Configure proxy settings for federated sources (Search Server 2008)
Applies To: Microsoft Search Server 2008
Topic Last Modified: 2008-07-21
Note
Unless otherwise noted, the information in this article applies to both Microsoft Search Server 2008 and Microsoft Search Server 2008 Express.
A search services administrator can specify proxy server settings for sending HTTP requests to crawl content and query federated sources. A proxy server is a computer that functions as an intermediary to forward a client request to another server and return the results to the client. Using a proxy server can help enhance intranet security and help improve response times for client requests.
Important
This article explains how to configure proxy server settings on the Manage Farm-Level Search Settings page. You must be a search services administrator to configure proxy settings on this page. For more information, see Add or remove a search services administrator (Search Server 2008).
In this article:
Configuring Search Server 2008 to use a proxy server
Specifying that a proxy server should not be used
Understanding proxy settings for federated sources
Configuring Search Server 2008 to use a proxy server
Use this procedure to specify proxy server settings for crawling content and querying federated sources on computers in other networks.
To configure proxy server settings for search
On the Search Administration page, in the Crawling section, click Proxy and Timeouts. The Manage Farm-Level Search Settings page appears.
In the Proxy Server Settings section, click Use the proxy server specified, and then do the following steps:
To use the same proxy server settings when querying any federated source, select the Use these proxy settings for access to federated sites check box. For more information, see Understanding proxy settings for federated sources later in this article.
In the Address box, type either the NetBIOS name or the IP address of the proxy server.
In the Port box, type the port number to use for this proxy server.
To bypass this proxy server when crawling local addresses, select the Bypass proxy server for local (intranet) addresses check box.
To bypass the proxy server when crawling particular IP addresses, type the site host names or IP addresses in the Do not use proxy server for addresses beginning with box. Separate host names or IP addresses with semicolons (;).
Click OK.
Specifying that a proxy server should not be used
Follow this procedure to specify that a proxy server should not be used for crawling content or querying federated sources on computers in other networks.
To specify that a proxy server should not be used for search
On the Search Administration page, in the Crawling section, click Proxy and Timeouts.
On the Manage Farm-Level Search Settings page, in the Proxy Server Settings section, click Do not connect by using a proxy server.
Click OK.
Understanding proxy settings for federated sources
In Search Server 2008, there are two ways to specify proxy server settings for querying federated sources. Before querying a federated source, Search Server checks in the following order for proxy settings and uses the first settings it finds to connect to the federated source:
The Manage Farm-Level Search Settings page. Proxy settings specified on this page apply to all federated locations.
We recommend using this method if your organization has only one proxy server for querying federated sources.
The .NET web.config file of the SharePoint site hosting the federated location. There is one web.config file for each SharePoint site. This file is used by all federated locations on that site. Search Server uses the settings in the web.config file as the default proxy settings for federated locations on that site.
This method allows you to specify a proxy server for each SharePoint site that hosts federated locations. However, using web.config file settings for this purpose can be slow or unsuccessful.
See Also
Concepts
Specify time-out settings (Search Server 2008)
Change the contact e-mail address (Search Server 2008)