Maybe it is just me, who never found it, but after a support request I was made aware of a feature in Sitecore, I have missed for years. I thought I’d just share it, if there were any others like me, who wasn’t aware of the great Sitecore application XPath Builder.
Whenever I create a template which uses a Sitecore Query to populate a multilist field with items, I always spend a little too much time figuring out the correct syntax for the Sitecore Query. But no longer… now that I have found the XPath Builder!
The XPath Builder is triggered in the Developer Center through the Tools menu. The application helps you build the right query and shows the result of the query:
The XPath Builder in Sitecore
Yay! What a great tool!
There’s also an XPath Builder plugin for Sitecore Rocks.
Hi Jens,
I’ve also found the XPath Builder to be a good tool for gathering quick and dirty reports/statistics. For instance, generating a list of items that have been updated after a specific date or how many items use a specific template.
Another little tidbit: you can also use “fast:” query syntax in the XPath builder.
Cheers,
adam
Hadn’t thought of that Adam W. Good idea!
First I have to say I’m a bit surprised you haven’t seen it before! 🙂
I’ve been using it for quite some time and it’s a great little tool for quickly querying your data and get some statistics/reports. It’s also a good tool to use to test your queries for efficiency. Like Adam W. mentions you could use it to quickly see the gains in using a fast: query as apposed to a normal query.
A couple of things I find lacking and that should be easy to implement:
* Ability to click on items in the search results and have the content editor open with that item selected (just like the instant search)
* Ability to extract reports. Somehow allow you to save the results to file.
* Ability to save searches to be run later.
Keep up the great posts!
-Christian
FYI: The XPath Builder is also available in Sitecore Rocks as a plugin.
It provides pretty much the same functionality, but I think Christian has some very good ideas!
I use this online builder http://xpath.online-toolz.com/tools/xpath-editor.php