| name | searxng-search |
| description | Search the internet and news using a local SearXNG instance. Use when the user wants to search the web, find current information, search for news, or research a topic without depending on third-party APIs. |
| compatibility | Requires Python 3 (stdlib only — no extra packages needed). Requires a running SearXNG instance (Docker). |
| group | domain |
| triggers | ["поиск в интернете","актуальная информация"] |
| output | search results with titles, URLs, and snippets |
| calls | [] |
SearXNG Search
Search the internet and news using a self-hosted SearXNG metasearch engine.
When to use this skill
- User wants to search the internet for information
- User wants to find recent news on a topic
- User needs current information beyond the model's knowledge cutoff
- User wants privacy-respecting search (no API keys, no tracking)
Prerequisites
1. Install Docker Desktop (first time only)
winget install -e --id Docker.DockerDesktop
After installation, restart the computer and launch Docker Desktop.
2. Start SearXNG
cd D:/Projects/searxng && docker compose up -d
To stop:
cd D:/Projects/searxng && docker compose down
To check status:
docker ps --filter name=searxng
First run: SearXNG generates its own uwsgi.ini on startup. The settings.yml in D:/Projects/searxng/searxng/ overrides defaults.
IMPORTANT: Before the first start, generate a real secret key and replace the placeholder in settings.yml:
py -c "import secrets; print(secrets.token_hex(32))"
Steps
Search the web (general)
py scripts/search_searxng.py "your query"
Search for news
py scripts/search_searxng.py "your query" --category news
Options
| Option | Description | Default |
|---|
--category | general, news, images, videos, science, it, social media | general |
--max-results N | Number of results to return | 10 |
--language CODE | Language code: en, ru, de, all | all |
--url URL | SearXNG base URL | http://localhost:8888 |
--json | Output raw JSON | off |
Examples
py scripts/search_searxng.py "Python asyncio best practices"
py scripts/search_searxng.py "искусственный интеллект новости" --category news --language ru
py scripts/search_searxng.py "OpenAI GPT" --category news --max-results 5
py scripts/search_searxng.py "Docker networking" --category it
py scripts/search_searxng.py "machine learning" --json
Troubleshooting
| Error | Fix |
|---|
Cannot connect to SearXNG | Run docker compose up -d in D:/Projects/searxng/ |
Invalid JSON response | Add json to search.formats in settings.yml and restart |
No results found | Try a different query or category; check SearXNG web UI at http://localhost:8888 |
| Docker not found | Install Docker Desktop via winget install -e --id Docker.DockerDesktop |
Scripts