App Studio enhancements further support Pega Express methodology
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
App Studio now includes improvements that you can use to plan your Microjourney™ in a more convenient way. The Overview workspace now includes a button to edit application details, such as name, description, and business objectives, without having to switch to Dev Studio. You can also access relevant information faster, because Case Designer displays additional details about channels, data objects, and attachments associated with a case type directly in a properties pane. For improved management of your features, feature categories are now available in the application inventory so that you can clearly communicate to your development team what type of features need implementation.
For more information, see:
- Editing application details in App Studio
- Associating personas with channels
- Adding features to application inventory
- Creating a Microjourney for customer success
Enhanced mapping of personas and users in App Studio
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
App Studio now provides a consistent and transparent experience when mapping personas to users. When you invite users to your application, you can associate each user with a run-time persona or developer role by selecting an option from a clearly organized list. For example, you can associate run-time users with a customer service representative persona, and then invite a person to help develop your application and assig them a developer role. For greater clarity, personas now replace references to roles in App Studio.
For more information, see Inviting collaborators to your application.
Tracer support for Cosmos React
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
The Tracer tool is now available for stateless applications, so that you can trace and debug applications that you build on Cosmos React. Because in a stateless application multiple requests can run simultaneously, to provide clarity, Tracer shows the events by request ID instead of grouping the events by the time of occurrence. For greater convenience, debugging Cosmos React applications is also available in an offline Tracer tool. As a result, you speed up the development process and deliver top-quality applications that are free of bugs.
For more information, see:
- Debug your Cosmos React applications faster with Tracer (8.6)
- Application debugging by using the Tracer tool
- Pega Digital Experience (DX) API
- Cosmos React
Tracer file size limit to prevent disk usage issues
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
The maximum size of files with event details that Tracer generates is now 10 GB to avoid excessive disk usage and performance issues. Tracer applies the size limit at the node-level, so every node that runs in your system can use up to 10 GB of disk space to create an output file with event details. As a result, you can monitor the health of your system and deliver issue-free applications without experiencing disk space problems.
For more information, see:
- Avoid performance issues when monitoring applications with size limit for Tracer files (8.6)
- Tracer disk usage FAQ
Nested conditions visible in the condition builder
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
Condition builder now supports the option to view nested conditions in a read-only mode, so that you can conveniently analyze and understand logic in your application. For example, if you create a condition that uses another When condition rule as a value to compare at run time, you can preview the configuration of that When condition. You can use this feature with When conditions nested at multiple levels, so that you can analyze even complex logic in your application.
For more information, see Defining conditions in the condition builder.
More detailed configuration of persona access in App Studio
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
App Studio now supports more precise configuration of access for personas so that you can improve the security and usability of your application. You can now define what actions a given persona can perform on a case, a data object, or a configuration set. You also save time because you define settings for an entire group of users that a persona represents. For example, you can configure a customer service representative (CSR) persona to view only cases that process insurance claims from VIP customers, without the option to modify the cases. As a result, you ensure that users of your application can interact only with relevant data, in a way that best meets your business needs.
For more information, see:
- Manage access for personas more efficiently in App Studio (8.6)
- Configuring access options for a persona
Decision tables authoring in App Studio
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
App Studio now supports the option to create decision tables that return values for a calculated field. For example, you can automatically calculate a life insurance rate for a customer by using a decision table that evaluates multiple factors, such as age, medical history, and current occupation. At run time, your application evaluates the values that the customer provides against the values in the decision table, and then responds with the most suitable result. By building decision tables in App Studio, you increase the flexibility of your low-code application and save time and resources, because a single decision table can provide results in multiple scenarios. You can also save and then reuse decision tables to speed up your application development even more.
For more information, see:
- Calculate values automatically in App Studio with decision tables (8.6)
- Calculating values with decision tables
- Authoring decision tables in App Studio
Configuration sets to support no-code run time changes
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
App Studio now provides the option to create configuration sets that define application behavior, which application administrators can adjust at run time, in a no-code way. For example, you can define a configuration that defines the maximum loan amount to offer a Gold account customer to $10,000. If the bank changes the maximum amount, the application administrator can easily change the loan amount at run time, without performing any design-time actions. Configuration sets minimize the need for custom rule overrides, and help you deliver applications that are convenient to maintain and upgrade.
For more information, see:
More specialized data fields
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
Pega Platform™ now provides more prescriptive and specialized options to reuse data, which replace data relationships. Now, to reuse information across your application, you can create a field that references a case type, a data object, data embedded in a case, or a data page. As a result, you do not need detailed knowledge about how your system stores data to successfully reuse information in your business processes.
For more information, see:
Upgrading to Hazelcast 4.x requires downtime during upgrades to Pega Infinity 8.6
Valid from Pega Version 8.6
Upgrade impact statement
On-premises upgrades of Pega Infinity release 8.4.2 and later to version 8.5.1 or later on Tomcat and PostgreSQL are completed with near-zero downtime. However, upgrading to Hazelcast 4.x requires that you shut down and restart your application server.
What is required to update the application to be compatible with this change?
Hazelcast 3.x is enabled by default. For near-zero downtime upgrades, you do not need to perform any action.
For instructions about upgrading to Hazelcast 4.x, see one of the following topics:
- For near-zero downtime upgrades from Pega Infinity release 8.4.2 or later on Tomcat and PostgreSQL, see "Optional: upgrading to Pega Platform version 8.6: Upgrading to Hazelcast 4.x" in Near-zero downtime Upgrade Guide for Pega Platform version 8.4.2 and later for Tomcat and PostgreSQL.
- For all other upgrades, see "Optional: upgrading to Hazelcast 4.x" in the appropriate upgrade guide.