The Directory Search tool is used to search LDAP directories by specifying such criteria as search DN, LDAP filter and search scope.
To perform a directory search:
Select an element, from which you'd like to search down.
Click
Directory Search button on the Entry toolbar.
Then you'll need to fill out the following fields:
Search DN is a starting point to search the LDAP directory you have connected to. When you open the Directory Search dialog, Search DN will be set up automatically to exactly match the one of the currently selected entry. You can edit this field manually or open the drop-down 'history' list to choose one from the DNs previously used. To specify a DN, you can also use 'Browse for Search DN' dialog, which is launched by clicking the Browse button inside the edit box.
Filter - defines the rule for entry search. By default, the search filter is "(objectClass=*)" and it means that the search will be done through all the available entries. You can customize your filter manually or choose one from the drop-down 'history' list featuring filters previously used.To specify a filter, you can use LDAP Filter Builder, which is launched by clicking the
button inside the edit box.
Attributes - used to specify the attributes you are looking for. They need to be comma-separated. For example: cn, sn, mail, telephonenumber. You can customize search attributes manually or open the drop-down 'history' list to choose attributes from the previously used. To specify attributes, you also can use 'Select attributes' dialog, which is launched by clicking the Select Attributes button inside the edit box.
Search Scope - used to define the scope of your search. Use One level to search within a single level of Search DN sub-entries, and subtree to search ALL entries located under the Search DN.
Handle Referrals - Check this box if you want to handle referrals while searching.
If your directory server limits the number of entries to be returned per one search request, use the Enable Paging option. Such restriction is usually indicated by error messages like 'Size Limit Exceeded' or 'Administrative Limit Exceeded'. for more details, please consult the Paging Overview section.
You can save your search parameters for further reuse or select from among the previously saved parameters via the Favorite Parameters section.
When done specifying your search criteria, press Search to start the operation. The whole process may take some time, but pressing Stop will abort the search operation at any moment. As soon as one or more searched entries have been found, they'll be displayed in the list of results with all the attributes specified.
You can work with your search results in the same way as you work with elements in the List View pane.
To perform operations on the search results (rename, delete, modify, export, etc.):
Select entries you would like to perform an operation on.
Open the context menu and choose the appropriate item.
To insert additional columns with attribute values into the searh result list:
Open the List View context menu by pressing the right mouse button on the header area of the list column.
In the Show Columns sub-menu, check one of the standard columns or click More to add custom columns.
To locate the entry found during the search in the Scope Pane:
Select the entry you'd like to locate.
Click the
Locate in Tree button in the entry's context menu or double-click it.
To filter search results:
Open the List View context menu by pressing the right mouse button in the header area of the list column.
Choose the Filter bar item.
Type the criteria you would like to apply to the search results.