Why is the search in Microsoft Lists not returning results for existing projects?

Question

I am experiencing an issue with the search functionality in Microsoft Lists. When I search for a project by its name or ID, the system returns "no items found," even though the project exists in the list and can be found manually by scrolling through the data. The issue persists even after checking for extra spaces, special characters, or active filters.

This seems to be an issue with data indexing or search settings. Could you please investigate and provide a solution or guidance on how to resolve this problem?

Answer 1

Dear Assylkhan Raiymbek,

Thank you for reaching out and providing details about the issue you're experiencing with the search functionality in Microsoft Lists.

It sounds like the search index might not be updated or there could be some configuration affecting the search results. Here are a few steps you can take to troubleshoot this issue:

**Change Permissions:**Sometimes some specific permission setting might not configured correctly for searching. In addition to your current permission settings, please assign some different permissions (read, edit, and contribute). You can do it by going to List settings > Permissions for this list > Grant permisison > choose these 3 permissions and assign to yourself.

Reindex the List: If the above step doesn’t resolve the issue, you may need to manually reindex the list. Here’s how you can do this:

• Go to the list settings by selecting the gear icon and choosing “List settings.”
• Under “General Settings,” select “Advanced settings.”
• Scroll down to the “Reindex List” section and click “Reindex List.”
• Wait for some time(up to 24 hours) and check the result

Clear Browser Cache: Clearing your browser cache can also help ensure you are seeing the most recent version of the list.

Search Keyword: Ensure that the keyword you are searching in are searchable, normally you can use "prefix + *" to perform more thorough searching. For example, the item name is "test123", you can search with keyword "test*"

If you need further assistance or have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're here to help!

Best regards,

Answer 2

Hello Sophia,

Thank you for your quick response.

I have followed all the steps you provided, but unfortunately, the issue persists. While some columns seem to work with the search function, most of them still do not return results. For example it works when I write Countries or Subsidiary, but it doesn't work when I write Order Number.

Could you please advise on any additional steps or checks that I should perform?

Answer 3

Thank you for your assistance.

Yes, the search works with the ID column. However, it does not work with the "Order Number" and "Open Value" columns. When I try to search for a project using the "Order Number," no results are returned.

Could you please advise on how to resolve this issue?

Best regards,
Assylkhan Raiymbek

Answer 4

Dear Assylkhan Raiymbek,

Thank you for your reply with the picture provided. Since it can be searched with some columns, we can confirm the items are indexed and your permission is setup correctly. For further trouble shooting, could you please help to double confirm what is the column you used to search for it? Is that "ID" column?

1. If so, please try using "**listitemid:1"**to perform the search, and check if it returns result.

2. Please check if other lists items are searchable with "listitemid:<number>"
3. Please search fromhttps://<yourdomain>.sharepoint.com/searchwith****"listitemid:<number>", see if it returns result.
4. At the same time, you can also contact your IT admin to raise a ticket to Microsoft support to have further check. If you are the Microsoft 365 admin of your organization, you can sign in to Microsoft 365 admin center with your Microsoft 365 admin account, and select Support > Help and support, enter your question and select Contact support. Otherwise, please refer to How do I find my Microsoft 365 admin?

Please let me know for any updates. We're always here to help!

Best regards,

Answer 5

Dear Assylkhan Raiymbek,

Thank you for your reply. Please try keyword 15* and **Order Number:1520***to perform the search, and check if it returns result.

Please also manually index these 2 columns from list settings > Indexed columns, create new index for these 2 columns.

After that, please perform "reindex" the list from list settings > advanced settings > Reindex. Wait for 24 hours to check the result.

Please let me know for any updates.

Best regards,

Sophia