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Home > “Admin Menu” > “Knowledge Bases”
With VARIOS AI, you can create powerful vector databases based on the Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) approach – we call them knowledge bases. Documents are ingested through various data sources (e.g. manual upload, GitHub, WebDAV, VARIOS AI server folder), stored as embeddings, and made available via semantic search. Knowledge bases can be assigned to one or more assistants. Benefits:
  • Semantic search: Instead of simple keyword matching, the system searches for semantically similar content using vectorization.
  • Up-to-date knowledge: New or changed documents can be synchronized automatically or manually depending on the source type.
  • Use in assistants: Enable knowledge bases for assistants to incorporate company-specific knowledge into responses (see Global Assistants).

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Knowledge Base Overview

On the Knowledge Bases page, you can see all created knowledge bases in a table: Actions per row:
  • Edit (pencil icon): Open the knowledge base, manage name/description and sources.
  • Delete (trash icon): Remove the knowledge base including all sources and documents.
You can filter by name using the search field. The list is paginated (“Previous” / “Next”).
When deleting a knowledge base, all associated sources and documents are permanently removed. Consider removing the knowledge base from all assistants first.

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Create and Edit a Knowledge Base

1

Create a new knowledge base

Click New Knowledge Base. You will be redirected to the editing view.
2

Set name and description

Enter a name and optionally a description (e.g. purpose and content). Click Save to create the knowledge base.
3

Select AI Model for Generating Embeddings

Select which embedding model should be used in the knowledge database to generate embeddings.
4

Add data sources

Only after saving can you create sources under Create New Source. Select the data source type and click Create Source. Then configure the source (see section Data Sources and Source Types).
5

Assign knowledge base to an assistant

Enable the knowledge base for one or more Global Assistants. Permissions controlling which users can access which knowledge base are managed via the assistants.

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Data Sources and Source Types

A knowledge base can have multiple sources. Each source has a source type that is set when creating it and cannot be changed afterwards.
Source type is permanent: The type of a source (e.g. GitHub, WebDAV) cannot be changed after creation. For a different type, you must create a new source and optionally delete the old one.

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Available Source Types

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General Configuration for Each Source

  • Your name for the data source: A freely chosen display name (e.g. “GitHub 1”, “WebDAV Legal Texts”).
  • Test connection: For GitHub, WebDAV, and VARIOS AI server folder, this button checks credentials and reachability. If errors occur, a red “Error” status appears in the configuration.
  • Synchronization: Only for sources with external access (not for Manual Upload):
    • Interval: Manual, every hour, every day, every week, or every month.
    • Sync now: Starts an immediate sync.
After saving a source, the interface shows Configuration (Status: No Errors / Error) and Files (number of documents, status Done / Processing / Error). You can reload, delete, or edit the source using the icons.

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Manual Upload

  • Only one source of type “Manual Upload” is allowed per knowledge base. When the limit is reached, “Manual Upload (Limit reached)” appears and the option is disabled.
  • Documents: Drag files into the drag & drop area or click Upload and select files.
  • There is no synchronization interval – content is only added by manual upload.
  • Selected documents: List of uploaded files with status:
    • Done (green): Successfully processed and embedded.
    • Processing (orange): Processing is still in progress.
    • Error (red): Processing failed (e.g. invalid format).
  • Individual documents can be removed from the source using the trash icon.
Supported formats can be found in the application (e.g. PDF, DOCX, TXT, MD). Very large files may be excluded depending on the configuration.

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VARIOS AI server folder

Documents are read from a local folder that is mounted as a volume into the container. The share folder you specify in the UI is a subfolder within the container base directory /data/Data/KnowledgebaseDocuments.
  • Test connection checks whether the folder exists in the container and is readable.
  • Hidden files (starting with . or ~) and symlinks are automatically skipped.

Set Up VARIOS AI Server Folder

Technical guide: Configure Docker Compose volumes, mount network shares (SMB/NFS), troubleshoot common errors.

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GitHub

Documents are loaded from a GitHub repository.
  • Test connection checks repository, token, and branch.
  • Possible errors: invalid repository format, authentication failed, insufficient permissions, repository/branch not found, API rate limit.

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WebDAV

Documents are fetched from a WebDAV server (e.g. Nextcloud, ownCloud).
  • Test connection checks URL and authentication. Common errors: authentication failed, scheme/host not set.

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Status and Error Handling

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Knowledge Base Status (Overview List)

  • Green: No errors, all sources are OK and documents have been processed.
  • Orange: At least one source or documents are “Processing” (e.g. sync or embedding is running).
  • Red: At least one source or documents have the status “Error”.

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Source Status (in the Editing View)

  • No Errors: Configuration and connection are OK.
  • Error: Connection test or last sync failed (e.g. wrong credentials, folder unreachable).
  • Synchronizing: Sync is currently running.

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Document Status (per Source)

  • Done: Document was successfully read and embedded.
  • Processing: Processing or embedding is still in progress.
  • Error: Processing failed (e.g. file format, size, read error).
1

If the knowledge base shows a red status

In the overview, click Edit and check the sources. Open the source with a red configuration status (edit icon).
2

Check the source

Run Test connection. Read the error message (e.g. wrong path, invalid token, WebDAV login). Correct the settings and click Save.
3

Trigger sync again if needed

For GitHub/WebDAV/VARIOS AI server folder, click Sync now. Then check the document list (filter “Error”, optionally remove individual documents or re-embed them if the UI offers that option).

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Quick Overview: What to Keep in Mind

  • Source type: Choose before creating – it cannot be changed afterwards.
  • Manual Upload: Only one such source per knowledge base; documents are uploaded manually only.
  • VARIOS AI server folder: Check the path and read permissions on the host/container; mount volumes correctly if needed.
  • GitHub: Token with sufficient permissions (read repository); consider rate limits.
  • WebDAV: URL including scheme (e.g. https://), correct user and password; set share folder and folder depth appropriately.
  • Synchronization: Only for GitHub, WebDAV, and VARIOS AI server folder – choose an interval or sync manually.
  • Permissions: Access to knowledge bases is managed via assignment to Global Assistants.
Permissions controlling which users can access which knowledge base are managed via the assistants. Only assign the knowledge base to assistants for which the content is intended.