Indexes and Documents

The ElasticSearch plugin uses repository-style Index classes and ORM-like Document classes.

Creating an Index Class

Create an index class in your application's Model/Index namespace:

namespace App\Model\Index;

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Index;

class ArticlesIndex extends Index
{
}

Index objects are similar to ORM\Table instances. Each index class maps to an Elasticsearch index, and by default the plugin infers the index name from the class name.

If you need to define the Elasticsearch index name explicitly, override getName():

namespace App\Model\Index;

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Index;

class CommentsIndex extends Index
{
    public function getName(): string
    {
        return 'comments';
    }
}

Creating a Document Class

Document classes belong in Model/Document:

namespace App\Model\Document;

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Document;

class Article extends Document
{
}

Aside from constructor logic needed to hydrate Elasticsearch data, Document behaves like a CakePHP entity. The entity documentation for CakePHP is therefore a good reference for getters, setters, hidden fields, virtual fields, and mass-assignment rules.

Fetching Index Instances

Use IndexLocatorAwareTrait when you want convenient access in controllers, commands, and services:

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Datasource\IndexLocatorAwareTrait;

class MyController extends Controller
{
    use IndexLocatorAwareTrait;

    public function index()
    {
        $articles = $this->fetchIndex('Articles');
    }
}

You can also work with IndexLocator directly:

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Datasource\IndexLocator;

$locator = new IndexLocator();
$articles = $locator->get('Articles');

Clear the locator during tests when you need fresh instances or mocked dependencies:

$locator->clear();

Configuring the Connection Per Index

All indexes use the elastic connection by default. Override defaultConnectionName() if an index should use a different datasource:

namespace App\Model\Index;

use Cake\ElasticSearch\Index;

class ArticlesIndex extends Index
{
    public static function defaultConnectionName(): string
    {
        return 'replica_db';
    }
}

Static method required

defaultConnectionName() must be declared static.