Release Notes

These release notes document the new features and changes in the vFire 9.11 suite of products, including:

• Enhancements to Nano. Development continues on Nano with new styling and features:
  • Interface styling changes. We have enhanced the Nano user interface to be easier to use and more consistent.
  • Email attachments. It is now possible to attach files to outgoing emails in Nano.
  • Save and Cancel buttons always visible. Action buttons such as Save and Cancel are now always visible on details screens; analysts no longer need to scroll to find them. Also always visible are the Nano page header, menu, and more.
  • Keep window open on Save. Change the user experience by configuring Nano to keep call, request, and task details screens open after the analyst presses Save.
  • Themes. System Admins can choose from two color themes for the Nano page header, with options for a light background and a dark background.

See Nano Enhancements in 9.11 for an overview of these, and more, enhancements to Nano.

• Chat Manager. Managers can now see all active and inactive chat analysts, and change their chat status if needed. See About Chat for more details on configuring and using Chat.
• VMware vRO 7.3 is now supported for the integration connector. See Connector for vRO for more details on how to install and use this connector.
• The Active Directory Connector has been updated to allow mapping of the following fields from Active Directory: Other Telephone, Initials, Employee ID. See Connector for MS AD Server for more details on the connector.
• Service Actions have a new checkbox: Do not copy data between forms. Select to stop data being copied across submission forms when multiple quantities are ordered. See Defining the Outcome of Selecting a Service Action for more details.
• Hide the default Type. The Type Tiers window in System Admin has a new setting: Default Type Hidden. Select to hide the system-default "Unspecified".
• Attachments on outgoing emails are now recorded in the history of the call, request, or task from which the email was sent.

31 January 2018

These release notes document the new features and changes in the vFire 9.10 suite of products, including:

• User Interface Styling in vFire Core. We are continuing to enhance the user interface in vFire Core. The changes are outlined in Styling in vFire Core 9.10.

The styling changes will affect screen and icon displays across vFire Core. Screenshots within the documentation will be fully updated when the restyling is complete.

• Resource Manager is now available. This new feature will allow workflow group managers to resource staff based on availability and skill sets, to maximize their team efficiency and work satisfaction. See Resource Manager for more details.
• Type Tier searching has been improved. The vFire Core interface now offers 'search as you type' for Type Tier fields. See Using the Multi Tier Selector for more details.
• The Alemba API now supports the Resource Manager feature as well as the vFire app. Additional security has been introduced. You cannot log in to the API explorer without the appropriate settings in your General Access security role. To find out more about this, see Logging In to the Alemba API Explorer.

The documentation that was provided in the wiki has been replicated in the online help. The documentation has also been made more comprehensive, reflecting the GA status of the Alemba API. See About the Alemba API for more details. For a comparison of the two APIs, see About the APIs.


• 2016 Certification. We are now certified for Windows Server 2016.
• vFire app has been further enhanced, and will be available in 9.10.1. The functionality available in the vFire Officer app will now be available in the vFire app, meaning thatboth users and analysts can use it. Analysts can access their calls on the go, viewing details of calls assigned or forwarded to them. They can forward the call to another analyst or group, update the call notes, review history, change the status or close a call. We have introduced SAML authentication for iOS and Windows, and made a number of other minor enhancements and fixes. See About the vFire App for more details.

To view a PDF of the vFire App User Guide, including System Administrator Notes, click here.

• The SolarWinds connector has been added to our growing list of available connectors. See Connector for SolarWinds for more details.
• An enhanced Jira connector has been released. This will support multiple projects. See Connector for Jira for more details.

• The Jira connector introduced in 9.8 required a source to be configured for each project. The 9.10 Jira connector supports single source for multiple Jira projects. If you are using the 9.8 connector and upgrade to 9.10, you need to remove the source(s) and reconfigure them using the new connector. You also need to update any tasks previously set up to use Jira outbound actions, and reconfigure them.

These release notes document the new features and changes in the vFire 9.9 suite of products, including:

• Nano is now GA. Nano has passed its beta phase of development, and is now GA status. See Introduction to Nano to learn more about Nano, and Nano Feature List to find out about functionality that is added in this release.
• Alemba API is now GA. The RestFUL Alemba API has passed its beta phase of development, and is now GA status. The Alemba API is documented via a wiki within the product. See Alemba API to find out more about this API and how you can use it.
• vRO7.0 is now supported. See Connector for vRO for more details on how to install and use this connector.
• Call Scheduling has been introduced, allowing analysts with the correct permissions to schedule calls, in much the same way as requests can be scheduled. See Scheduling Calls to find out more.
• Proactive Analysis has been renamed to AI Ops, in keeping with industry familiar terminology.
• Service Actions can now be configured to launch URLs or download objects from the Service Catalog in vFire Self Service. You can set up your Service Hub in a day using the Integration module to instantly create URL Service Actions for all your external digital forms and other web accessible services and resources. See Defining the Outcome of Selecting a Service Action for more details.

• The Alemba Email Event Connector can be implemented to generate calls or requests in vFire from 3rd party event tools that send event notifications by email. Fields in the generated calls and requests are populated with data from the emails. A configuration XML file defines field mappings between the template and the contents of event emails. See Connector for Event Emails for more details.
• From 9.9.1, the vFire app includes call logging. Users can log their own calls using the app. See About the vFire Appfor more details. It also supports windows authentication.

The fixes included in this release are available here.

These release notes document the new features and changes in the vFire 9.8 suite of products, including:

• Configurable Portal tables. You can now configure almost all of the tables in vFire Self Service, adding and removing columns, choosing the order in which they are displayed, and sorting by any available column. For more details, see Configuring Portal Tables.
• Suggested Knowledge. This feature allows users to view relevant knowledge articles while they complete call submission forms in the Self Service Portal. For more details, see Suggested Knowledge in the Self Service Portal.
• Call Auto Close. You can use this feature to define parameters to identify aged calls, notify specified recipients of impending closure, and automatically close those calls if no action is taken. Multiple auto close rules can be configured, each with different call matching criteria, notification intervals, notification recipients, and call closure field settings to apply on closed calls. For more details, see Configuring Call Auto Close Rules.
• Jira Connector, enabling the creation of issues in Jira triggered by actions sent from vFire. Once an issue is created in Jira, updates can be passed between the issue and the call or task in vFire that created it. For more details, see Connector for Jira.
• Stored Procedures connector, allowing you to build custom logic into a workflow without customizing SQL files or building javascript logic. You simply write one maintainable stored procedure that is installed in the database. For more details, see Connector for Stored Procedure.
• External Process connector, which can run an external process as part of an Outbound Action task. It allows values to be passed between a workflow in vFire and an external process, such as PowerShell, or other executable. Communication is two-way; meaning that it can pass and receive values. For more details, see Connector for External Process.
• CSV connector enhancements, which include a new feature to allow upload of files from local locations, and relabeling an existing feature to clarify functionality. See Connector for CSV File for more details.
• Nano. We have continued developing our new browser-agnostic interface, and it is now available as a beta release for managing tasks and incidents.

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core and vFire Officer & Portal 9.7 releases, including:

• Virtualization Workflow Automation - improvements to the Self Service portal and service requests to deliver a full Cloud Management Portal (CMP) within the portal. This allows us to deliver a self service, auto-provisioning infrastructure cloud that is integrated with your vFire system.
• Matching Panel - an at-a-glance list of Calls and Knowledge Articles related to the current call
• Configurable Labels. You can now use Designer to rename fields and buttons that are displayed in vFire Self Service
• The ability to filter CMDB items, including services and service actions in vFire Self Service by stakeholder role as well as subscriber group
• Styling
  • A new portal-like menu display
  • Additional configurable display settings for your login
  • The gray background on many of the windows has also been replaced with white, to provide a cleaner, fresher working screen
• A new vFire App allows users of windows phones to access their outstanding calls and requests, and monitor and update them

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core and vFire Officer & Portal 9.6 releases, including:

• Chat- a new real time text-based chat feature for users of the vFire Self Service portal
• Repeat Reminders on calls, requests, and tasks
• Approval Summary on vFire Self Service
• Single Sign-On using Security Assertion Markup Language (SAML)
• Further minor enhancements, including additional configuration options within Skins which you can use to change the appearance of your vFire Self Service portal

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core 9.5 and vFire Officer & Portal 9.5 releases, including:

• A new generic SQL connector
• Enhancements to the Integration Platform
• Enhancements to the vFire Self Service portal
• New Maximize Screen feature in vFire Officer
• Fixes and enhancements throughout vFire Core and Officer & Portal

9.5 Prerequisites and Installation & Upgrade guides have been produced in order to provide users with an entire set of documentation which reflects their release version. The Installation Guide has not changed since the previous software release. The updates from the previous release of the Prerequisites guide are listed in the Version Details section.

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core 9.4 and vFire Officer & Portal 9.4 releases, including:

• "Add Me" for Major Incidents
• Exchange 365 certification
• vFire Statistics Tool
• Terminology change to bring vFire in line with the latest ITIL requirements
• Create Custom Pages feature
• Option to collapse the menu in vFire Officer & Portal

The fixes included in this release are available here.

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core 9.3.0 release, including:

• New look and design elements for the Self Service portal
• Search-as-you-type fields and search filters for submission forms
• Improved service catalog behavior
• Configurable columns and advanced search on all search windows
• Patch Tool can run in silent mode
• Search for tasks using the parent request's Service
• Submit orders for Service Actions from within vFire Core
• Link Closure Reasons to Screen Sets
• vFire Core is now a 64-bit application

The fixes included in this release are available here.

Note the following significant changes in this release:

• Support for Windows 10
• Enhancements to incoming email
• Improvements to CMDB Link Types and Reporting
• Bulk close function added for Calls
• The backup step has been removed from the Patch Tool

The fixes included in this release are available here.

Note the following significant changes in this release:

• IIS 6 is no longer required
• The rollback feature has been removed from the server console
• The vFire System Statistics tool has been introduced
• vFire Officer Mobile app
• Microsoft ASP.NET version 4.5.2 must be installed on the web server

The fixes included in this release are available here.

These release notes document the changes and updates in the vFire Core 9.2.1 release, including:

• the Alemba vFire patch tool
• the enhanced pre-upgrade process
• changes to supported platforms

The fixes included in this release are available here.

5.6

5.5