Querying the Same Index with VectorStore

[omriel1]

Hi!
I’m wondering what is the correct approach for querying the same index using a VectorStore.

For example, assuming I've created an index with DenseVectorStrategy I can query it using the search method, but it'll strictly perform what was defined in the implemented es_query (knn search or hybrid search if specified).

However, I have a couple of scenarios I’d like to address:

1. How can I query the same index using only BM25 (i.e., without invoking the vector search capabilities)?
2. Is it possible to perform hybrid searches on the same index but vary the merging strategy (e.g., using RRF or applying different boosting scoring) between searches?

Currently, the only option I’ve found is to instantiate a new VectorStore object for each query configuration. This feels inefficient, and I’m wondering if there’s a better way to handle these types of queries without recreating the VectorStore each time.

Thanks!

[miguelgrinberg]

Hi! The VectorStore.search() method allows you to pass a custom_query argument with a callable. Your function will be called with the Elasticsearch query, to give you the option to make changes to it before the query is executed. That should allow you to issue queries that are different than the one that corresponds to the strategy you selected.

[omriel1]

Thank you!