diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/assembly/binary-assembly.xml b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/assembly/binary-assembly.xml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..0500499
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/assembly/binary-assembly.xml
@@ -0,0 +1,19 @@
+<assembly>
+  <id>binary-assembly</id>
+  <formats>
+    <format>zip</format>
+    <format>dir</format>
+  </formats>
+  <includeBaseDirectory>false</includeBaseDirectory>
+  <fileSets>
+    <fileSet>
+      <directory>target/appassembler/bin</directory>
+      <outputDirectory>bin</outputDirectory>
+      <fileMode>0755</fileMode>
+    </fileSet>
+    <fileSet>
+      <directory>target/appassembler/lib</directory>
+      <outputDirectory>lib</outputDirectory>
+    </fileSet>
+  </fileSets>
+</assembly>
diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/InsertPipelineExample.java b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/InsertPipelineExample.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2e57487
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/InsertPipelineExample.java
@@ -0,0 +1,173 @@
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.client;
+
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.CmdLineParser;
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.Option;
+
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.HyracksRMIConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.AbsoluteLocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.ExplicitPartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.LocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.PartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.IConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryHashFunctionFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.ISerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.RecordDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.job.JobSpecification;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.hash.UTF8StringBinaryHashFunctionFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.IntegerSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.partition.FieldHashPartitionComputerFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.MToNHashPartitioningConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.OneToOneConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.misc.NullSinkOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.DataGenOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.FileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeInsertUpdateDeleteOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IFileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.impls.BTreeOp;
+
+// This example will insert tuples into the primary and secondary index using an insert pipeline
+
+public class InsertPipelineExample {
+	private static class Options {
+        @Option(name = "-host", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Host name", required = true)
+        public String host;
+
+        @Option(name = "-port", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Port (default: 1099)")
+        public int port = 1099;
+
+        @Option(name = "-app", usage = "Hyracks Application name", required = true)
+        public String app;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-target-ncs", usage = "Comma separated list of node-controller names to use", required = true)
+        public String ncs;
+                
+        @Option(name = "-num-tuples", usage = "Total number of tuples to to be generated for insertion", required = true)
+        public int numTuples;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-primary-name", usage = "B-Tree file name of primary index", required = true)
+        public String primaryBtreeName;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-secondary-name", usage = "B-Tree file name of secondary index", required = true)
+        public String secondaryBtreeName;                
+    }
+
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        Options options = new Options();
+        CmdLineParser parser = new CmdLineParser(options);
+        parser.parseArgument(args);
+
+        IHyracksClientConnection hcc = new HyracksRMIConnection(options.host, options.port);
+
+        JobSpecification job = createJob(options);
+        
+        long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        UUID jobId = hcc.createJob(options.app, job);
+        hcc.start(jobId);
+        hcc.waitForCompletion(jobId);
+        long end = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        System.err.println(start + " " + end + " " + (end - start));
+    }
+    
+    private static JobSpecification createJob(Options options) {
+    	
+    	JobSpecification spec = new JobSpecification();
+
+    	String[] splitNCs = options.ncs.split(",");
+    	
+    	// schema of tuples to be generated: 4 fields with int, string, string, string
+    	// we will use field 2 as primary key to fill a clustered index
+        RecordDescriptor recDesc = new RecordDescriptor(new ISerializerDeserializer[] {                
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // this field will not go into B-Tree
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this as payload    
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this field as key                           
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this as payload
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE // we will use this as payload
+                });
+        
+        // generate numRecords records with field 2 being unique, integer values in [0, 100000], and strings with max length of 10 characters, and random seed 100
+        DataGenOperatorDescriptor dataGen = new DataGenOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, options.numTuples, 2, 0, 100000, 10, 100);
+        // run data generator on first nodecontroller given
+        PartitionConstraint dataGenConstraint = new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(new LocationConstraint[] { new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[0]) });
+        dataGen.setPartitionConstraint(dataGenConstraint);
+        
+        // create factories and providers for B-Trees
+        IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory interiorFrameFactory = new NSMInteriorFrameFactory();
+        IBTreeLeafFrameFactory leafFrameFactory = new NSMLeafFrameFactory();        
+        IBufferCacheProvider bufferCacheProvider = BufferCacheProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IBTreeRegistryProvider btreeRegistryProvider = BTreeRegistryProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IFileMappingProviderProvider fileMappingProviderProvider = FileMappingProviderProvider.INSTANCE;
+        
+        // prepare insertion into primary index
+        // tuples to be put into B-Tree shall have 4 fields
+        int primaryFieldCount = 4;
+        // the B-Tree expects its keyfields to be at the front of its input tuple 
+        int[] primaryFieldPermutation = { 2, 1, 3, 4 }; // map field 2 of input tuple to field 0 of B-Tree tuple, etc.
+        // comparator factories for primary index
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] primaryComparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[1];
+		primaryComparatorFactories[0] = IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;
+		// create operator descriptor
+        BTreeInsertUpdateDeleteOperatorDescriptor primaryInsert = new BTreeInsertUpdateDeleteOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.primaryBtreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory, leafFrameFactory, primaryFieldCount, primaryComparatorFactories, primaryFieldPermutation, BTreeOp.BTO_INSERT);
+        PartitionConstraint primaryInsertConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        primaryInsert.setPartitionConstraint(primaryInsertConstraint);
+        
+        // prepare insertion into secondary index
+        // tuples to be put into B-Tree shall have 2 fields
+        int secondaryFieldCount = 2;
+        // the B-Tree expects its keyfields to be at the front of its input tuple 
+        int[] secondaryFieldPermutation = { 1, 2 };
+        // comparator factories for primary index
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] secondaryComparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[2];
+		secondaryComparatorFactories[0] = UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;
+		secondaryComparatorFactories[1] = IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;
+		// create operator descriptor
+        BTreeInsertUpdateDeleteOperatorDescriptor secondaryInsert = new BTreeInsertUpdateDeleteOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.secondaryBtreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory, leafFrameFactory, secondaryFieldCount, secondaryComparatorFactories, secondaryFieldPermutation, BTreeOp.BTO_INSERT);
+        PartitionConstraint secondaryInsertConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        secondaryInsert.setPartitionConstraint(secondaryInsertConstraint);
+        
+        // end the insert pipeline at this sink operator
+        NullSinkOperatorDescriptor nullSink = new NullSinkOperatorDescriptor(spec);
+        PartitionConstraint nullSinkPartitionConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        nullSink.setPartitionConstraint(nullSinkPartitionConstraint);
+                
+        // distribute the records from the datagen via hashing to the bulk load ops
+        IBinaryHashFunctionFactory[] hashFactories = new IBinaryHashFunctionFactory[1];
+        hashFactories[0] = UTF8StringBinaryHashFunctionFactory.INSTANCE;        
+        IConnectorDescriptor hashConn = new MToNHashPartitioningConnectorDescriptor(spec,
+                new FieldHashPartitionComputerFactory(new int[] { 0 }, hashFactories));
+        
+        // connect the ops
+        
+        spec.connect(hashConn, dataGen, 0, primaryInsert, 0);
+        
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), primaryInsert, 0, secondaryInsert, 0);
+                      
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), secondaryInsert, 0, nullSink, 0);
+        
+        spec.addRoot(nullSink);
+    	    	
+    	return spec;
+    }
+    
+    private static PartitionConstraint createPartitionConstraint(String[] splitNCs) {
+    	LocationConstraint[] lConstraints = new LocationConstraint[splitNCs.length];
+        for (int i = 0; i < splitNCs.length; ++i) {
+            lConstraints[i] = new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[i]);
+        }
+        return new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(lConstraints);
+    }
+}
diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..9f34737
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java
@@ -0,0 +1,169 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2010 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.client;
+
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.CmdLineParser;
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.Option;
+
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.HyracksRMIConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.AbsoluteLocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.ExplicitPartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.LocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.PartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.IConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryHashFunctionFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.ISerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.RecordDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.job.JobSpecification;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.hash.UTF8StringBinaryHashFunctionFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.IntegerSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.partition.FieldHashPartitionComputerFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.MToNHashPartitioningConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.OneToOneConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.sort.ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.DataGenOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.FileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IFileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMLeafFrameFactory;
+
+// This example will load a primary index from randomly generated data
+
+public class PrimaryIndexBulkLoadExample {
+    private static class Options {
+        @Option(name = "-host", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Host name", required = true)
+        public String host;
+
+        @Option(name = "-port", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Port (default: 1099)")
+        public int port = 1099;
+
+        @Option(name = "-app", usage = "Hyracks Application name", required = true)
+        public String app;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-target-ncs", usage = "Comma separated list of node-controller names to use", required = true)
+        public String ncs;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-num-tuples", usage = "Total number of tuples to to be generated for loading", required = true)
+        public int numTuples;
+                
+        @Option(name = "-btreename", usage = "B-Tree file name", required = true)
+        public String btreeName;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-sortbuffer-size", usage = "Sort buffer size in frames (default: 32768)", required = false)
+        public int sbSize = 32768;
+    }
+
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        Options options = new Options();
+        CmdLineParser parser = new CmdLineParser(options);
+        parser.parseArgument(args);
+
+        IHyracksClientConnection hcc = new HyracksRMIConnection(options.host, options.port);
+
+        JobSpecification job = createJob(options);
+
+        long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        UUID jobId = hcc.createJob(options.app, job);
+        hcc.start(jobId);
+        hcc.waitForCompletion(jobId);
+        long end = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        System.err.println(start + " " + end + " " + (end - start));
+    }
+    
+    private static JobSpecification createJob(Options options) {
+    	
+    	JobSpecification spec = new JobSpecification();
+
+    	String[] splitNCs = options.ncs.split(",");
+    	
+    	// schema of tuples to be generated: 5 fields with string, string, int, int, string
+    	// we will use field-index 2 as primary key to fill a clustered index
+        RecordDescriptor recDesc = new RecordDescriptor(new ISerializerDeserializer[] {                
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // this field will not go into B-Tree
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this as payload    
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this field as key                           
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this as payload
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE // we will use this as payload
+                });
+        
+        // generate numRecords records with field 2 being unique, integer values in [0, 100000], and strings with max length of 10 characters, and random seed 50
+        DataGenOperatorDescriptor dataGen = new DataGenOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, options.numTuples, 2, 0, 100000, 10, 50);
+        // run data generator on first nodecontroller given
+        PartitionConstraint dataGenConstraint = new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(new LocationConstraint[] { new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[0]) });
+        dataGen.setPartitionConstraint(dataGenConstraint);
+                
+        // sort the tuples as preparation for bulk load
+        // fields to sort on
+        int[] sortFields = { 2 };
+        // comparators for sort fields
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] comparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[1];
+        comparatorFactories[0] = IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;        
+        ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor sorter = new ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor(spec, options.sbSize, sortFields, comparatorFactories, recDesc);
+        PartitionConstraint sorterConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        sorter.setPartitionConstraint(sorterConstraint);
+        
+        // create factories and providers for B-Tree
+        IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory interiorFrameFactory = new NSMInteriorFrameFactory();
+        IBTreeLeafFrameFactory leafFrameFactory = new NSMLeafFrameFactory();        
+        IBufferCacheProvider bufferCacheProvider = BufferCacheProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IBTreeRegistryProvider btreeRegistryProvider = BTreeRegistryProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IFileMappingProviderProvider fileMappingProviderProvider = FileMappingProviderProvider.INSTANCE;
+        
+        // tuples to be put into B-Tree shall have 4 fields
+        int fieldCount = 4;
+        // the B-Tree expects its keyfields to be at the front of its input tuple 
+        int[] fieldPermutation = { 2, 1, 3, 4 }; // map field 2 of input tuple to field 0 of B-Tree tuple, etc.
+        BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor btreeBulkLoad = new BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor(spec, 
+        		bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.btreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory,
+                leafFrameFactory, fieldCount, comparatorFactories, fieldPermutation, 0.7f);
+        PartitionConstraint bulkLoadConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        btreeBulkLoad.setPartitionConstraint(bulkLoadConstraint);
+        
+        // distribute the records from the datagen via hashing to the bulk load ops
+        IBinaryHashFunctionFactory[] hashFactories = new IBinaryHashFunctionFactory[1];
+        hashFactories[0] = UTF8StringBinaryHashFunctionFactory.INSTANCE;        
+        IConnectorDescriptor hashConn = new MToNHashPartitioningConnectorDescriptor(spec,
+                new FieldHashPartitionComputerFactory(new int[] { 0 }, hashFactories));
+        
+        spec.connect(hashConn, dataGen, 0, sorter, 0);
+                      
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), sorter, 0, btreeBulkLoad, 0);
+        
+        spec.addRoot(btreeBulkLoad);
+    	    	
+    	return spec;
+    }
+    
+    private static PartitionConstraint createPartitionConstraint(String[] splitNCs) {
+    	LocationConstraint[] lConstraints = new LocationConstraint[splitNCs.length];
+        for (int i = 0; i < splitNCs.length; ++i) {
+            lConstraints[i] = new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[i]);
+        }
+        return new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(lConstraints);
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexSearchExample.java b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexSearchExample.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c84ed4e
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/PrimaryIndexSearchExample.java
@@ -0,0 +1,142 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2010 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.client;
+
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.CmdLineParser;
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.Option;
+
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.HyracksRMIConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.AbsoluteLocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.ExplicitPartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.LocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.PartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.ISerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.RecordDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.job.JobSpecification;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.IntegerSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.OneToOneConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.misc.PrinterOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.FileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IFileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.ITupleReferenceFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.NullTupleReferenceFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMLeafFrameFactory;
+
+// This example will perform an ordered scan on the primary index
+// i.e. a range-search for [-infinity, +infinity]
+
+public class PrimaryIndexSearchExample {
+    private static class Options {
+        @Option(name = "-host", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Host name", required = true)
+        public String host;
+
+        @Option(name = "-port", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Port (default: 1099)")
+        public int port = 1099;
+
+        @Option(name = "-app", usage = "Hyracks Application name", required = true)
+        public String app;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-target-ncs", usage = "Comma separated list of node-controller names to use", required = true)
+        public String ncs;
+                
+        @Option(name = "-btreename", usage = "B-Tree file name to search", required = true)
+        public String btreeName;               
+    }
+
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        Options options = new Options();
+        CmdLineParser parser = new CmdLineParser(options);
+        parser.parseArgument(args);
+
+        IHyracksClientConnection hcc = new HyracksRMIConnection(options.host, options.port);
+
+        JobSpecification job = createJob(options);
+
+        long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        UUID jobId = hcc.createJob(options.app, job);
+        hcc.start(jobId);
+        hcc.waitForCompletion(jobId);
+        long end = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        System.err.println(start + " " + end + " " + (end - start));
+    }
+    
+    private static JobSpecification createJob(Options options) {
+    	
+    	JobSpecification spec = new JobSpecification();
+
+    	String[] splitNCs = options.ncs.split(",");
+    	
+        // create factories and providers for B-Tree
+        IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory interiorFrameFactory = new NSMInteriorFrameFactory();
+        IBTreeLeafFrameFactory leafFrameFactory = new NSMLeafFrameFactory();        
+        IBufferCacheProvider bufferCacheProvider = BufferCacheProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IBTreeRegistryProvider btreeRegistryProvider = BTreeRegistryProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IFileMappingProviderProvider fileMappingProviderProvider = FileMappingProviderProvider.INSTANCE;
+    	
+    	// schema of tuples coming out of primary index
+        RecordDescriptor recDesc = new RecordDescriptor(new ISerializerDeserializer[] {                
+        		IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,    
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,                           
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,
+                });
+        
+        // comparators for btree
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] comparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[1];
+        comparatorFactories[0] = IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;     
+        
+        // build search key factories
+    	ITupleReferenceFactory[] searchKeys = new ITupleReferenceFactory[2]; 
+    	searchKeys[0] = new NullTupleReferenceFactory(); // equivalent to -infinity
+    	searchKeys[1] = new NullTupleReferenceFactory(); // equivalent to +infinity
+        
+        BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor btreeSearchOp = new BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.btreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory, leafFrameFactory, recDesc.getFields().length, comparatorFactories, true, searchKeys, comparatorFactories.length);
+        PartitionConstraint btreeSearchConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        btreeSearchOp.setPartitionConstraint(btreeSearchConstraint);
+        
+        // have each node print the results of its respective B-Tree
+        PrinterOperatorDescriptor printer = new PrinterOperatorDescriptor(spec);
+        PartitionConstraint printerConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        printer.setPartitionConstraint(printerConstraint);
+        
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), btreeSearchOp, 0, printer, 0);
+        
+        spec.addRoot(printer);
+    	    	
+    	return spec;
+    }
+    
+    private static PartitionConstraint createPartitionConstraint(String[] splitNCs) {
+    	LocationConstraint[] lConstraints = new LocationConstraint[splitNCs.length];
+        for (int i = 0; i < splitNCs.length; ++i) {
+            lConstraints[i] = new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[i]);
+        }
+        return new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(lConstraints);
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..a39126d
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexBulkLoadExample.java
@@ -0,0 +1,161 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2010 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.client;
+
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.CmdLineParser;
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.Option;
+
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.HyracksRMIConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.AbsoluteLocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.ExplicitPartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.LocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.PartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.ISerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.RecordDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.job.JobSpecification;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.IntegerSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.OneToOneConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.sort.ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.FileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeDiskOrderScanOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IFileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMLeafFrameFactory;
+
+// This example will load a secondary index with <key, primary-index key> pairs
+// We require an existing primary index built with PrimaryIndexBulkLoadExample
+
+public class SecondaryIndexBulkLoadExample {
+    private static class Options {
+        @Option(name = "-host", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Host name", required = true)
+        public String host;
+
+        @Option(name = "-port", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Port (default: 1099)")
+        public int port = 1099;
+
+        @Option(name = "-app", usage = "Hyracks Application name", required = true)
+        public String app;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-target-ncs", usage = "Comma separated list of node-controller names to use", required = true)
+        public String ncs;
+                
+        @Option(name = "-primary-btreename", usage = "Name of primary-index B-Tree to load from", required = true)
+        public String primaryBtreeName;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-btreename", usage = "B-Tree file name for secondary index to be built", required = true)
+        public String btreeName;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-sortbuffer-size", usage = "Sort buffer size in frames (default: 32768)", required = false)
+        public int sbSize = 32768;
+    }
+    
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        Options options = new Options();
+        CmdLineParser parser = new CmdLineParser(options);
+        parser.parseArgument(args);
+
+        IHyracksClientConnection hcc = new HyracksRMIConnection(options.host, options.port);
+
+        JobSpecification job = createJob(options);
+
+        long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        UUID jobId = hcc.createJob(options.app, job);
+        hcc.start(jobId);
+        hcc.waitForCompletion(jobId);
+        long end = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        System.err.println(start + " " + end + " " + (end - start));
+    }
+    
+    private static JobSpecification createJob(Options options) {
+    	
+    	JobSpecification spec = new JobSpecification();
+
+    	String[] splitNCs = options.ncs.split(",");
+    	
+    	// schema of tuples that we are retrieving from the primary index
+        RecordDescriptor recDesc = new RecordDescriptor(new ISerializerDeserializer[] {                                    
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this as payload in secondary index
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE, // we will use this ask key in secondary index
+                IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,
+                UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE
+                });
+    	
+        // create factories and providers for B-Tree(s)
+        IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory interiorFrameFactory = new NSMInteriorFrameFactory();
+        IBTreeLeafFrameFactory leafFrameFactory = new NSMLeafFrameFactory();
+        IBufferCacheProvider bufferCacheProvider = BufferCacheProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IBTreeRegistryProvider btreeRegistryProvider = BTreeRegistryProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IFileMappingProviderProvider fileMappingProviderProvider = FileMappingProviderProvider.INSTANCE;
+    	        
+        // use a disk-order scan to read primary index    	
+        BTreeDiskOrderScanOperatorDescriptor btreeScanOp = new BTreeDiskOrderScanOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.primaryBtreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory, leafFrameFactory, recDesc.getFields().length);		
+		PartitionConstraint scanPartitionConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+		btreeScanOp.setPartitionConstraint(scanPartitionConstraint);
+		
+        // sort the tuples as preparation for bulk load into secondary index
+        // fields to sort on
+        int[] sortFields = { 1, 0 };
+        // comparators for sort fields
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] comparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[2];
+        comparatorFactories[0] = UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;
+        comparatorFactories[1] = IntegerBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;
+        ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor sorter = new ExternalSortOperatorDescriptor(spec, options.sbSize, sortFields, comparatorFactories, recDesc);
+        PartitionConstraint sorterConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        sorter.setPartitionConstraint(sorterConstraint);
+        
+        // tuples to be put into B-Tree shall have 2 fields
+        int fieldCount = 2;
+        // the B-Tree expects its keyfields to be at the front of its input tuple 
+        int[] fieldPermutation = { 1, 0 };
+        BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor btreeBulkLoad = new BTreeBulkLoadOperatorDescriptor(spec, 
+        		bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.btreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory,
+                leafFrameFactory, fieldCount, comparatorFactories, fieldPermutation, 0.7f);
+        PartitionConstraint bulkLoadConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        btreeBulkLoad.setPartitionConstraint(bulkLoadConstraint);        
+        
+        // connect the ops
+               
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), btreeScanOp, 0, sorter, 0);
+                      
+        //spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), sorter, 0, btreeBulkLoad, 0);
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), sorter, 0, btreeBulkLoad, 0);
+        
+        spec.addRoot(btreeBulkLoad);
+    	    	
+    	return spec;
+    }
+    
+    private static PartitionConstraint createPartitionConstraint(String[] splitNCs) {
+    	LocationConstraint[] lConstraints = new LocationConstraint[splitNCs.length];
+        for (int i = 0; i < splitNCs.length; ++i) {
+            lConstraints[i] = new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[i]);
+        }
+        return new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(lConstraints);
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexSearchExample.java b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexSearchExample.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cbce6f6
--- /dev/null
+++ b/hyracks-examples/btree-example/btreeclient/src/main/java/edu/uci/ics/hyracks/examples/btree/client/SecondaryIndexSearchExample.java
@@ -0,0 +1,176 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2009-2010 by The Regents of the University of California
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * you may obtain a copy of the License from
+ * 
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ * 
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.client;
+
+import java.io.DataOutput;
+import java.nio.ByteBuffer;
+import java.util.UUID;
+
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.CmdLineParser;
+import org.kohsuke.args4j.Option;
+
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.HyracksRMIConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.client.IHyracksClientConnection;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.AbsoluteLocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.ExplicitPartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.LocationConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.constraints.PartitionConstraint;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.context.IHyracksContext;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.IBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.ISerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.dataflow.value.RecordDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.exceptions.HyracksDataException;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.api.job.JobSpecification;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.control.nc.runtime.HyracksContext;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.comm.io.ArrayTupleBuilder;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.comm.io.FrameTupleAppender;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.comparators.UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.IntegerSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.common.data.marshalling.UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.connectors.OneToOneConnectorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.dataflow.std.misc.PrinterOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.BufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.examples.btree.helper.FileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.api.IBTreeLeafFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.FrameTupleReferenceFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBTreeRegistryProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IBufferCacheProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.IFileMappingProviderProvider;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.dataflow.ITupleReferenceFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMInteriorFrameFactory;
+import edu.uci.ics.hyracks.storage.am.btree.frames.NSMLeafFrameFactory;
+
+// This example will perform range search on the secondary index
+
+public class SecondaryIndexSearchExample {
+    private static class Options {
+        @Option(name = "-host", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Host name", required = true)
+        public String host;
+
+        @Option(name = "-port", usage = "Hyracks Cluster Controller Port (default: 1099)")
+        public int port = 1099;
+
+        @Option(name = "-app", usage = "Hyracks Application name", required = true)
+        public String app;
+        
+        @Option(name = "-target-ncs", usage = "Comma separated list of node-controller names to use", required = true)
+        public String ncs;
+                
+        @Option(name = "-btreename", usage = "B-Tree file name to search", required = true)
+        public String btreeName;               
+    }
+
+    public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
+        Options options = new Options();
+        CmdLineParser parser = new CmdLineParser(options);
+        parser.parseArgument(args);
+
+        IHyracksClientConnection hcc = new HyracksRMIConnection(options.host, options.port);
+
+        JobSpecification job = createJob(options);
+
+        long start = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        UUID jobId = hcc.createJob(options.app, job);
+        hcc.start(jobId);
+        hcc.waitForCompletion(jobId);
+        long end = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        System.err.println(start + " " + end + " " + (end - start));
+    }
+    
+    private static JobSpecification createJob(Options options) throws HyracksDataException {
+    	
+    	JobSpecification spec = new JobSpecification();
+
+    	String[] splitNCs = options.ncs.split(",");
+    	
+        // create factories and providers for B-Tree
+        IBTreeInteriorFrameFactory interiorFrameFactory = new NSMInteriorFrameFactory();
+        IBTreeLeafFrameFactory leafFrameFactory = new NSMLeafFrameFactory();        
+        IBufferCacheProvider bufferCacheProvider = BufferCacheProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IBTreeRegistryProvider btreeRegistryProvider = BTreeRegistryProvider.INSTANCE;
+        IFileMappingProviderProvider fileMappingProviderProvider = FileMappingProviderProvider.INSTANCE;
+    	
+    	// schema of tuples coming out of secondary index
+        RecordDescriptor recDesc = new RecordDescriptor(new ISerializerDeserializer[] {                
+        		UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE,
+        		IntegerSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE                
+                });
+        
+        // comparators for btree, note that we only need a comparator for the non-unique key
+        // i.e. we will have a range condition on the first field only (implying [-infinity, +infinity] for the second field)
+        IBinaryComparatorFactory[] comparatorFactories = new IBinaryComparatorFactory[1];
+        comparatorFactories[0] = UTF8StringBinaryComparatorFactory.INSTANCE;        
+        
+        
+        // build search keys (which must be of type ITupleReference)
+        // put search keys into frame and create tuplereference factories
+        IHyracksContext ctx = new HyracksContext(32768); // WARNING: make sure frame size is same as on NCs
+        ByteBuffer keyFrame = ctx.getResourceManager().allocateFrame();
+		FrameTupleAppender appender = new FrameTupleAppender(ctx);				
+		appender.reset(keyFrame, true);
+		ArrayTupleBuilder tb = new ArrayTupleBuilder(comparatorFactories.length);
+		DataOutput dos = tb.getDataOutput();
+		
+		ISerializerDeserializer[] keyRecDescSers = { UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE };
+		RecordDescriptor keyRecDesc = new RecordDescriptor(keyRecDescSers);
+		
+		// build low key
+		tb.reset();
+		UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE.serialize("a", dos);
+    	tb.addFieldEndOffset();    	  
+    	        	    	
+    	appender.append(tb.getFieldEndOffsets(), tb.getByteArray(), 0, tb.getSize());
+    	    	
+    	// build high key
+    	tb.reset();
+    	UTF8StringSerializerDeserializer.INSTANCE.serialize("f", dos);
+    	tb.addFieldEndOffset();
+    	
+    	appender.append(tb.getFieldEndOffsets(), tb.getByteArray(), 0, tb.getSize());
+    	
+    	// build search key factories
+    	ITupleReferenceFactory[] searchKeys = new ITupleReferenceFactory[2]; 
+    	// the low key is tuple 0 in the keyFrame
+    	searchKeys[0] = new FrameTupleReferenceFactory(keyFrame.array(), 0, keyRecDesc);
+    	// the high key is tuple 1 in the keyFrame
+    	searchKeys[1] = new FrameTupleReferenceFactory(keyFrame.array(), 1, keyRecDesc);
+    	
+        BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor btreeSearchOp = new BTreeSearchOperatorDescriptor(spec, recDesc, bufferCacheProvider, btreeRegistryProvider, options.btreeName, fileMappingProviderProvider, interiorFrameFactory, leafFrameFactory, recDesc.getFields().length, comparatorFactories, true, searchKeys, comparatorFactories.length);
+        PartitionConstraint btreeSearchConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        btreeSearchOp.setPartitionConstraint(btreeSearchConstraint);
+        
+        // have each node print the results of its respective B-Tree
+        PrinterOperatorDescriptor printer = new PrinterOperatorDescriptor(spec);
+        PartitionConstraint printerConstraint = createPartitionConstraint(splitNCs);
+        printer.setPartitionConstraint(printerConstraint);
+        
+        spec.connect(new OneToOneConnectorDescriptor(spec), btreeSearchOp, 0, printer, 0);
+        
+        spec.addRoot(printer);
+    	    	
+    	return spec;
+    }
+    
+    private static PartitionConstraint createPartitionConstraint(String[] splitNCs) {
+    	LocationConstraint[] lConstraints = new LocationConstraint[splitNCs.length];
+        for (int i = 0; i < splitNCs.length; ++i) {
+            lConstraints[i] = new AbsoluteLocationConstraint(splitNCs[i]);
+        }
+        return new ExplicitPartitionConstraint(lConstraints);
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file