If you enable Enterprise Portal Search, users can search records in the Microsoft Dynamics AX database, as well as documents, announcements, discussions, and list items that are stored in Microsoft Windows SharePoint Services or Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. If you do not set up Enterprise Portal Search as described here, search results return data from the SharePoint site, such as documents or announcements, but the results do not include Microsoft Dynamics AX data.

Before you begin

  • Users will see only search results that they have access to based on Microsoft Dynamics AX security features, including user groups, record-level security, and domains.

  • Enterprise Portal Search does not integrate with the Search center on Office SharePoint Server. This means that users cannot search for Microsoft Dynamics AX data using the Search center.

  • After you have set up Search, users can view search results by navigating to the search results page in Enterprise Portal.

  • Set up the Microsoft Dynamics AX data crawler as described in "Setting up the Data Crawler for a global search" in the System and Application Setup Help.

NoteFor information about configuring tables you created in Microsoft Dynamics AX so those tables can be searched, see "How to: Configure a Table for Search" in the Microsoft Dynamics SDK.

Setting up Enterprise Portal search

After you finished setting up and configuring the Microsoft Dynamics AX data crawler, you can use the following procedures to set up Enterprise Portal search.

Start SharePoint Services Search

This procedure describes how to start the search service in Windows SharePoint Services.

  1. Verify that the full-text search service is enabled for the Microsoft Dynamics AX database. By default, this service is enabled in Microsoft SQL Server.

  2. Open SharePoint Central Administration( Start> Programs> Administrative Tools> SharePoint 3.0 Central Administration).

  3. Click the Operationstab.

  4. Under Topology and Services, click Services on server.

  5. Click Windows SharePoint Services Search. The Configure Search Servicespages opens.

  6. In the Service Accountand Content Access Accountsections, enter the Business Connector proxy credentials.

  7. Verify the details in the Search Databasesection.

  8. Specify an indexing schedule.

Note Note

Indexing can consume resources on the server. Consider specifying an indexing schedule during off-peak hours.

  1. Click Startto start the Windows SharePoint Services Search.

Associate the SharePoint Search Service with the Enterprise Portal content database

This procedure describes how to associate the SharePoint Search Service with the content database used by Enterprise Portal. If you do not complete this procedure, SharePoint search will not return data from the Enterprise Portal database.

  1. Open SharePoint Central Administration( Start> Programs> Administrative Tools> SharePoint 3.0 Central Administration).

  2. Click the Applications Managementtab.

  3. Under SharePoint Web Application Management, click Content database.

  4. In the Web Applicationdrop-down list, click the Enterprise Portal application.

  5. In list of databases, click the content database used by Enterprise Portal.

  6. Under Search Server, select the Enterprise Portal server.

  7. Click OK.

Search Enterprise Portal

Use this procedure to search Microsoft Dynamics AX data on Enterprise Portal.

  1. Open your Enterprise Portal Web site.

  2. Set the search drop-down list to Dynamics AX.

  3. Click a module site where you want to perform a search (for examples, Sales).

  4. Enter a search term and click the search button.