Build RAG Chatbot with Llamaindex, OpenSearch, Solar Mini, and HuggingFace all-MiniLM-L12-v1
Introduction to RAG
Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) is a game-changer for GenAI applications, especially in conversational AI. It combines the power of pre-trained large language models (LLMs) like OpenAI’s GPT with external knowledge sources stored in vector databases such as Milvus and Zilliz Cloud, allowing for more accurate, contextually relevant, and up-to-date response generation. A RAG pipeline usually consists of four basic components: a vector database, an embedding model, an LLM, and a framework.
Key Components We'll Use for This RAG Chatbot
This tutorial shows you how to build a simple RAG chatbot in Python using the following components:
- Llamaindex: a data framework that connects large language models (LLMs) with various data sources, enabling efficient retrieval-augmented generation (RAG). It helps structure, index, and query private or external data, optimizing LLM applications for search, chatbots, and analytics.
- OpenSearch: An open-source search and analytics suite derived from Elasticsearch. It offers robust full-text search and real-time analytics, with vector search available as an add-on for similarity-based queries, extending its capabilities to handle high-dimensional data. Since it is just a vector search add-on rather than a purpose-built vector database, it lacks scalability and availability and many other advanced features required by enterprise-level applications. Therefore, if you prefer a much more scalable solution or hate to manage your own infrastructure, we recommend using Zilliz Cloud, which is a fully managed vector database service built on the open-source Milvus and offers a free tier supporting up to 1 million vectors.)
- Solar Mini: Solar Mini is an efficient AI model optimized for high-performance tasks with minimal computational resources. It delivers fast, context-aware responses while maintaining low latency, making it perfect for embedded systems, IoT applications, and mobile devices that need real-time language processing without compromising quality.
- HuggingFace all-MiniLM-L12-v1: A compact sentence embedding model designed to convert text into dense vector representations for semantic understanding. It balances speed and efficiency with strong performance in tasks like semantic search, text clustering, and retrieval-augmented generation. Ideal for applications requiring low-latency inference or resource-constrained environments while maintaining robust semantic analysis capabilities.
By the end of this tutorial, you’ll have a functional chatbot capable of answering questions based on a custom knowledge base.
Note: Since we may use proprietary models in our tutorials, make sure you have the required API key beforehand.
Step 1: Install and Set Up Llamaindex
pip install llama-index
Step 2: Install and Set Up Solar Mini
%pip install llama-index-llms-upstage llama-index
from llama_index.llms.upstage import Upstage
llm = Upstage(
model="solar-mini",
# api_key="YOUR_API_KEY" # uses UPSTAGE_API_KEY env var by default
)
Step 3: Install and Set Up HuggingFace all-MiniLM-L12-v1
%pip install llama-index-embeddings-huggingface
from llama_index.embeddings.huggingface import HuggingFaceEmbedding
embed_model = HuggingFaceEmbedding(model_name="BAAI/bge-small-en-v1.5")
Step 4: Install and Set Up OpenSearch
%pip install llama-index-vector-stores-opensearch
from os import getenv
from llama_index.core import SimpleDirectoryReader
from llama_index.vector_stores.opensearch import (
OpensearchVectorStore,
OpensearchVectorClient,
)
from llama_index.core import VectorStoreIndex, StorageContext
# http endpoint for your cluster (opensearch required for vector index usage)
endpoint = getenv("OPENSEARCH_ENDPOINT", "http://localhost:9200")
# index to demonstrate the VectorStore impl
idx = getenv("OPENSEARCH_INDEX", "gpt-index-demo")
# OpensearchVectorClient stores text in this field by default
text_field = "content"
# OpensearchVectorClient stores embeddings in this field by default
embedding_field = "embedding"
# OpensearchVectorClient encapsulates logic for a
# single opensearch index with vector search enabled
client = OpensearchVectorClient(
endpoint, idx, 1536, embedding_field=embedding_field, text_field=text_field
)
# initialize vector store
vector_store = OpensearchVectorStore(client)
Step 5: Build a RAG Chatbot
Now that you’ve set up all components, let’s start to build a simple chatbot. We’ll use the Milvus introduction doc as a private knowledge base. You can replace it with your own dataset to customize your RAG chatbot.
import requests
from llama_index.core import SimpleDirectoryReader
# load documents
url = 'https://raw.githubusercontent.com/milvus-io/milvus-docs/refs/heads/v2.5.x/site/en/about/overview.md'
example_file = 'example_file.md' # You can replace it with your own file paths.
response = requests.get(url)
with open(example_file, 'wb') as f:
f.write(response.content)
documents = SimpleDirectoryReader(
input_files=[example_file]
).load_data()
print("Document ID:", documents[0].doc_id)
storage_context = StorageContext.from_defaults(vector_store=vector_store)
index = VectorStoreIndex.from_documents(
documents, storage_context=storage_context, embed_model=embed_model
)
query_engine = index.as_query_engine(llm=llm)
res = query_engine.query("What is Milvus?") # You can replace it with your own question.
print(res)
Example output
Milvus is a high-performance, highly scalable vector database designed to operate efficiently across various environments, from personal laptops to large-scale distributed systems. It is available as both open-source software and a cloud service. Milvus excels in managing unstructured data by converting it into numerical vectors through embeddings, which facilitates fast and scalable searches and analytics. The database supports a wide range of data types and offers robust data modeling capabilities, allowing users to organize their data effectively. Additionally, Milvus provides multiple deployment options, including a lightweight version for quick prototyping and a distributed version for handling massive data scales.
Optimization Tips
As you build your RAG system, optimization is key to ensuring peak performance and efficiency. While setting up the components is an essential first step, fine-tuning each one will help you create a solution that works even better and scales seamlessly. In this section, we’ll share some practical tips for optimizing all these components, giving you the edge to build smarter, faster, and more responsive RAG applications.
LlamaIndex optimization tips
To optimize LlamaIndex for a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) setup, structure your data efficiently using hierarchical indices like tree-based or keyword-table indices for faster retrieval. Use embeddings that align with your use case to improve search relevance. Fine-tune chunk sizes to balance context length and retrieval precision. Enable caching for frequently accessed queries to enhance performance. Optimize metadata filtering to reduce unnecessary search space and improve speed. If using vector databases, ensure indexing strategies align with your query patterns. Implement async processing to handle large-scale document ingestion efficiently. Regularly monitor query performance and adjust indexing parameters as needed for optimal results.
OpenSearch optimization tips
To optimize OpenSearch in a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) setup, fine-tune indexing by enabling efficient mappings and reducing unnecessary stored fields. Use HNSW for vector search to speed up similarity queries while balancing recall and latency with appropriate ef_search
and ef_construction
values. Leverage shard and replica settings to distribute load effectively, and enable caching for frequent queries. Optimize text-based retrieval with BM25 tuning and custom analyzers for better relevance. Regularly monitor cluster health, index size, and query performance using OpenSearch Dashboards and adjust configurations accordingly.
Solar Mini optimization tips
For optimizing Solar Mini in a RAG setup, focus on maintaining a balance between response speed and model accuracy, given its compact nature. Prioritize concise document chunking to ensure fast retrieval while keeping the context relevant. Leverage prompt tuning to ensure the model generates the most appropriate response for each query. Cache results for high-demand queries to minimize redundant calls and optimize latency. Additionally, ensure that the retrieval pipeline is fine-tuned for minimal resource consumption while maintaining high retrieval quality. Adjust system parameters for scalability, especially in resource-constrained environments like mobile apps and embedded devices.
HuggingFace all-MiniLM-L12-v1 optimization tips
To optimize the all-MiniLM-L12-v1 model in a RAG setup: preprocess input data by cleaning and normalizing text (lowercasing, removing special characters) to improve embedding quality. Use batch inference for embedding generation to maximize GPU utilization. Fine-tune the model on domain-specific data via contrastive learning to enhance retrieval relevance. Reduce vector dimensionality via PCA if storage or latency is critical. Cache frequently accessed embeddings to minimize recomputation. Quantize the model with Hugging Face’s transformers
library for faster inference with minimal accuracy loss. Regularly benchmark performance against your retrieval metrics (e.g., recall@k) to validate optimizations.
By implementing these tips across your components, you'll be able to enhance the performance and functionality of your RAG system, ensuring it’s optimized for both speed and accuracy. Keep testing, iterating, and refining your setup to stay ahead in the ever-evolving world of AI development.
RAG Cost Calculator: A Free Tool to Calculate Your Cost in Seconds
Estimating the cost of a Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) pipeline involves analyzing expenses across vector storage, compute resources, and API usage. Key cost drivers include vector database queries, embedding generation, and LLM inference.
RAG Cost Calculator is a free tool that quickly estimates the cost of building a RAG pipeline, including chunking, embedding, vector storage/search, and LLM generation. It also helps you identify cost-saving opportunities and achieve up to 10x cost reduction on vector databases with the serverless option.
Calculate your RAG cost
What Have You Learned?
Congratulations on completing this exciting journey into the world of Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) systems! You’ve just unlocked the powerful integration of a framework, vector database, language model, and embedding model into a cohesive pipeline. By diving into how LlamaIndex helps set the structure for your application, you’ve laid a firm foundation for organizing and retrieving data effectively. Utilizing OpenSearch as your vector database enables lightning-fast retrieval, ensuring that you have the right information at your fingertips. And let’s not forget how the Hugging Face all-MiniLM-L12-v1 model elevates your text generation capabilities, infusing your responses with natural language charm. All these components work together seamlessly, demonstrating a little tech magic in action!
Throughout this tutorial, you’ve discovered optimization tips that can enhance the efficiency of your RAG system—like the fine-tuning of data queries to improve response times and relevance. Plus, the free RAG cost calculator is a fantastic tool, empowering you to project costs and resources as you scale your projects. Now that you have this knowledge under your belt, imagine the endless possibilities for innovation! It’s time to roll up your sleeves and start building your own RAG applications. Dive in, experiment, and push the boundaries of what you can create. Your journey just begins here—let's transform ideas into reality!
Further Resources
🌟 In addition to this RAG tutorial, unleash your full potential with these incredible resources to level up your RAG skills.
- How to Build a Multimodal RAG | Documentation
- How to Enhance the Performance of Your RAG Pipeline
- Graph RAG with Milvus | Documentation
- How to Evaluate RAG Applications - Zilliz Learn
- Generative AI Resource Hub | Zilliz
We'd Love to Hear What You Think!
We’d love to hear your thoughts! 🌟 Leave your questions or comments below or join our vibrant Milvus Discord community to share your experiences, ask questions, or connect with thousands of AI enthusiasts. Your journey matters to us!
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- Introduction to RAG
- Key Components We'll Use for This RAG Chatbot
- Step 1: Install and Set Up Llamaindex
- Step 2: Install and Set Up Solar Mini
- Step 3: Install and Set Up HuggingFace all-MiniLM-L12-v1
- Step 4: Install and Set Up OpenSearch
- Step 5: Build a RAG Chatbot
- Optimization Tips
- RAG Cost Calculator: A Free Tool to Calculate Your Cost in Seconds
- What Have You Learned?
- Further Resources
- We'd Love to Hear What You Think!
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