---
title: "Configure metadata indexing strategies in Scaffolding"
canonical: "https://support.appfire.com/space/SCAFS/3230826497/Configure%20metadata%20indexing%20strategies%20in%20Scaffolding"
format: markdown
---
> Macro (aura-html)

With Scaffolding 9.2.10 and later, administrators can control how metadata is indexed. This is useful for large Confluence instances and environments that use OpenSearch because it can help prevent indexing errors and improve search performance.

Use this guide to choose and apply the indexing strategy that matches your environment.

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## Understand indexing options

Scaffolding offers two strategies for metadata indexing. Choose the strategy based on your Confluence deployment type and metadata usage.

|  |  |  |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Strategy** | **Best for** | **How it works** |
| **Standard indexing (Lucene)** | Standard Confluence environments with moderate metadata usage. | Indexes every metadata field individually. This is the default setting. |
| **Optimized indexing (OpenSearch)** | Large-scale metadata usage or OpenSearch deployments. | Stores metadata as `key=value` tokens in shared fields to help prevent field-limit errors. |

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## When to switch to optimized indexing

Consider switching to optimized indexing if you see the following error in your logs:

> `Limit of total fields [1000] has been exceeded`

This error occurs because OpenSearch has a default limit on the number of unique fields it can index. The optimized strategy helps avoid this issue by grouping metadata together.

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## Change the indexing strategy

To update the indexing strategy:

1. Log in as a Confluence administrator and go to **General Configuration**.
2. In the left sidebar, find **Scaffolding Forms & Templates** and select the configuration page.
3. Find **Metadata Indexing Strategy** and select **Standard** or **Optimized**.
4. Select **Save**.

![Scaffolding metadata indexing strategy configuration options](media://12aa1170-3c04-4d35-b627-487efc03e558)

![Scaffolding metadata indexing strategy save confirmation](media://70e07001-f40a-4d9f-9dff-52d3704af58f)

---

## Reindex Confluence

> ⚠️ Changing the indexing strategy doesn't affect existing data until you perform a full reindex.

1. Go to **General Configuration** > **Content Indexing**.
2. Select **Rebuild** to perform a full reindex of your Confluence site.
3. After the reindex is complete, Scaffolding metadata is searchable using the new indexing logic.

Need help? Contact [Support](https://appf.re/support).