Google Web Search¶
Runs a web search against the Google-backed endpoint and returns a JSON-formatted list of documents (as a string). Supports advanced query operators for precise filtering and can limit results by timeframe and safe search.
Usage¶
Use this node when you need relevant web pages, links, and snippets from the open web to feed into downstream tasks like summarization, RAG, or fact-checking. Provide a clear query (optionally with advanced operators), set max results (up to 10), and optionally constrain by safesearch and time window.
Inputs¶
| Field | Required | Type | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| query | True | STRING | The search query text. Supports advanced Google-like operators for precision. | site:example.com "machine learning" -tutorial filetype:pdf |
| max_results | True | INT | Maximum number of search results to return. Upper bound of 10. | 5 |
| safesearch | True | BOOLEAN | Enable or disable safe search filtering. | true |
| timelimit | True | ['None', 'd', 'w', 'm', 'y'] | Restricts results to a recent timeframe. d=day, w=week, m=month, y=year. Use 'None' for no time restriction. | w |
| timelimit_number | True | INT | Number of time units to apply when timelimit is set. For example, w + 2 returns results from the last 2 weeks. | 2 |
Outputs¶
| Field | Type | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| documents | STRING | A JSON-formatted string containing the list of found documents (e.g., titles, URLs, and content snippets). | [{"title": "Intro to ML", "url": "https://example.com/intro", "snippet": "..."}] |
Important Notes¶
- The query must be a non-empty string; an empty query will raise an error.
- This node returns only a documents list (no 'answer' field).
- The result is a JSON string; parse it before downstream structured use.
- Advanced operators supported include: exact phrase ("term"), exclude (-term), site:domain.com, filetype:pdf, related:domain.com.
- Maximum results are capped at 10.
- A 60-second timeout applies to the underlying request.
Troubleshooting¶
- Query is empty error: Ensure 'query' is not blank or whitespace.
- No results returned: Broaden the query, remove restrictive operators, or increase 'max_results'.
- Time filter not applied: Set both 'timelimit' (d/w/m/y) and 'timelimit_number' to specify the window.
- Non-200 response from service: Check service availability and your configuration; the node will raise an exception with the returned error detail.
- JSON parse issues downstream: Remember the output is a JSON string; parse it before using as structured data.
- Unexpected content due to safesearch: Toggle 'safesearch' to adjust filtering behavior.
Example Pipelines¶
