LC z39.50: "search failed at opac rc=1"

• Article Type: General
• Product: Aleph
• Product Version: 20

Description:
Has anyone come across this error from LC by z39.50:

search failed at opac rc=1

and found a cure?

I was sure I remembered this being discussed on a list in the last few months, but cannot find any trace of it in my own or the central archives.

LC has worked fine until the last few days, and we have not changed any of the z39.50 configuration files; the searches being done by cataloguers are perfectly normal, and the test search I used is one I have used regularly before and never had a problem with. Other z39.50 targets are working normally.

The z39_gate... server log adds nothing useful. There is nothing in the KB on this, and nothing on the LC website that I can find. Frustratingly, if I google the error, it finds a page supposedly containing the text, but when I connect to the page, nothing’s there (I realise that this is a google indexing issue, but it proves LC did have a page with that error on it at some stage).

Resolution:
[From Jeannie Dixon, CCLA, on the Global Aleph Users list:]

I received this from the person at LC who works with the Z39.50 connection:

"Yes our keyword indexes are not working right now. I'm attempting to get the problem corrected.
If you can configure left-anchored Z39.50 searches in your client, you can continue to search us right now. Below is a comparison.
Title keyword

@attr 1=4 @attr 2=3 @attr 3=3 @attr 4=2 @attr 5=100 @attr 6=1

or just

@attr 1=4

(keyword is our default)

Left-anchored/right truncated

@attr 1=4 @attr 2=3 @attr 3=1 @attr 4=1 @attr 5=1 @attr 6=1

The key attribute is the Completeness attribute -- set it to "first in field" <end LC quote>


<Later, 2nd quote from LC:>

The problem with Z39.50 search errors from LC was corrected on Friday afternoon (4/15).

I apologize for the inconvenience.

Ann Della Porta
Chief, Integrated Library System Program Office

<end 2nd LC quote>

• Article last edited: 6/15/2015