Published Release Notes

Enhanced Wait shape

Pega Platform™ now supports the enhanced Wait shape that configures the case to wait for the resolution of all child cases instead of only the child cases of a specific type. When you set up the Wait shape to stop a case until it reaches a certain status, you can decide whether the shape considers statuses from a whole case life cycle, or only the statuses after the wait begins. The enhanced Wait shape provides you with greater control over resolution of your cases. 

For more information, see Pausing and resuming processes in cases in Dev Studio, Pausing and resuming processes in cases in App Studio.

Case tags for improved case search

Pega Platform™ now supports enhanced tagging for case types so that you can search cases by tags. As a result, tagging is more consistent because you can define a set of suggested tags that users can add to their posts and cases. When users search for cases, they can apply several filters, for example, recently added or most frequently used tags.

For more information about tags, see Tagging cases in Dev Studio, Tagging cases in App Studio.

Case notification enhancements

Pega Platform™ now supports creating case notifications directly in Case Designer in App Studio and Dev Studio, so that you do not need to create a notification rule first and then provide the rule name in a case. You can speed up and simplify case creation by specifying recipients for each notification, without the need to create a data page for the recipients. Push notifications and email subjects can now also include properties, for example, a case ID or a goal and deadline.

For more information, see Sending event notifications from cases in Dev Studio, Sending event notifications from cases in App Studio.

Improved and simplified field-level auditing

To track the progress of your work and maintain the compliance of your cases, both App Studio and Dev Studio now support field-level auditing for case fields. Your application tracks and displays information about user updates to scalar fields, field groups, and field group lists, at any level of your case data model. For example, you can check previous and current field values, the last user to change the values, and the time of their modification. 

For more information, see Track changes in cases with improved field-level auditing (8.4), Enabling field-level auditing in Dev Studio, Enabling field-level auditing in App Studio.   

Creation of case documents in a case life cycle

To save time and further automate your business processes, Pega Platform™ now supports generating case documents as part of the case life cycle. You can ensure that the documents include all necessary information by first creating a document template in a word processor. When you create a template, you add dynamic tags that your application populates with relevant data unique to each case, for example, the case ID and current date. To make your documentation more meaningful, you can also include attachments.

For more information, see Generate case documents in a case life cycle (8.4), Generating case documents in Dev Studio, Generating case documents in App Studio.

Pulse configurations in the case type settings

In both App Studio and Dev Studio you can now configure Pulse in a simplified and user-friendly way, in the case type settings. Add Pulse posts to cases, define default and add new feed sources, and then customize the Pulse label, all without performing advanced actions, such as configuring sections. You can also define visibility conditions for each post type.

For more information, see Start collaborating faster with simplified Pulse configuration (8.4), Configuring Pulse for case types in Dev Studio, Configuring Pulse for case types in App Studio.

Improved mobile app user experience

Pega Platform™ can now produce a better mobile experience through performance gains and flexible access settings. Apps now support quick-loading native worklists, smooth scrolling and swiping, and query-based search, which improve productivity for mobile users. In addition, you can make your app available to users without authentication, and enhance usability for products that do not require strict security controls.

For more information, see Securing mobile apps.

More efficient mobile development

The work environment for mobile app developers in Pega Platform™ is now more intuitive. Because every new out-of-the-box application now comes with a preconfigured mobile channel, you can start building mobile apps straight away. Create a mobile channel from scratch, and then customize it to include specific requirements for your new app.

The following updates enhance the process of building mobile apps:

• Your application stores all mobile channels as rules. You can reuse these channels across all versions of your mobile apps for more convenient updates.
• You can now configure contextual search from the mobile channel.
• You can now create native mobile list pages for the app navigation directly from the mobile channel.
• You can now add pages from web portals to a mobile app navigation pane, with full support for native mobile features, such as floating action buttons.
• Mobile channels now support configuration through predefined templates, widgets, and actions.
• You can now instantly preview your mobile channel configuration to see how the app displays on mobile devices.
• Configuration of offline support for mobile apps is now available from a single, low-code page.
• The preview section now offers a low-code pane, from which you can instantly start building a mobile app.
• The mobile channel now supports adding custom iOS and Android modules.
• Admin Studio now supports a mobile page, from which you can provide your own Mobile Build Server credentials and decide whether users need to provide authentication to download your mobile app.

Improved offline support for mobile apps

The updated offline mode in Pega Platform™ now reduces implementation time, enhances the development process, and helps you create a more comprehensive mobile experience for users without a reliable web connection.

The improved offline support includes the following enhancements:

• Offline-enabled apps now use native mobile UI components, such as headers and bottom bars.
• Offline mode now supports decision trees for improved case processing. 
• Users can now process multiple cases simultaneously in separate offline tabs, which leads to higher productivity.
• Offline-enabled apps now work more efficiently because of improved caching and background synchronization.

For more information, see Working with offline apps.

Mobile features deprecated in 8.4

Following the introduction of new functionalities for mobile apps, some features are reaching end of life. To avoid additional effort during updates to future releases, do not use deprecated features.

In the 8.4 release, the following features are no longer recommended:

• Mobile Client 7 is now deprecated and planned for removal in 8.5. Use Pega Infinity Mobile Client to meet the mobile needs of your business.
• The Reuse existing web portal functionality is deprecated and planned for removal in 8.5. For improved app performance and more efficient development, use the mobile app builder in the mobile channel. Also, you must convert existing projects to use separate channels for mobile and web portals before upgrading to 8.5.

In addition, the Pega Mobile Express app has been removed from app stores and replaced with the Pega Mobile Preview app.