How do I update multiple items in ElasticSearch?

Question

Let's say I have a tag type in an ElasticSearch index, with the following mapping:

{
    "tag": {
        "properties": {
            "tag": {"type": "string", "store": "yes"},
            "aliases": {"type": "string"}
        }
    }
}

Each entry is a tag, and an array of aliases to that tag. Here is an example item:

{
    "word": "weak",
    "aliases": ["anemic", "anaemic", "faint", "flimsy"]
}

From time to time, I want to add new tag words with their aliases, and add new aliases to existing tag words.

Adding new tag words with their aliases is easy, it's just a new Document. However, how can I add new aliases to existing tag words in a sane way?

I know I can just search for the tag word, get its document, search to see if the alias already exists in the array of aliases, if not add it, than save. However - this does not sound like a good solution.

Is there a way to do a bulk update?

Answer 1

All updates in ElasticSearch are done by finding the record, deleting the old version and adding the new version. You can save a little bit on moving records all the way to the client by using Update API. It would still require finding the record though.

What you, probably, want is Update by query.