detect a trigger to begin an incremental build of the Search-Index;
determine that a particular of a plurality of sub-indexes that form the Search-Index is to be updated by the incremental build;
generate new sub-index based on the particular sub-index and an update included in the incremental build, wherein generating the new sub-index enables the incremental build to be built without affecting the particular sub-index directly;
during the generation of the new sub-index, execute a first query of the Search-Index using the particular sub-index, and not the new sub-index; and
after the third sub-index is generated:
update a pointer that pointed to the particular sub-index to point to the new sub-index, and
execute a second query of the Search-Index using the new sub-index, and not the particular sub-index.
8. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes an addition of a plurality of documents to the database.
9. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a deletion of a plurality documents from the database.
10. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build is based on a fragmentation level.
11. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a manual user input.
12. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein after the third sub-index is generated, the first sub-index is deleted.
13. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions structured to cause a computing device to:
detect a trigger to begin an incremental build of a Search-Index;
determine that a particular of a plurality of sub-indexes that form the Search-Index is to be updated by the incremental build;
generate new sub-index based on the particular sub-index and an update included in the incremental build, wherein generating the new sub-index enables the incremental build to be built without affecting the particular sub-index directly;
during the generation of the new sub-index, execute a first query of the Search-Index using the particular sub-index, and not the new sub-index; and
after the third sub-index is generated:
update a pointer that pointed to the particular sub-index to point to the new sub-index, and
execute a second query of the Search-Index using the new sub-index, and not the particular sub-index.
14. The computer readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes an addition of a plurality of documents to the database.
15. The computer readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a deletion of a plurality documents from the database.
16. The computer readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build is based on a fragmentation level.
17. The computer readable medium of claim 13 , wherein the trigger to begin the incremental build includes a manual user input.
18. The computer readable medium of claim 13 , wherein after the third sub-index is generated, the first sub-index is deleted.