Find records with global search

1Start in the top header

Click the Search field in the top header. This is available across the workspace, including pages such as Quotes and Settings. Type at least two characters; a one-character entry does not request global matches.

2Choose All or a category

The header selector offers All, Jobs, Quotes, Accounts, Invoices, Orders and Inventory. All shows a preview of matching categories. A specific category helps when the same customer has several kinds of record.

Orders here searches purchase orders. The full results page labels this category Purchase orders.

3Use details that identify the record

For a quote, job or account, try a number, name, street, city or contact detail. These categories also support custom-field searches. Add another identifying word when a short name is too broad.

Invoices match their invoice number and linked job/customer details. Purchase orders match the PO number or vendor. Inventory matches its serial number, barcode, supplier or rack/location text. The fields searched differ by category; a material name displayed under an inventory result is not a substitute for its serial or barcode.

4Read the suggestion groups

Pause briefly after typing. The preview groups matching records by category. All shows up to three per category; selecting one category shows up to six.

The small count is the number currently shown in that preview. It is not the total number of matching records. Names, record numbers, customer details, statuses and amounts help distinguish otherwise similar matches.

5Open and confirm a result

Click the desired result once. Quote, job, account, invoice and inventory matches open their record pages. A purchase-order match opens the purchase-order list with its PO number in the search.

Confirm the customer and project or inventory identity on the destination page before making changes. Use your browser's Back control to return to the previous search.

6Use the keyboard for suggestions

From the input, press Down to focus the first suggestion or Up to focus the last. Move through the result buttons with Up and Down; Enter on a focused result opens that record.

Up from the first result returns to the query. Escape from a suggestion closes the panel and returns focus to the input. Escape in the input or a click outside the panel also dismisses suggestions.

7Submit the full search

Press Enter while focus is in the header input, or click its magnifying-glass Search button. This opens a full results page for the text currently typed and the selected category.

Hovering over a suggestion does not change what Enter in the input does. Focus a result with the keyboard or click it to open that specific record.

8Use See all for one category

Each preview group has a See all link, such as See all Quotes. Click it to open the full results page restricted to that category while keeping your search words.

Use this when the first few suggestions do not include the record you need.

9Refine the full results

The full page has its own search field, Result category selector and Search button. Edit the words, choose a category and submit Search. Until you submit, the existing results still belong to the previous search.

Read the Results for line to confirm which words and category are applied. The Back button at the top returns to the previous page in your browser history.

10Load the remaining matches

Each category initially shows up to 20 results. Its shown count ends in a plus sign when more are available. Click Show more under that category to append the next set without removing the results already loaded.

Continue until the needed record appears or Show more disappears. A category's shown count describes loaded results, not an advance total of every match.

11Distinguish loading, no matches and a failure

Searching means a request is still running. No matches means the search completed without a visible match; check spelling, category and identifiers.

If the header or full page says Search could not load, use Retry search. A request failure does not prove the record is absent. If loading another page fails, the earlier results remain; click Show more again to retry that category.

12Open a printed inventory code

Enter a SlabOS S-code in the header and press Enter. A recognized code opens the matching inventory item directly. A keyboard-style scanner can enter the code and send Enter in the same way; this does not require printing a new label.

If no exact inventory code resolves, SlabOS falls back to the normal full search. Compare the printed code carefully and confirm the destination item's serial and material before allocating or moving stock.

13Understand the current list filter

On some list pages, including Quotes, the header text also filters the visible list underneath the suggestion panel. Dismissing the panel keeps that typed filter; clear the input to remove it.

The global category controls the global suggestions. It does not turn the Quotes list into an invoice or inventory list. The standalone header search on pages such as Settings opens global results without filtering that settings page.

14Search on a phone

The compact header keeps the text field and Search button; its category selector is hidden at narrow widths. Submit a search to open the full page, then use Result category there to narrow the search.

Read the submitted-category line, especially if you changed categories before resizing the browser. You can choose All categories on the full page to broaden the results.

15Use the Ctrl or Command K shortcut

In the standard workspace, press Ctrl+K on Windows or Command+K on Mac to open the separate quick-search dialog. Enter at least two characters. It searches jobs, quotes, accounts and leads and may include additional matches from the search index.

Use Up and Down to select a result and Enter to open it, or click the result. Escape or a click on the dimmed background closes the dialog. Its categories and behavior differ from the header's full grouped search; use the header when you need category controls or Show more.

Denied categories are omitted. If another search request fails, an error identifies the incomplete search and Retry search tries again. Check any AI match against the actual record before relying on it.

16Check access before concluding a record is missing

Search does not grant access to restricted categories or records. If you know the exact number but still cannot find it, confirm the category and ask your shop administrator to review the applicable permissions or salesperson restrictions.

Do not create a duplicate record solely because a broad search or a failed request did not find the original.