Report Browser removed from Designer Studio
Valid from Pega Version 7.1.9
The Report Browser and Access landing page have been removed from Designer Studio. In Designer Studio, developers can create, edit, and test reports by using the Report Definition rule form.
The Report Browser is still available in the Case Manager portal.
New field types in Form Builder
Valid from Pega Version 7.1.9
You can create forms in Form Builder that include the following field types:
- Data reference – Prompts users with a list of data records or instances of a specific data type.
- User reference – Prompts users to select or search for an existing user in the application.
For more information, see Data references in Form Builder and User references in Form Builder.
Reusable components in Form Builder
Valid from Pega Version 7.1.9
You can reuse an existing form or data reference when creating a form. By referencing the existing fields in your application, you save time and build forms that are easier to maintain. Refer to the Reuse fields panel in Form Builder to view all of the fields, forms, and data references in your application.
For more information, see Reuse fields panel in Form Builder.
Search field type is deprecated
Valid from Pega Version 7.1.9
The search field type in Form Builder is deprecated. Use a data reference or user reference instead, both of which prompt users with an autocomplete field at run time.
For the full list of supported field types in Form Builder, see Supported display modes by field type.
Support for enterprise and express applications
Valid from Pega Version 7.1.9
When you run the New Application wizard, you can create two types of applications:
- Enterprise – A full-scale application that has access to all the capabilities in the Pega 7 Platform.
By default, enterprise applications are developed in Designer Studio, but users have access to express mode. - Express – A small-scale application that has access to a subset of the capabilities in the Pega 7 Platform.
Express applications are developed in express mode, and are ideal for new users or for quickly testing functionality.
For more information, see Express applications.
Business logic-based routing to process cases more efficiently
Valid from Pega Version 8.3
Process cases more efficiently by defining business logic-based routing options to route tasks to customer service representatives (CSRs) who have a specified availability or skillset. For example, you can ensure that a task is routed to a CSR with a high level of a German language if it is your business need. You can also create custom lists of operators and work queues to filter CSRs who can receive an assignment.
For more information, see Choosing an assignee at run time in Dev Studio, Choosing an assignee at run time in App Studio, Configuring business logic-based routing APIs.
Simple associations for quickly joining classes
Valid from Pega Version 8.3
Associations now have a simple mode. Use a simple association to quickly and easily join a class to another class. The simple association defines a left join, using a foreign key in the source class and the class key in the target class. Use an advanced association for all other conditions. In addition, simple associations are drawn in the Visual data model reporting mode to visualize the relationships that are available for reporting.
Upgrade impact
The new simple mode draws a map of where all the classes defined in the application rule are drawn as nodes. Relationships between the nodes that are defined by relevant properties are drawn as lines linking the two classes. This feature only includes Case and Data classes that are defined on the Application rule form's Cases and Data tab. It also only includes relevant fields for those classes in order to define the relationships from one class to another.
What steps are required to update the application to be compatible with this change?
After a successful upgrade, add the data and case type classes to the application rule in Dev Studio to have the selected classes appear as a node. In addition, if you want a relationship to display as relevant, set the properties (of the class that defines that relationship) as relevant.
For more information, see Exploring the data model.
Association changes after upgrade
Valid from Pega Version 8.3
Associations now have a simple mode. Simple associations are those that join to only one class, use a left join, and have one filter condition to a class key in the target class. Existing associations that define a simple foreign key relationship are upgraded to simple associations when opened; all others are treated as advanced associations. All associations continue to work in reporting.
Making an association simple changes only one piece of metadata; all other data on the association rule is not affected.
Upgrade impact
The new simple mode draws a map of where all the classes defined in the application rule are drawn as nodes. Relationships between the nodes that are defined by relevant properties are drawn as lines linking the two classes. This feature only includes Case and Data classes that are defined on the Application rule form's Cases and Data tab. It also only includes relevant fields for those classes in order to define the relationships from one class to another.
What steps are required to update the application to be compatible with this change?
After a successful upgrade, add the data and case type classes to the application rule in Dev Studio to have the selected classes appear as a node. In addition, if you want a relationship to display as relevant, set the properties (of the class that defines that relationship) as relevant.
For more information, see Associations.
Task board enhancements for improved tracking of tasks
Valid from Pega Version 8.3
App Studio and end-user portals, such as Case Manager, now provide an enhanced task board which helps you improve collaboration on task resolution. For example, you can create a checklist within a task, and then update the checklist to inform other users about the progress of the task. Attach content to a task to ensure that all users have the information that they need, and to make tasks more meaningful. Now you can also categorize tasks, and then filter them by category, to quickly access relevant information.
For more information, see Monitoring and tracking tasks in Dev Studio, Monitoring and tracking tasks in App Studio.
BIX ruleset is now included with Pega Platform
Valid from Pega Version 8.3
The Pega Business Intelligence Exchange™ (BIX) ruleset is now included with Pega Platform™, which eliminates the need for additional provisioning for Pega Cloud customers and for a separate BIX installation for on-premises customers. To add BIX to your application, add the Pega-BIX:<version> ruleset to your application rulesets.
For more information, see Data extraction.
Upgrade impact
After a successful upgrade, the BIX ruleset is available within Pega Platform. You should synchronize the BIX ruleset and Pega rules to avoid extraction errors.
What steps are required to update the application to be compatible with this change?
After the upgrade is complete, change the ruleset version for Pega Platform and BIX to use the same, latest version.