Including Non-XHTML Files in HTML5 Search

When end users perform a search in your online output, you can ensure that non-XHTML files (e.g. PDF, DOC, XLS) are included in that search. The files do not even need to be linked to any of the content in your Flare project. This feature is available if you publish HTML5 server-based output to a web server running Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS).

For a complete scenario that illustrates these and other HTML5 server-based output steps in a real-life situation, see HTML5 Server-Based Output Scenario.

How to Include Non-XHTML Files in HTML5 Search

  1. Enable HTML5 Server-Based Output If you want to take advantage of the advanced server-side features of HTML5 (i.e., automatic runtime project merging, server-side search, searching of non-XHTML files), you must enable HTML5 server-based output. This includes performing the following tasks: (1) installing Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) and ASP.NET, (2) setting up the HTML5 target and generating/publishing, (3) configuring IIS on the production server, (4) starting Microsoft Indexing Service or Microsoft Windows Search (depending on the operating system), and (5) enabling HTML5 search. 
  2. Generate HTML5 Server-Based Output In Flare, generate a target using the HTML5 output format.
  3. Publish HTML5 Output to Server Publish the HTML5 server-based output to your Microsoft IIS Web server.
  4. (Optional) Add IFilter File types that are automatically supported for HTML5 server-based search include: Microsoft Office files, HTML files, and TXT files. For other non-supported file types, such as PDF documents, you can download and install a simple IFilter in order to include that file type in the search. To find and download the IFilter for the file type that you want to include, go to a website that provides these (such as http://www.ifilter.org) and follow the instructions for downloading IFilters. You must install the appropriate IFilters on the server where the output files will be published, and if you are testing HTML5 server-based output on your computer, you need to install the IFilter(s) locally as well.

  5. Copy and Paste Non-XHTML Files to Appropriate Folder Copy all of the non-XHTML files that you want to be included in the search. Then paste them in the appropriate subfolder of the HTML5 server-based output that you published. By default, HTML5 server-based will find any files located in the project output folder, as well as the "AutoSearch" subfolder. Therefore, you can paste your extra non-XHTML files in the AutoSearch subfolder.

Note When you view HTML5 output on your local computer, you need to create a special folder called "MCPreview" within your "C:\Inetpub\wwwroot" folder. Place a copy of your HTML5 output files in it. This enables you to test the advanced features of HTML5 on your local machine. When testing this search feature on your computer, you need to place the non-XHTML files in the AutoSearch subfolder at this location (as opposed to the output folder that was generated where your Flare project is located).

Note If you are testing HTML5 server-based output on your local machine, you may need to wait a few minutes after viewing the output for the Indexing Service to fully scan your files. Otherwise, you may not immediately see the effects of the scan (e.g., searches of non-XHTML files, incorporation of merged output files) in the output. If you avoid performing other tasks during this period, the scanning of the files will be completed more quickly.

Note If you want to test HTML5 server-based output on your local computer, the advanced search features of HTML5 are not operable.

Note Flare's HTML5 Side and Top Navigation skins do not support runtime project merging.