Enable Commerce Search v3 in production
After you successfully test the Commerce Search v3 functionality in your Optimizely Configured Commerce sandbox environment, follow these steps to upgrade production.
Prerequisites
Follow the steps given in Commerce Search v3 prerequisites.
Shadow mode
Optimizely recommends running Commerce Search v3 in shadow mode before you switch your storefront to it. In shadow mode, the v3 jobs run in the background while Commerce Search v2 remains the active search provider.
Set Search Indexer Name to Commerce Search v3 and configure the ODP user events sync job. Leave Search Provider Name on Commerce Search v2. Indexing and event sync then run without affecting the live search experience for your shoppers.
Shadow mode lets user event data accumulate before you switch providers, giving the Vertex AI model a head start. Behavior-based relevance improvements, dynamic facets, and autocomplete suggestions depend on sufficient event data and model processing. Validate these features before you switch providers rather than assuming they are ready.
After enough user event data accumulates, follow Production steps. Keep Search Provider Name on Commerce Search v2 until you complete the index rebuilds, validation, and waiting period in step four.
Production steps
Perform the following steps in production:
- Update the search configuration:
- Set the Search Indexer Name to Commerce Search v3. Do not yet update the Search Provider Name to Commerce Search v3; use the current Search Provider.
- Perform a full index rebuild and confirm it completes successfully.
- If the rebuild fails or logs show errors or warnings, troubleshoot the issues or contact Optimizely Commerce Support.
- If unresolved, revert the Search Indexer to the previously used version (v1 or v2) and do not proceed to the next step until the issues are resolved.
- If the rebuild is successful, run a few additional rebuilds to ensure stability, and wait at least 12 hours before proceeding to the next step.
- Ensure the Search Provider Name is correctly set to Commerce Search v3.
- Verify that the Autocomplete setting is enabled in the updated Search Provider configuration.
- Replicate any other settings and search parameters that were validated in Sandbox and are required in the Production environment.
- If you encounter issues in production, set Search Provider Name and Search Indexer Name back to the previous version.
- Investigate and resolve the problems, or contact Optimizely Support.
- After you resolve the issue, set both settings back to Commerce Search v3.
Monitor search after you go live
Check your search-related logs regularly after you switch to Commerce Search v3. If you see errors or unexpected behavior, correct the issue or contact Optimizely Support.
If a critical search issue occurs, roll back to Commerce Search v2 while Optimizely reviews the issue. Your site continues to function normally while you investigate.