# Update Field Configuration

The field processes that you configure affect how the IDOL Content component processes data at index time. As a result, if you want to change the configuration after you have indexed data, there are often additional steps required to update your index.

There are three methods that you can use to update your field configuration:

- Manually update the configuration file, and restart the server. In this case, you can use the `Regenerate*Index` configuration parameters, where applicable, to automatically regenerate the modified indexes when you restart the server.

- Use the `DREREGENERATE` index action to modify the field configuration, and run any index regeneration at the same time.

- Use the IDOL Admin interface. This option provides a user interface for the `DREREGENERATE` index action.

These methods are the same as the methods that you can use to regenerate an index after a validation failure. For more information, see Repair an Index After Validation Fails.

You can make many field configuration changes using any of these methods. The `DREREGENERATE` index action allows you to make these configuration updates without restarting your server. However, for some changes you must reindex your content to make configuration changes. The following table describes how to update the field configuration for a particular property type.

Field type | Update method
--- | ---
`ACLType` | Requires reindex
`AlwaysMatchType` | Requires reindex
`AutnRankType` | Requires reindex
`BitFieldType` (and `BitFieldCompressed`, `BitFieldMaxMemoryKB`) | `RegenerateBitFieldIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=BitField`.
`CountType` | `RegenerateCountIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Count`.
`DatabaseType` | Requires reindex
`DateType` | Requires reindex
`DocumentTrackingType` | Requires reindex
`ExpireDateType` (and `ExpireAfterDelay`) | Requires reindex
`FieldCheckType` | Requires reindex
`FlattenIndexType` | Requires reindex
`GeospatialType` | `RegenerateGeospatialIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Geospatial`.
`HiddenType` | No additional regeneration required
`HighlightType` | No additional regeneration required
`Index` | Requires reindex
`IndexNumbers` (and `IndexNumbersNMaxLength`, `IndexNumbersType`) | Requires reindex
`InvertedAgentType` | Requires reindex
`LangDetectType` | Requires reindex
`LanguageType` | Requires reindex
`MatchType` | `RegenerateMatchIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Match`.
`MemCachedType` | You must restart the server to change the configuration
`NonReversibleType` | No additional regeneration required
`NumericDateType` | `RegenerateNumericDateIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=NumericDate`.
`NumericType` (and `NumericIntegerOnly`, `NumericNormalMaxMem`) | `RegenerateNumericIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Numeric`.
`OcrFilterType` | Requires reindex
`ParametricType` | `RegenerateParametricIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Parametric`.
`ParametricRangeType` (and `Ranges`) | `RegenerateParametricIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Parametric`.
`PrintType` | No additional regeneration required
`ReferenceMemoryMappedType` | Requires reindex. You can regenerate this index to restore parent-child relationships for documents that were indexed out of order, but not to change the configuration. For more information, refer to the IDOL Server Reference.
`ReferenceType` | Requires reindex. You can regenerate this index after a validation failure, but not to change configuration. See Repair an Index After Validation Fails.
`SectionBreakType` | Requires reindex
`SecurityType` | Requires reindex. You can regenerate this index after a validation failure, but not to change configuration. See Repair an Index After Validation Fails.
`SortType` | `RegenerateSortIndex` or `DREREGENERATE` with `Type=Sort`.
`SourceType` | Requires reindex
`SynonymType` | Requires reindex
`TextParseIndexType` | Requires reindex
`TitleType` | Requires reindex
`TrimSpaces` | Requires reindex
`Weight` | You must restart the server to change the configuration

NOTE: If you attempt to use the `DREREGENERATE` index action to change a property that requires reindexing, the `DREREGENERATE` index action returns an error response and does not make the change.

When you use the `DREREGENERATE` index action to update the field configuration, you can set the `Type` parameter to `Auto` to automatically regenerate the indexes for the fields that you have changed. You can also set `Type` to `None` if you do not want to regenerate the indexes immediately, for example so that you can make a series of field configuration changes and then regenerate the indexes in an additional index action.

Related Topics

- Repair an Index After Validation Fails

## Update Fields in the Configuration File

Use the following procedure to update fields in the configuration file.

NOTE: You must use this method for changes where you must reindex content for the changes to take effect.

To update field configurations in the configuration file

1. Open the IDOL Content component configuration file in a text editor.

2. Find the field configuration section that you want to modify.

3. Modify any of the configuration parameters that you want to change. For details of the configuration parameters, refer to the IDOL Server Reference.

4. (Optional) If you are modifying a field type that can be regenerated, find the `[Server]` section, and set the appropriate `Regenerate*Index` configuration parameter to `True`. For example, to update the configuration for `MatchType` fields, set the `RegenerateMatchIndex` parameter to `True`.

   You can alternatively skip this step and run a `DREREGENERATE` index action after you restart the server.

5. Save and close the configuration file.

6. Restart the IDOL Content component for your changes to take effect.

7. Update your content:

   - If you have modified a field type where the change requires you to reindex your data, reindex your data.

   - If you need to regenerate the index, run a `DREREGENERATE` index action with `Type` set to the appropriate index. For example:

         http://idolhost:9001/DREREGENERATE?Type=Match

     For more information, refer to the IDOL Server Reference.

8. If you used the `Regenerate*Index` configuration parameters, set the parameters to `False` again in the configuration file. This step means that the server does not waste time by regenerating the index every time you restart the server.

## Update Field Configuration with an Index Action

Use the following procedure to make field configuration changes for fields where you can regenerate the content. This method allows you to update the field configuration without restarting the server, which avoids downtime.

NOTE: You can update the lists of fields associated with a particular property, but if you want to add a new field process or add an additional property to an existing process, you must update the configuration file manually.

To update field configurations with an index action

1. Open the IDOL Content component configuration file in a text editor.

2. Find the field configuration section that you want to modify.

3. Send a `DREREGENERATE` index action to the IDOL Content component, with the `FieldProcessingSection` parameter set to the name of the configuration section that you want to modify. Set any of the following parameters to update the lists of fields:

   - `AugmentFieldCSVs`. A list of fields that you want to add to the `PropertyFieldCSVs` parameter.

   - `DiminishFieldCSVs`. A list of fields that you want to remove from the `PropertyFieldCSVs` parameter.

   - `AugmentNegativeFieldCSVs`. A list of fields that you want to add to the `PropertyNegativeFieldCSVs` parameter.

   - `DiminishNegativeFieldCSVs`. A list of fields that you want to remove from the `PropertyNegativeFieldCSVs` parameter.

   - `Type`. Set this parameter to `None` if you do not want to regenerate the index immediately, for example if you want to modify several field configuration sections and then run a single regenerate operation. The default value is `Auto`, which automatically regenerates the index for the field configuration that you modify.

     NOTE: If you set `Type` to `None`, you must run a `DREREGENERATE` index action manually to regenerate the indexes that you have modified. The `DREREGENERATE` index action does not automatically check all field configurations that might need regeneration.

   For example:

       DREREGENERATE?FieldProcessingSection=SetMatchFields&AugmentFieldCSVs=*/NewMatchField,*/SpecialMatch&DiminishFieldCSVs=*/ExistingMatchField

   This example updates the `[SetMatchFields]` configuration section, adding `NewMatchField` and `SpecialMatch` to the `PropertyFieldCSVs`, and removing `ExistingMatchField`. The `DREREGENERATE` index action automatically regenerates the `Match` index to make the configuration changes available.

## Update Field Configuration with IDOL Admin

Use the following procedure to update your field configuration by using the IDOL Admin interface. IDOL Admin uses the `DREREGENERATE` index action.

To update your field configuration by using IDOL Admin

1. In the Service Control tab in the Console page, click Regenerate.

   The Regenerate dialog box opens.

2. In the Type list, click the field type that you want to update.

3. Select a priority for the index action. This determines how Content queues the action.

4. Click Regenerate.

You can monitor the progress of the `DREREGENERATE` action in the Recent Tasks panel.

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