Published Release Notes

Batch database processing improvements

Batch database processing has been enhanced to ensure that a constraint violation does not occur when you save transactions to a table with a foreign key dependency. Because batch processing changes the order of save operations, it is disabled for transactions with foreign key dependencies. Disabling batch processing ensures that a record with a foreign key dependency on another record will not be written before the record on which it is dependent.

For more information about how batch database processing works and how to enable and disable it, see Batch processing during database write operations.

Improve cluster security by limiting concurrent operator sessions

You can increase the security of a Pega^® Platform cluster by limiting the number of concurrent sessions allowed for each operator. Because operators typically do not require multiple concurrent sessions for performing their work, limiting the number of sessions reduces the chance that an unknown or untrusted person could access systems in the cluster. Use the new setting Number of concurrent sessions allowed for each operator on the Production tab of the System Data Instance form to configure the number of concurrent sessions for operators. You must restart your system when you change this setting. You can also create a list of operators by using the presence/maxsessions/operators/whitelist Dynamic System Setting, to which the maximum number of concurrent sessions setting will not apply.

For more information, see System form - Completing the Production tab.

New System Queue Management landing page

You can manage your system queues from the new System Queue Management landing page. You can use this landing page to quickly and efficiently debug applications without exiting Designer Studio. In addition to viewing items in a queue, you can defer, remove, and requeue items in a queue, stop items in progress, and view an item's XML.

As a result of this enhancement, the Broken Queue landing page has been removed.

For more information, see System Queue Management landing page.

Data encryption across search nodes

You can now encrypt communication among search nodes. Encryption secures the data that is transferred across nodes so that it cannot be accessed by unauthorized hosts. Encryption is enabled by default for new installations and upgrades from Pega^® 7.1.6 or earlier to Pega 7.3. Encryption is not enabled by default for upgrades from Pega 7.1.7 or later to Pega 7.3. You can enable and disable search encryption from the Search landing page or by using the indexing/distributed/enable_inter_node_encryption Dynamic System Setting.

For more information, see Enabling and disabling encryption for communication among search nodes.

Support for following users in the Pega Express and Case Manager portals

You can now follow users in both the Pega Express and Case Manager portals. Posts that are made by users whom you are following are displayed in your Pulse activity feed in your dashboard. In addition, an icon indicates whether followed users are online.

For more information, see the following help topics:

• Following a user (Pega 7.3)
• Following a user (Pega 7.3 express)

Enhancements to the Send Email smart shape

The following enhancements have been made to the Send Email smart shape:

• You can now configure the Send Email smart shape in Pega Express.
• You can use templates, such as a rejection template, in your email.
• You can use property values, which allow you to insert the value of a field in your case type, such as First Name, within the email.
• You can insert a link to the case ID in your email.
• You can more quickly configure your recipient list by using two options, instead of one, to send messages to either a list of email addresses or to fields.
• You can choose to send either all case attachments in an email, or you can send attachments of a specified attachment category or an attachment type field. You can specify multiple attachment categories and attachment type fields.

For more information, see the following help topics:

• Sending email from a case (Pega 7.3)
• Sending email from a case (Pega 7.3 express)

Node classification

By using the node classification feature, which segregates nodes by their purpose, you can now configure one node with multiple node types. When you start a node with multiple node types, the node runs a set of agents and listeners that are associated with the specified node types. From the Node Classification landing page, you can view and configure the agents associated with node types, view listeners associated with node types, and open Agent rule forms, agent schedules, and Listener rule forms.

For more information, see Node Classification, Configuring node types for agents and listener and Node classification.

Multistatus case dependencies replace custom implementations

You can now quickly define a case dependency that supports variations of a resolved status, such as Resolved-Completed and Resolved-Rejected. Because the definition of a resolved case now includes all status values that start with the word “Resolved,” you can replace custom logic in your application with a Wait shape that you configure in a flow.

For more information about defining a case dependency, see:

• Pega Platform - Pausing a process in a case
• Pega Express - Pausing a process in a case

Support for Couchbase Server NoSQL database

Pega^® Platform can now read data from and write data to a Couchbase Server database. Couchbase is a NoSQL database that you can use when a NoSQL database better meets your scalability and processing requirements.

For a list of supported and unsupported features, see Couchbase Server support.

Node types renamed after upgrade from Pega 7.2.2 to Pega Platform 7.3

If you used node classification in Pega^® 7.2.2, when you upgrade to Pega 7.3, node type names are automatically changed to a new name when you start a node with a node type.

• UniversalNode becomes Universal
• WebUserNode becomes WebUser
• BackgroundProcessingNode becomes BackgroundProcessing
• BIXNode becomes BIX
• SearchNode becomes Search

If you created agents in Pega 7.2.2, agent schedules are also automatically updated with a new name during the upgrade. For more information, see Customized agent schedules for standard Pega Platform agents must be updated after Pega 7.2.2 to Pega Platform 7.3 upgrade and the appropriate Deployment Guide.