Federated Search in Windows
Windows 7 support for search federation to remote data stores using OpenSearch technologies enables users to access and interact with their remote data from within Windows Explorer.
The following list of topics describe how you can build a web-based data store that can be searched using Windows federated search, and enable rich integration of your remote data sources with Windows Explorer without having to write or deploy any Windows client-side code.
- Getting Started with Federated Search in Windows
- Connecting Your Web Service in Windows Federated Search
- Enabling Your Data Store in Windows Federated Search
- Creating an OpenSearch Description File in Windows Federated Search
- Following Best Practices in Windows Federated Search
- Deploying Search Connectors in Windows Federated Search
- Search Connector Description Schema
Additional Resources
- The OpenSearch code sample demonstrates how to create a federated search service using the OpenSearch protocol, and an OpenSearch Descriptor (.osdx) file (a search connector).
- For a video demonstration of creating an OpenSearch web service for a SQL database, see Windows 7: Empower Users to Find, Visualize and Organize their Data with Libraries and the Explorer.
- If you are writing a client-side OpenSearch provider, see:
- The OpenSearch Developer How To Guide for more information on connecting to a client-side provider by using a proprietary data store's protocols or APIs.
- The Overview of the Search Connector Description Schema (.searchconnector-ms) schema documentation.
- See the Microsoft Download Center website for the following downloadable resource: Search Server 2008 Sample: Federated Search Connector Sample.
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