Solr Next Gen (7.x-2.x)

I can tell by the usage statistics that you haven't tried the Search API module yet! Run, don't walk, to the download page and give it a go. You'll have to pick yourself up a copy of the Entity module as well, but then you're all set.

Currently admins wanting to add Solr to their Drupal site have two options: Apache Solr Views and Searchlight.

Both can be used to construct views that filter content (including faceted search) on the basis of Solr indexes. Both projects - particularly Searchlight - are in active development.

We've learned a lot about Solr and Drupal in the past three years. Much is possible with the current ApacheSolr module, but some things aren't possible, and many things aren't easy. There are quirks and limitations that reflect early design decisions which we now could solve better. To move forward and make the future a better place for Solr and Drupal, a new effort is beginning to redesign the integration from the ground up.

These are some of the high level design goals:

• Study the PECL library, learn from it, and possibly use it: http://pecl.php.net/package/solr
• Develop a query library that has improved developer usability; for example http://github.com/technosophos/SolrAPI/blob/master/solrapi.inc
• Develop (with) components that are not Drupal specific so that other open source projects can use them (see above two points)
• Take advantage of cool things like the Search API, where it makes sense: http://drupal.org/project/search_api
• Learn from efforts like Searchlight and enable them to build on shared core components: http://drupal.org/project/searchlight
• Remove node centricity, embrace the Entity API in Drupal-7, and rely on Views for as much as possible
• Make indexing more flexible and faster
• Decentralize the module structure so that more contributors can become involved in more projects
• Allow Solr to be used in more contexts than traditional search (faceted browsing, for example)

Matt Butcher will be coordinating initial planning and research, and together with input from you, will draft architecture documents to get us from where we are today to the bright and shiny future.

The project will use this group as its home. There is now a new tab/page, "Solr Next Gen", as well as a tag that you can subscribe to, so that we can track discussions. Development will happen in the 7.x-2.x branch of the apachesolr module.

Now is a good time to elaborate on the list of design goals that you'd like to see in the new architecture by commenting here.