> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://algolia.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Split large records

> How to split records in Laravel Scout with Algolia Scout Extended. Algolia records should be 10 kB or less.

Create smaller records by splitting big records into logical chunks such as paragraphs or sentences.

To split an attribute, your `Searchable` class must implement a `split${Attribute}` method.
For example, if you want to split the `body` attribute, the method name should be `splitBody`.

## Split directly on the `Searchable` class

The most basic way to split a record is by doing it directly on the `Searchable` class:

```php PHP icon=code theme={"system"}
namespace App;

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;

class Article extends Model
{
    use Searchable;

    /**
     * Splits the given value.
     *
     * @param  string $value
     * @return array
     */
    public function splitBody($value)
    {
        return explode('. ', $value);
    }
}
```

<Note>
  If all split methods for a specific model return an empty array, no records are sent to Algolia.
</Note>

## Split using a splitter

Sometimes you need to isolate the splitting logic into a dedicated class.

```php PHP icon=code theme={"system"}
namespace App;

use Illuminate\Database\Eloquent\Model;
use Algolia\ScoutExtended\Splitters\HtmlSplitter;

class Article extends Model
{
    use Searchable;

    /**
     * Splits the given value.
     *
     * @param  string $value
     * @return string
     */
    public function splitBody($value)
    {
        return HtmlSplitter::class; // You can also return an instance instead of the class name.
    }
}
```

## Write a splitter

One of the primary benefits of creating a splitter class is the ability to type-hint any dependencies your splitter may need in its constructor.
Laravel automatically resolves and injects these dependencies into your splitter instance.

To write a splitter, create a new class that implements the `Algolia\ScoutExtended\Contracts\SplitterContract`.
The `split` method should split the given `$value` as needed:

```php PHP icon=code theme={"system"}
namespace App\Search\Splitters;

use App\Contracts\SplitterServiceContract;
use Algolia\ScoutExtended\Contracts\SplitterContract;

class CustomSplitter implements SplitterContract
{
     /**
     * @var \App\Contracts\SplitterServiceContract
     */
    protected $service;

     /**
     * Creates a new instance of the class.
     *
     * @param  \App\Contracts\SplitterServiceContract $service
     *
     * @return void
     */
    public function __construct(SplitterService $service)
    {
         $this->service = $service;
    }

    /**
     * Splits the given value.
     *
     * @param  object $searchable
     * @param  mixed $value
     *
     * @return array
     */
    public function split($searchable, $value): array
    {
        $values = $this->service->split($searchable->articleType, $value);

        return $values;
    }
}
```

## Distinct

The *distinct* feature lets you force Algolia to return distinct results based on one attribute defined in [`attributeForDistinct`](/doc/api-reference/api-parameters/attributeForDistinct).
Using this attribute, you can limit the number of returned records that contain the same value in that attribute.

To use *distinct*, configure the `attributeForDistinct` in your `config/scout-articles.php` configuration file:

```php PHP icon=code theme={"system"}
// ...
/*
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Distinct
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------
|
| Using this attribute, you can limit the number of returned records that contain the same
| value in that attribute. For example, if the distinct attribute is the series_name and
| several hits (Episodes) have the same value for series_name (Laravel From Scratch).
|
| Supported(distinct): Boolean
| Supported(attributeForDistinct): Null, String
| Example(attributeForDistinct): 'slug'
*/

'distinct' => true,
'attributeForDistinct' => 'slug',
// ...
```