Understanding Collections

Collections are the foundation of how you organize content in IntelliRepo. This guide explains what they are and how to use them effectively.

What is a Collection?

A collection is a container for related documents. Think of it as a folder or a knowledge base focused on a specific topic, department, or use case.

Examples of collections:

• "Customer Support FAQs"
• "Employee Handbook"
• "Product Documentation"
• "Engineering Specs"
• "Legal Contracts"

When you ask a question in a collection's chat, IntelliRepo only searches documents within that collection.

Why Use Collections?

Better Answers

By grouping related documents, you get more relevant answers. A question about HR policies will give better results when asked in an "HR" collection rather than searching across unrelated engineering docs.

Organization

Collections keep your content organized and easy to navigate. Team members can quickly find the right knowledge base for their needs.

Access Control

Collections can be public (all organization members can access) or private (only specific users). This lets you control who sees sensitive content.

Integration Flexibility

When using the API, Slack, or widget, you can scope queries to specific collections. This is essential for customer-facing tools that should only access public documentation.

Collection vs. Global Search

Recommendation: Use collection-specific search when you know where the information lives. Use global search when exploring or when content might span multiple areas.

How Many Collections Should I Create?

Start Simple

Begin with 2-5 collections based on your main content areas. You can always split or merge later.

Signs You Need More Collections

• Search results include too much unrelated content
• Different teams need different access levels
• You're using tags heavily to filter within a collection

Signs You Have Too Many

• Collections have only 1-2 documents each
• Users aren't sure where to look
• Content is duplicated across collections

Collection Visibility

Collections can be:

Public (Default)

• All organization members can view, search, and chat
• Members can upload and manage documents (viewers cannot)
• Best for general knowledge bases

Private

• Only explicitly added members can access
• Useful for sensitive departments (HR, Legal, Finance)
• Must add users individually with specific roles

See Roles & Permissions for details on collection-level access.

Best Practices

Naming

• Use clear, descriptive names
• Include the team or topic (e.g., "Engineering - API Docs")
• Avoid abbreviations that might confuse new team members

Descriptions

• Add a description explaining what's in the collection
• Mention what types of questions it can answer
• Note who maintains it

Document Organization

• Keep documents focused on the collection's topic
• Remove outdated content regularly
• Use tags within collections for sub-categorization

Access

• Start with public collections; add restrictions as needed
• For sensitive content, create separate private collections
• Review access periodically

Plan Limits

The number of collections you can create depends on your plan:

If you need more collections, consider:

• Combining related topics
• Upgrading your plan
• Using tags instead of separate collections

Related Articles

• Creating Collections
• Uploading Documents
• Roles & Permissions

Need Help?

Contact our support team if you need advice on organizing your collections.