Batch database processing improvements
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
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
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
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.
Logging service now uses Apache Log4j 2
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
The Pega® Platform now uses the Apache Log4j 2 logging service. Apache Log4j 2 improves performance and provides support for all log file appender types. As a result of this upgrade, the prlogging.xml file has been renamed to prlog4j2.xml and the format of the file has changed considerably.
For details about the new file format see Pega Platform logging with the Log4j 2 logging service.
For new installations or for upgrades to systems that were using the default logging configuration, no changes are needed. For information about updating custom log files after upgrading, see Customizations to the prlogging.xml file must be manually ported after upgrade. For information about updating your socket server if you use remote logging, see Socket server has changed for remote logging. For information about updated the web.xml file after upgrading, see Log file description in web.xml incorrect after upgrade to Apache Log4j2.
Customizations to the prlogging.xml file must be manually ported after upgrade
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
As a result of the upgrade from the Apache Log4j 1 logging service to the Apache Log4j 2 logging service, the name of the logging configuration file has changed from prlogging.xml to prlog4j2.xml and the format of the file has changed considerably. If you customized your prlogging.xml file, port the customizations to the new prlog4j2.xml file. If you do not port the changes, the Pega® Platform uses the default prlog4j2.xml file and disregards your customized prlogging.xml file.
For more information about customizing your log files, see the Apache Log4j 2 documentation.
Socket server has changed for remote logging
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
As a result of the upgrade from the Apache Log4j 1 logging service to the Apache Log4j 2 logging service, the socket server that is used for remote logging has changed from the Log4j remote logging package with the LogFactor5 log analysis tool to TcpSocketServer. If you use remote logging, update your socket server to TcpSocketServer. For more information, see Installing and using remote logging.
New System Queue Management landing page
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
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
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
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.
Automatically process cases with SharePoint
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
You can now use Microsoft SharePoint Online to store and source case and Pulse attachments and to store and source attachments during automated case processing. Users only have to provide authentication and authorization details the first time they access SharePoint Online or when the trust has expired. The authentication profile must be OAuth 2.0 with a grant type of authorization code. The SharePoint Online component can be downloaded from Pega Exchange. For more information, see Downloading and configuring pluggable content management components.
Ability to set default values when importing data
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
You can now set default values for data that you import for a data type from a .csv file. By setting defaults, you can ensure that even when the .csv file data is incomplete, all of the data is imported. In addition, you can set default values for custom fields that do not have a matching source column in the .csv file. This feature is available for the Add and update and Add only import options. For mapped fields, the default value is used for new records if the source field is blank, and for existing records if both the source and target fields are blank. For custom fields, the default value is used for new records if a default value is provided, and for existing records only if the target field is blank.
For more information, see Importing data for a data type.
Node classification
Valid from Pega Version 7.3
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.