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Example search queries for link filters

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The Short.io filters are based on a lightweight and performant Lucene-like search engine which allows you to look for short links using various fields and applying certain logical combinations among them.

Available searchable fields​

Here is a list of the search fields which you can use to filter your short links:

FieldDescription
androidURLAndroid redirect URL
archivedArchive status of the short link (true or false)
clicksLimitClicks limit setting for temporary links
cloakingCloaking status (true or false)
createdAtShort link creation timestamp (Unix epoch time format in milliseconds)
expiredURLRedirect URL setting for expired link
expiresAtShort link expiration timestamp (Unix epoch time format in milliseconds)
FolderIdFolder assignment of the short link
idUnique identifier of the short link
iphoneURLiOS redirect URL
originalURLTarget URL (or original long link)
ownerIdUnique identifier of the short link's owner
passwordPassword protection setting (to be used as follows - password:y)
pathShort link path
redirectTypeHTTP redirect code of the short link, for example, 308
sourceShort link creation method - API or website
splitPercentA/B (variation) testing redirect percent
splitURLFull URL of the variation page
tagsTags of the short link
titleTitle of the short link
updatedAtTimestamp of the last short link update (Unix epoch time format in milliseconds)

Query syntax and examples​

Below, we present several examples of how to perform searches accurately.

Basic keyword matching​

When you input a keyword (or a portion of it) into the search query field and click on apply, your result list will display all the short links that include this keyword in any of the available search fields.

For example, if you search for Link_1:

Links filter with search query Link_1 highlighted

then the result list might look as follows:

Filtered results showing three links matching Link_1 in different fields

In the first row Link_1 is part of the original URL; in the second row it is contained in the short link, and in the third row we find it in the link title.

Note

Searching for a given keyword in any field is case insensitive. Therefore, if you enter, for example, short_link1 as your query, it can result in finding not just the short links that fit this criteria, but also those that contain Short_link1, Short_Link1, or any combination of upper and lower case letters.

Case-insensitive search results showing links with different capitalizations of short_link1

Using wildcard parameters​

Wildcards are special characters that can stand in for unknown characters in a text and are handy for locating multiple items with similar, but not identical data.

You can use the quotation mark (?) and the asterisk sign (*) in your short links filters as follows:

  • the quotation mark (?) replaces only one character in your keyword. If you search, for example, for any short links which contain in their title "summer_sale_<number>", you can enter as a query - title: summer_sale_?

    Links filter with wildcard query title:summer_sale_?

    Results showing summer_sale_1 and summer_sale_2 matching the wildcard query

  • the asterisk sign (*) replaces zero or more characters in your keyword. If you search, for example, for any short links which contain "sale" in their path, you can enter as a query - path: *sale*

    Links filter with asterisk wildcard query path:sale

    Results showing three links with sale in their path

Refining your search results​

In order to limit the results, you can set more precise filters by:

  • entering the exact keyword in quotation marks, for example - "Link_1456"

    Links filter with exact keyword query &quot;Link_1456&quot; in quotes

    which will result in:

    Single result showing link with title Link_1456 highlighted

  • specifying the field where to search for the exact keyword, for example - title:"Link_238"

    Links filter with field-specific query title:&quot;Link_238&quot;

    which will produce:

    Single result showing link with title Link_238 highlighted

Using timestamp filters​

The following search fields require an additional conversion to the Unix epoch time format in milliseconds: createdAt, expiresAt and updatedAt.

For example, if you are looking for all the temporary short links which will expire on July 30, 2025 or before that date:

Temporary URL settings with link expiration date set to July 30, 2025

then you need to convert the date in Unix time - 1753876800000 and enter the following query expiresAt:<=1753876800000:

Links filter with timestamp query expiresAt less than or equal to 1753876800000

Using Boolean operators and logical NOT​

You can combine several search fields in one query by applying the operators AND, OR and by using the logical NOT.

For example, you can search for all the links where path:*ew_arrivals* AND originalURL:" https://mybrand.bg/new_arrivals_30_percent_off". The result will be:

Results showing two links matching combined AND query on path and originalURL

And if your goal is to further filter out the summer_sale results, all you need to do is expand the query with the NOT operator: (path:*ew_arrivals* AND originalURL:"https://mybrand.bg/new_arrivals_30_percent_off") AND NOT title:"summer_sale"

Single result after applying AND NOT operator to exclude summer_sale

Using unique identifiers​

You can search for a specific short link or links in a folder by using their unique identifiers. (More information on retrieving identifiers can be found in the [article](/articles/api-reference/Technical questions/how-to-retrieve-domain-link-and-folder-identifiers-from-the-short.io-urls-and-api)).

To filter by short link id, your search query should look similar to this one: id:lnk_5je2_OYLEbypKgjYoJfff4uXwl

Links filter with query searching by link id identifier

And to filter by folder id, use the following query, for example: FolderId:sdcnlUo3lZ_58olRtlVn4

Links filter with query searching by FolderId identifier