Extend Plugin Free Search to Taxonomies & Author

No one needed a free search for taxonomies or authors before?

I manage to adjust the wordpress search to search also in author, but the filter everything search still doesnt work, any ideas?

// Register the custom query variable ‘srch’
function register_custom_query_vars( $vars ) {
$vars[] = ‘srch’; // Add ‘srch’ to query vars
return $vars;
}
add_filter( ‘query_vars’, ‘register_custom_query_vars’ );

// Modify the search query to include ‘srch’ and author metadata
function custom_library_author_search( $search, $query ) {
global $wpdb;

// Check if it's the main query, a search query, and for the custom post type "library"
if ( !is_admin() && $query->is_search() && $query->get('post_type') === 'library' ) {

    // Debug: Output query variables
    if ( defined('WP_DEBUG') && WP_DEBUG ) {
        error_log(print_r($query->query_vars, true));
    }

    // Get the search term from 'srch' (Filter Everything Pro) or fallback to 's'
    $search_term = $query->get('srch') ? $query->get('srch') : $query->get('s');

    if ( !empty($search_term) ) {
        // Escape the search term for safety
        $search_term = esc_sql( $search_term );

        // Modify the search query to include author names
        $search = " AND (
            {$wpdb->posts}.post_title LIKE '%{$search_term}%'
            OR {$wpdb->posts}.post_content LIKE '%{$search_term}%'
            OR {$wpdb->users}.display_name LIKE '%{$search_term}%'
        )";

        // Add a join to the users table to include author names
        add_filter( 'posts_join', function( $join ) use ( $wpdb, $query ) {
            if ( $query->get('post_type') === 'library' ) {
                return $join . " LEFT JOIN {$wpdb->users} ON {$wpdb->posts}.post_author = {$wpdb->users}.ID ";
            }
            return $join;
        });

        // Ensure the DISTINCT clause is added to avoid duplicate results
        add_filter( 'posts_distinct', function( $distinct ) use ( $query ) {
            if ( $query->get('post_type') === 'library' ) {
                return "DISTINCT";
            }
            return $distinct;
        });
    }
}

return $search;

}
add_filter( ‘posts_search’, ‘custom_library_author_search’, 10, 2 );

// Optional: Flush rewrite rules on activation for ‘srch’
function custom_flush_rewrite_rules() {
flush_rewrite_rules();
}
add_action( ‘init’, ‘custom_flush_rewrite_rules’ );

Hi @yonatanlanger

Please check in the plugin how the SKU search was applied, it should help you write the correct code.

Best Regards – Victor