> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.sublay.io/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Search

> Full-text search across content, users, and spaces, plus AI-powered Q&A

The `search` module provides server-side access to Sublay's search and AI capabilities. Use it to build search APIs, power recommendation engines, or answer natural-language questions about your content.

***

### searchContent

Searches entities by full-text query, optionally scoped to a space.

```typescript theme={null}
const { data, pagination } = await sublay.search.searchContent({
  query: "getting started guide",
  spaceId: "spc_abc123",
  sourceTypes: ["entity", "comment"],
  limit: 10,
});
```

<ParamField body="query" type="string" required>
  The search query string.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="sourceTypes" type="string[]">
  Which content types to search: any of `"entity"`, `"comment"`, `"message"`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="spaceId" type="string">
  Scope the search to a specific space.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="includeChildSpaces" type="boolean" default="false">
  Only applies with `spaceId`. When `true`, the search also covers every space nested under it — the whole subtree at any depth — not just the named space. Ignored without `spaceId`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="conversationId" type="string">
  Scope the search to a specific conversation.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="limit" type="number">
  Maximum number of results to return.
</ParamField>

<SpaceReputationParams variant="context" field="body" />

**Returns** — `Promise<PaginatedResponse<Entity>>`

***

### searchUsers

Searches for users by name or username.

```typescript theme={null}
const { data, pagination } = await sublay.search.searchUsers({
  query: "alice",
  limit: 10,
});
```

<ParamField body="query" type="string" required>
  The search query string.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="limit" type="number">
  Maximum number of results to return.
</ParamField>

**Returns** — `Promise<PaginatedResponse<User>>`

***

### searchSpaces

Searches for spaces by name or description.

```typescript theme={null}
const { data, pagination } = await sublay.search.searchSpaces({
  query: "photography",
  limit: 10,
});
```

<ParamField body="query" type="string" required>
  The search query string.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="limit" type="number">
  Maximum number of results to return.
</ParamField>

**Returns** — `Promise<PaginatedResponse<Space>>`

***

### askContent

Asks a natural-language question about your content and returns an AI-generated answer with source references.

<Note>
  This feature requires semantic search to be enabled for your project. See the [Semantic Search & AI](/v7/semantic-search-ai) guide for setup instructions.
</Note>

```typescript theme={null}
const { answer, sources } = await sublay.search.askContent({
  query: "What are the best practices for error handling?",
  spaceId: "spc_abc123",
});

// answer: "Based on the content in this space, best practices include..."
// sources: [{ entityId: "ent_xyz", title: "Error Handling Guide" }, ...]
```

<ParamField body="query" type="string" required>
  The natural-language question to answer.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="sourceTypes" type="string[]">
  Which content types to draw from: any of `"entity"`, `"comment"`, `"message"`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="spaceId" type="string">
  Scope the search to content within a specific space.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="includeChildSpaces" type="boolean" default="false">
  Only applies with `spaceId`. When `true`, the context lookup also covers every space nested under it — the whole subtree at any depth — so you can ask across a community and all of its channels at once. Ignored without `spaceId`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="conversationId" type="string">
  Scope the search to a specific conversation.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="limit" type="number">
  Maximum number of sources to draw from.
</ParamField>

<SpaceReputationParams variant="context" field="body" />

**Returns** — `Promise<{ answer: string; sources?: Array<{ entityId: string; title: string | null }> }>`

***

### matchUsers

Matches people by **activity-derived interest facets**, in `passive` mode (against a given user's own facets) or `directed` mode (against a free-text topic). See the [Interest Matching](/v7/interest-matching) guide for setup and the model.

<Note>
  Requires a paid plan, the `ai-search` and `interest-matching` bundles, and `interestMatching.enabled` on the project.
</Note>

```typescript theme={null}
const { results } = await sublay.search.matchUsers({
  mode: "directed",
  query: "biotech",
  limit: 10,
});

// results: [{ user, score, matchedFacets: [{ similarity, candidateFacet, askerFacet?, sampleContent? }] }]
```

<ParamField body="mode" type="string" required>
  `"passive"` or `"directed"`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="query" type="string">
  The topic to match against. Required in `directed` mode; rejected in `passive` mode.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="limit" type="number" default="20">
  Maximum number of matched users. Maximum `50`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="spaceId" type="string">
  Restrict candidates to users active in this space.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="includeChildSpaces" type="boolean" default="false">
  With `spaceId`, also include users active in the space's subtree.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="includeSampleContent" type="boolean" default="false">
  Request illustrative sample content per matched facet. Only honored when the project has `interestMatching.exposeSampleContent` on; otherwise returns `403 match/sample-content-disabled`.
</ParamField>

<ParamField body="excludeSelf" type="boolean" default="true">
  Exclude the asker from results.
</ParamField>

**Returns** — `Promise<{ results: UserMatchResult[] }>` (the `{ results }` envelope, ordered by descending `score`).