ELM repotools indexing commands guide

IBM Engineering Lifecycle Management (ELM) provides three primary repository tools commands for rebuilding and repairing different types of indexes. While some overlap exists between rebuildTextIndices and reindex, each command addresses a specific layer of the indexing architecture.

Command summary

repotools -rebuildIndices

Purpose

Rebuilds database indexes maintained by the underlying database (Oracle, Db2).

Use when

• The Diagnostics page reports database index issues.
• Database indexes are fragmented.
• Database performance degradation is observed.
• A DBA recommends rebuilding indexes.

Affects

repotools -rebuildTextIndices

Purpose

Recreates the Lucene full-text search index from repository data.

Use when

• Quick Search returns no results.
• Full Text Search fails.
• Search results are incomplete.
• The search index directory is missing or corrupted.
• A server migration occurred without copying the search index directory.

Affects

repotools -reindex

Purpose

Rebuilds JFS query and search indexes. Different scopes determine what gets rebuilt.

Available scopes

Query indexes only

repotools-<app> -reindex scope=query

Rebuilds:

• Triple store indexes
• Query indexes

Search indexes only

repotools-<app> -reindex scope=search

Rebuilds:

• Lucene search indexes

Query and search indexes

repotools-<app> -reindex scope=all

Rebuilds:

• Query indexes
• Search indexes

Complete rebuild

repotools-<app> -reindex all

Rebuilds:

• Live query indexes
• Historical query indexes
• Search indexes

This is the most comprehensive index rebuild option.

Index coverage matrix

Key observation

• rebuildTextIndices and reindex scope=search both rebuild search indexes.
• rebuildIndices is separate and operates only on database indexes.

Decision tree

START
|
+-- Database diagnostics or DB performance issue?
|     +-- rebuildIndices
|
+-- Search failing?
|     +-- Quick Search failing
|     +-- Full Text Search failing
|     +-- Search directory deleted
|     +-- rebuildTextIndices
|
+-- Query results incorrect?
|     +-- RM views incomplete
|     +-- Dashboard results incorrect
|     +-- reindex scope=query
|
+-- Search and Query both affected?
|     +-- reindex scope=all
|
+-- Major corruption or full index rebuild required?
      +-- Entire indices directory deleted
      +-- Restore/migration concerns
      +-- Timestamp mismatch errors
      +-- reindex all

Common troubleshooting scenarios

Scenario 1: Entire indices directory deleted on JTS or DNG

Example: the following directory was deleted.

server/indices

Recommended command

repotools-jts -reindex all
repotools-rm -reindex all

Why?

• Recreates query indexes.
• Recreates search indexes.
• Rebuilds live and historical indexes.
• Provides the most complete recovery path.

Scenario 2: CCM/QM full text search directory deleted

Recommended command

repotools-ccm -rebuildTextIndices

or

repotools-qm -rebuildTextIndices

Why?

Recreates the Lucene search index from repository data.

Scenario 3: RM or JTS query results incorrect

Symptoms might include:

• Missing artifacts in views
• Incomplete dashboard results
• Query index corruption

Recommended command

repotools-rm -reindex scope=query

Why?

Only query and triple-store indexes require rebuilding.

Scenario 4: Search fails but queries work

Recommended commands

repotools-rm -reindex scope=search

or

repotools-rm -rebuildTextIndices

Why?

Both commands target search indexes.

Scenario 5: Database indices warning on Diagnostics page

Recommended command

repotools-<app> -rebuildIndices

Why?

This is a database-level issue, not a JFS or Lucene indexing problem.

Scenario 6: CRJZS5758E timestamp mismatch

Example:

CRJZS5758E
The information in the index might be incorrect because the
timestamp of the triple live index is ahead of the database.

Cause

The index contains data that is newer than the repository database. Common causes:

• The database was restored without restoring indices.
• The database and indices were restored from different backup points.
• A snapshot rollback affects only one component.

Recommended recovery

If a matching index backup exists:

Restore the matching index backup

Otherwise:

repotools-<app> -reindex all

Why?

The error involves the triple-store query index, not the search index. Therefore, the following command will not resolve this issue:

rebuildTextIndices

A complete reindex all rebuild is required.

Backup and restore guidance

Can search indexes catch up automatically?

Yes. If a valid search index backup is restored and the application starts successfully, ELM typically processes repository changes through background indexing and eventually synchronizes the search index with the repository.

Typical flow

Backup Index
      |
      v
Restore Backup
      |
      v
Start Application
      |
      v
Background Indexing
      |
      v
Search Index Updated

When automatic catch-up usually works

• The restored index is not corrupted.
• The repository database is consistent.
• The backup is reasonably recent.
• Background indexing services are functioning correctly.

When to run rebuildTextIndices

Run a full rebuild when:

• Search results remain incomplete.
• Search-related errors appear in logs.
• The search directory was deleted.
• Repository and index backups came from different points in time.
• The index backup is very old.
• Complete certainty of search consistency is required.

Important exception

If the search index directory was completely deleted and no backup exists, use the following command:

repotools-<app> -rebuildTextIndices

This command recreates the directory and rebuilds all searchable content. Simply starting the application is not considered the recommended recovery path.

Quick reference

Related topics: None

External links: Repository tools command to rebuild database indexes,Repository tools command to rebuild text indexes,Repository tools command to regenerate indexes

Additional contributors: None