Filtering the contents of a container
If a container, such as an organizational unit in your Active Directory, holds large number of objects, you can narrow down the displayed list of objects by filtering the objects held in that specific container.
To filter the objects held in a container
- Navigate to the container in the Web Interface.
To navigate to a container, you can search for the container object (see Searching for directory objects) and then click its name in the list of search results on the Search page. Alternatively, you can browse for the container objects by using the Browse pane and the List of objects.
IMPORTANT: The scope of filtering is always set to the current container, and does not include any subcontainers of that container. Filtering is essentially a search for objects held in a given container only. If you want to search the current container and all of its subcontainers, click Search under this container in the Command pane, and then configure and perform a search as described in Searching for directory objects earlier in this document. - Specify how you want to filter the objects held in the container:
- To filter objects by naming properties, type in the Filter field on the Toolbar and then press Enter or click the button next to the Filter field. The list of objects will include only the objects whose naming properties match what you typed. The naming properties include name, first name, last name, display name, and logon name.
- To filter objects by other properties, click the button on the right side of the Toolbar to expand the Toolbar, click Add criteria, choose the properties by which you want to filter, click Add, and then configure the criteria as appropriate. The list of objects will include only the objects that match the criteria you configured.
- To apply the filter, press Enter or click the button next to the Filter field on the Toolbar.
When a filter is applied to a container, the Web Interface lists a subset of all objects held in that container. You can remove the filter to view all objects: If you did not add criteria, clear the Filter field on the Toolbar and then press Enter; otherwise, expand the Toolbar, click Clear all, and then press Enter.
Example: Filtering by object type
The following steps demonstrate how you can configure a filter that lists only user accounts held in a particular organizational unit, removing objects of any other type from the list:
- Navigate to the organizational unit in the Web Interface.
- Click the button on the right side of the Toolbar to expand the Toolbar, click Add criteria, select the check box next to Object type is User/InetOrgPerson/Computer/Group/Organizational Unit, and then click the Add button.
- On the Toolbar, confirm that the field next to The object type is reads User and then click the button next to the Filter field, or press Enter.
Using personal views
In the Web Interface, you can use search or filter queries to locate directory objects. To create a query, you specify a set of rules that determine the contents of the resulting list of objects. You can, for instance, specify that only user accounts held in a particular organizational unit should be listed. In addition, you can adjust the set of columns and the sort order in the list of search or filtering results.
The ability to locate the objects you target is crucial as you need to focus your attention on only those objects that apply to the task you are performing. However, creating a search or filter query that displays the objects you are interested in for a particular task can be time-consuming. Personal views provide a way for you to save that work. Once you have created a query that displays just the objects you need, you can provide the query with a name and save it to use later. That saved query is a personal view. Each view saves the following settings that you specify: the container to search or filter; the search or filtering criteria; the set of columns and the sort order in the list of search or filtering results.
Creating a personal view
Personal views are like search or filter queries that you have named and saved. After creating a personal view, you will be able to reuse it without re-creating its underlying search or filter query. To reuse a personal view, click the name of that view on the Views tab in the Browse pane. The Web Interface applies the search or filter query saved in the view, and displays the results in the list with the same set of columns and sort order as when you created the view.
To create a personal view
- Do one of the following:
- Configure and perform a search. For instructions, see Searching for directory objects.
- Create a filtered list of objects. For instructions, see Filtering the contents of a container.
- Click the Menu button on the left side of the Toolbar, and then click Save current view.
- In the dialog box that appears, type a name for the personal view, and then click Save.