Abstract: When a message having at least one attachment is obtained for indexing, it is indexed as N+1 separate documents, where N is the number of attached documents. If the message is part of a message thread, then information regarding the last message in the thread is retrieved, and search index attachment meta data for the last message is extracted. A unique identifier is computed for the newly obtained attachments, and used to search for matches in the attachments for the last message in the thread. If there is a match, then the newly obtained attachment is not indexed, but the unique identifier of the previously indexed matching attachment is added to a body index document for the new message. A unique identifier associated with the new message body is also added to a list of parent identifiers associated with the attachment.

Abstract: Described are a method and apparatus for searching for user relevant information in content repositories using community search scopes. According to the method, a user is presented with a selection of search scopes in which the user is a member. The user selects one of the search scopes according to the desired information and provides a search request that can include, for example, keywords, phrases and data attributes. Searching is performed in each content repository assigned to the search scope if the user is a member of the content repository. Relevant information found in the search content repositories is presented to the user.

Abstract: A method and system for sharing search index entries across multiple computer systems organized in a peer to peer network, in which unique content is indexed only once, even though the content may be physically duplicated in multiple computer systems in the peer to peer network. When files are obtained by a shared indexing service, and a determination is made as to whether the received files are duplicates with regard to previously indexed files. If a file is determined to be a duplicate, the index representation of the previously indexed copy of the file is modified to indicate that the file is also associated with another computer system in the peer to peer network. If a file is not a duplicate of a previously indexed file, the file is indexed to support future searches. The index representation of a file includes category identifiers associating one or more computer systems with the file. When a file is indexed, one or more category identifiers are generated and stored in association with that file.

Abstract: A method and system for sharing full text index entries across application boundaries in which documents are obtained by a shared, platform level indexing service, and a determination is made as to whether the received documents are duplicates with regard to previously indexed documents. If a document is determined to be a duplicate, the index representation of the previously indexed copy of the document is modified to indicate that the document is also associated with another application or context. If a document is not a duplicate of a previously indexed document, the document is indexed to support future searches and/or other processing. The index representation of a document includes application category identifiers associating one or more applications or contexts with the document. When a document is indexed, one or more category identifiers are generated and stored in association with that document.