Process Dashboard Enterprise Server

The development team is excited to announce a significant addition to the Process Dashboard product family: the Process Dashboard Enterprise Server.

The following features have been added to the Process Dashboard Enterprise Server in recent releases:

Changes in version 3.5.0

Changes in version 3.4.2

  • The process for uploading a new Process Dashboard launch profile has been improved, so it is possible to upload a new software package and deploy it to a group of users in one step.
  • The server includes a digital certificate update that is a prerequisite for the use of Process Dashboard 2.1.7 and higher.

Changes in version 3.4.0

  • It is now possible to open any Team or personal dashboard showing charts, reports, and data as they appeared on an arbitrary date/time in the past. This can be useful for viewing post-launch reports, recovering lost data after an accidental edit, and many other purposes. The new link appears in the Actions section of the Dataset Details page.
  • The Data Warehouse in the Enterprise Server has been updated to include the latest updates to the data warehouse database schema.

Changes in version 3.3.1

  • When an individual is added to the Team Member List of a team project, their personal dashboard will now display a notification inviting them to join. Clicking the notification begins the joining process. (This streamlined approach helps new users to avoid a number of potential mistakes, such as forgetting to open their personal dashboard first, or joining the wrong dashboard to the project.)

Changes in version 3.3.0

  • Historically, some organizations have been unable to use the Enterprise Server due to network configuration challenges (such as firewalls, proxy servers, and internally-signed SSL certificates). New options in the Enterprise Server make it possible to overcome some of these challenges, expanding compatibility to a broader range of network configurations.
  • Improved security measures have been added to the communications between the Enterprise Server and the Process Dashboard client. As a result, individuals will see a password prompt the first time they open the Process Dashboard after this upgrade.

Changes in version 3.2.0

  • Some organizations cannot or do not wish to integrate the Enterprise Server with their corporate LDAP or Active Directory. For such organizations, a new User Manager is now provided, allowing the Site Administrator to create and manage user accounts on the Enterprise Server.

Changes in version 3.1.0

  • The Enterprise Server provides a new REST API that can be used to send a message to a particular dashboard. The message will be delivered in real-time if that dashboard is running. If the dashboard is not running, it will be delivered the next time that dashboard starts.
  • A new REST API makes it possible to query the list of datasets that a particular individual has access to open.

Changes in version 3.0.5

  • The “launch dataset” functionality was updated to resolve security warnings generated by the newest release of the Java environment from Oracle.
  • By editing the configuration file, an organization can now grant individuals the permission to create new datasets and to break locks on datasets that they own.

Changes in version 3.0.4

  • The newest versions of the Process Dashboard include an updated calculation engine that runs 100 to 1000 times faster than before. This version of the Enterprise Server includes changes to support the use of the Launch Profiles for these new versions of the Process Dashboard.

Changes in version 3.0.3

  • Dashboards that are launched from the Enterprise Server will now use an improved memory allocation strategy. This can improve performance for teams or individuals with many historical projects.
  • On the dataset details page, a link is now provided that allows you to explicity request read-only mode when launching a dataset.
  • When you launch the personal dataset for another individual, the dashboard will ask you whether you want to open the dataset in read-only mode or read-write mode. This is very helpful for coaches or mentors who may want to look at an individual’s dashboard without inadvertently locking it.

Changes in version 3.0.1

  • On the dataset details page, a link is now provided that allows you to create or recreate application shortcuts on the desktop for launching a particular dataset.

Changes in version 3.0

  • The Enterprise Server can now be deployed to a WebSphere application server.

Changes in version 2.6.1

  • It is now possible to use an Oracle database as the backend storage for the Enterprise Server.

Changes in version 2.6

  • A new “Work Offline” checkbox has been added to the “C > Tools” menu in the Process Dashboard. After checking that box, an individual can open and work with their personal dashboard at any time, even if they are not connected to the network.
  • When an individual logs in to the Enterprise Server and opens their personal dataset for the first time, the server can check to see whether they have preexisting historical data on their computer (from past use of the open-source dashboard). If so, it can offer to migrate that historical data into the Enterprise Server automatically. (This feature can be disabled for organizations that do not wish to use it.)
  • When a dataset is in use, the details page will also provide the name of the computer where the Process Dashboard is running.
  • Data administrators can now “break” the lock on a team or personal dataset if necessary.

Changes in version 2.5

  • Administrator can now create taxonomies and use them to categorize team and personal datasets. Taxonomies could be used to describe team maturity levels, organizational groupings, or other arbitrary labels.
  • A new report displays organizational process metrics (such as size and time in phase) for the organization in aggregate and for various taxonomy-driven subsets.
  • Video training materials are now available to help individuals who are using the Process Dashboard for their first team project.

Changes in version 2.4.6

  • A new “Site Usage” report is available for site administrators. This report lists the team and personal datasets that have been in use during a given date range.

Changes in version 2.4.3

  • Since version 2.4 of the Enterprise Server, peer-to-peer communications are no longer required between the Team Dashboard and the personal dashboard during the Team Project joining process. So as an added measure of caution for security-conscious organizations, the peer-to-peer listening capability of Team Dashboard datasets is now disabled by default.

Changes in version 2.4

  • If you are using the Process Dashboard Enterprise Server, you no longer need to leave the Team Dashboard running for individuals to join a team project. The peer-to-peer communications between the personal and team dashboard have been removed.
  • When using the server, the WBS Team Member List editor will now allow you to enter specific individuals, retrieved from LDAP by username. When they have been entered in this manner, the team server can automatically send them an email message inviting them to join the project.
  • The server can now display the real name of an individual (retrieved from the corporate LDAP server) instead of their username. So instead of seeing “Process Dashboard <jdoe>” you might see “Process Dashboard <John Doe>”.

Changes in version 2.3

  • The Process Dashboard Enterprise Server now uses a new visual theme.

Changes in version 2.2.1

  • It is now possible to see a list of the personal and team datasets that are using each Launch Profile mapping.
  • The release of Java 6u19 from Sun Microsystems was causing a “mixed code warning” to appear when the dashboard was launched. A change was made to resolve this problem.

Changes in version 2.1

  • The site administrator can now supply an arbitrary set of messages to be displayed on the “My Datasets” page that users see when they log in.
  • It is now possible to get a list of all the personal datasets that are known to the system.
  • When a new launch profile was installed, some users would not receive the update. Changes have been made that should help to address this issue.

Release 2.0

The Process Dashboard Enterprise Server has been released, containing this significant new functionality:

  • All data for personal and team dashboards can be stored in a relational database.
  • Shared network directories are no longer required by the team collaboration features in the Process Dashboard
  • Personal and Team Dashboards can be launched by clicking a hyperlink on a webpage. Users do not need to install the Process Dashboard first.
  • Administrators can create, manage, and administer personal and team dashboard datasets via a web interface.
  • A site administrator can manage Process Dashboard client upgrades via a web interface, and individuals receive the new version of the dashboard automatically without running an installer.