Published Release Notes

Improved Back button support in custom mobile apps for Android

In a custom mobile app for Android, you can press the Back hardware button to go back, instead of exiting the app. Custom mobile apps now function in the same way as native Android apps. For example, you can close a dialog box, dismiss an overlay, or collapse an expanded section by pressing the Back hardware button. On the home screen, pressing the Back hardware button displays a confirmation message before you can exit the app.

New data tables are non-Pega formatted

All new data tables are created as non-Pega formatted tables, that is, they do not contain a BLOB column, a pzInsKey column, or a pxObjClass column. The table's primary key will be the key that you specify, not pzInsKey. Data table construction was changed to improve performance of the Obj-Save method during batch operations, such as data imports, to make it easier to replace the table with an external system of record and to make it easier to share data among applications.

Browser unresponsive when logging in to Designer Studio

The What's new in 7.4 widget on the Designer Studio home page uses WebGL to render its background animation. If your browser is running on a virtual machine without hardware acceleration, your browser might become unresponsive because of this widget. Click the Hide this until next release button to remove the widget. At your next login, the widget will not be displayed.

Applications not working as expected when using fast processing for Connect REST and Service REST integration

In Pega^® Platform 7.3.1, the Use fast processing option on Connect REST and Service REST rule forms did not work. The functionality has been fixed for Pega 7.4; however, some data model guidelines must be followed. If you use this option in Pega 7.3.1, and you did not follow the guidelines, your application might not work as expected after upgrading. Use the following data model guidelines when using fast processing:

• The JSON property names and the clipboard property names must match.
• The JSON tree structure and the clipboard tree structure must be similar.
• The scalar arrays in JSON must be mapped to the clipboard as page lists.
• Multi-dimensional arrays must be mapped into page lists of page lists with the same embedded property names.

In addition, page groups, value groups, and Java objects are not supported by fast processing.

Unit testing support for more rule types

You can now create unit tests for the following additional rule types. You can also create assertions to validate activity status. The expanded rule types for unit testing enable developers to more thoroughly perform regression testing of their application, thereby improving application quality.

• Collection
• Declare expression
• Map value
• Report definition

For more information about unit testing rules, see Pega unit test cases.

Upgrade impact

With the four new rule types, unit test execution and unit test compliance metrics will change. Reports on automated unit testing of the customer application decrease due to the increased pool of supported rules.

What steps are required to update the application to be compatible with this change?

After a successful upgrade, create Pega unit test cases for the newly supported rules to see updated and accurate unit test metrics.

Use Page-Change-Class method to change a Page class

With the release of Pega Platform™ 8.3, using the Property-Set method to change the Page class shows a guardrail warning. Use the Page-Change-Class method to change the Page class instead.

For more information about the Page-Change-Class method, see Changing the class of a page and Page-Change-Class method.

Data and integration troubleshooting enhancements

Identify how data is loaded in user interface (UI) elements, discover the data sources used, and navigate to the relevant rules by using the new Live Data tool. Use the Live Data tool to quickly troubleshoot data and integrations by providing data page information or autopopulate properties from the UI without searching through the clipboard.

For more information, see Troubleshooting data in UI elements.

Retrieve a flat list of fields from Pega Digital Experience APIs

You can now use the flatListOfFields parameter to retrieve a list of the fields in a case or flow action. With this parameter, you avoid parsing all the layout information for the Pega Digital Experience API, making it easier for you to see only what you need to build your user interface.

The following Pega Digital Experience APIs support the flatListOfFields parameter:

• GET /casetypes/{ID}
• GET /assignments/{ID}/actions/{actionID}
• GET /cases/{ID}/actions/{actionID}

For more information, see Retrieve a flat list of fields from Pega APIs.

Drag-and-drop functionality for lists and tables

Lists and optimized tables now support the reorganization of their content by reordering items. By configuring repeating dynamic layouts and tables to support drag-and-drop modifications, you enable users to move items between lists and within lists and tables. This enhancement ensures that you can create a flexible and dynamic user interface that helps users display and manage data.

The drag-and-drop functionality can also include custom actions that automate the processes that run when users move items.

For more information, see Configuring drag-and-drop functionality for lists and Configuring drag-and-drop functionality for tables.

Customized application overview documents in App Studio

Keep stakeholders notified of the status of an application by customizing and generating an application overview document in App Studio. The overview may include information such as case types, roles, features in your application, and more. Select the chapters that you want to include in the overview, and then highlight the most relevant information by ordering the chapters. In addition to the application overview document, you can generate a detailed data model, either in Microsoft Word or Excel format.

For more information, see Creating project documents for stakeholders in App Studio, Exporting a data model into a document.