Search Knowledge Base

Search through knowledge bases for relevant information

What it does

The Search Knowledge Base tool allows agents to search through your organization’s knowledge bases to find relevant information. It uses AI-powered semantic search combined with traditional text search for comprehensive results.

For complete information about Knowledge Bases, including setup, file upload, and management, see Knowledge Bases.

Key features

• Semantic Search: AI understands context and meaning, not just keywords
• Hybrid Results: Combines vector similarity with traditional text search
• File Filtering: Include or exclude specific documents from search
• Ranked Results: Results ordered by relevance with similarity scores
• Multi-Format Support: Search across PDFs, Word docs, spreadsheets, and text files
• High Performance: Executes in JavaScript with direct database access for optimal speed

Parameters

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
query	string	Yes	The search query to find relevant information in knowledge bases
knowledge_base_id	integer	Yes	The ID of the specific knowledge base to search in
top_k	integer	No	Number of results to return (default: 10)
include_file_ids	array	No	Optional list of file IDs to restrict search to only these documents
exclude_file_ids	array	No	Optional list of file IDs to exclude from search results

Common use cases

Find policy information

query: "employee vacation policy"
knowledge_base_id: 123
top_k: 5

Search company policies and procedures for specific information.

Research financial data

query: "quarterly revenue trends"
knowledge_base_id: 456
top_k: 10

Find financial insights from uploaded reports and documents.

Search specific documents

query: "budget analysis"
knowledge_base_id: 123
include_file_ids: [45, 67, 89]
top_k: 8

Focus search on recently uploaded or relevant documents only.

Exclude outdated content

query: "product specifications"
knowledge_base_id: 123
exclude_file_ids: [12, 34]
top_k: 10

Search while excluding old or deprecated documents.

Technical documentation lookup

query: "API authentication methods"
knowledge_base_id: 789
top_k: 5

Find specific technical information from documentation collections.

Best practices

• Use specific, descriptive queries for better results
• Start with broader searches, then use file filtering to narrow down
• Monitor similarity scores to gauge result quality
• Organize knowledge bases by topic for more focused searches
• Regularly update knowledge bases by removing outdated documents

Troubleshooting

“No results found”

• Try broader or alternative search terms
• Check that the knowledge base contains relevant documents
• Verify the knowledge base ID is correct

“Knowledge base not found”

• Confirm the knowledge base ID exists in your organization
• Check that you have access to the specified knowledge base
• Ensure the knowledge base has been successfully created

“Low similarity scores”

• Try rephrasing your query with different keywords
• Use more specific terms related to your content
• Check that your documents contain the information you’re searching for

“File filtering not working”

• Verify that the file IDs exist in the knowledge base
• Check that include/exclude file ID arrays are properly formatted
• Ensure files haven’t been deleted from the knowledge base

Related tools

• Call API - Fetch external data to supplement knowledge base searches
• Execute Python - Process and analyze search results
• Send Email - Share search results with team members