Current Version : 2023.4.108.0.05See the Previous VersionSee the Next Version

WarningReleaseNotes

What's new in the core

Accessibility

Major modifications have been made to the screen generation engine for forms, lists, wizards, etc. in order to meet the requirements related to Web accessibility.

The Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) launched by the W3C lists the organization's recommendations. Produced as part of the initiative, the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) strive to make Web content accessible to a wider range of people with disabilities. The WCAG 2.0 are currently the official guidelines since 11 December 2008.

There are three levels of conformance:

• Level A: Lowest level of conformance
• Level AA: Intermediate level of conformance
• Level AAA: Highest level of conformance

The United States government requires federal agencies to comply with the accessibility laws adopted. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act is a specific national requirement and is not a method for enforcing international directives.

Below is a list of the accessibility points integrated in this version of Service Manager.
          See detail: Accessibility Section 508 Compliance

• Provide text alternatives for any non-text content. This point is supported and refers to:
  • WCAG 2.0: 1.1.1 Non-text Content – Level A
  • § 508- 1194.22 (a): A text equivalent for every non-text element shall be provided (e.g., via "alt", "longdesc", or in element content).

• Provide text or instructions when content requires user input. This point is supported with exceptions and refers to:
  • WCAG 2.0: 3.3.2 Labels or instructions are provided when content requires user input. – Level A
  • § 508- 1194.22 ( n ): When electronic forms are designed to be completed online, the form shall allow people using Assistive Technology to access the information, field elements, and functionality required for completion and submission of the form, including all directions and cues.

• Provide understandable text by indicating the language of the page. This point is supported with the exception of iFrames for displaying debug data and refers to:
  • WCAG 2.0: 3.1.1 Language of Page – Level A

• Make all functionalities available from a keyboard. This point is not supported but has been improved for the most frequently used interfaces and refers to:
  • WCAG 2.0: 2.1.1 Keyboard – Level A
  • § 508- 1194.21 (a): When software is designed to run on a system that has a keyboard, product functions shall be executable from a keyboard where the function itself or the result of performing a function can be discerned textually.

Note:

• Customized HTML code is not included in Web accessibility management.
• Improvements to accessibility are part of our continual improvement process. Each new Service Manager release integrates new elements.

Browser notifications

To display messages when events occur, Service Manager can use notification systems in the following browsers: Chrome, Firefox, Edge and Safari. In Windows 10 and OSX, the message will also be added to the OS notification system. In both cases, it will appear in a pane located to the right.

Notifications appear at the bottom right of the screen.
         

Service Manager displays notifications for the following events:

• Next logout
• New action for the Support person
• New action for one of the Support person's groups
• New late action
• New news article
• New elements in a chat

You configure notifications in two places:

• In the browser. You can decide whether or not to authorize notifications when you log in to the new version of Service Manager for the first time. You modify the configuration in the browser settings.
• In the user information zone. You select the notifications you want to display.

Imminent disconnection message

If no activity is detected, Service Manager now displays a warning asking users to cancel the imminent disconnection process or to log out. This message is displayed in addition to the logout window.
         

What's new in Studio

Full modification of the quick call

Previously, modification was restricted to the top half of the screen. You can now modify the entire form using a new button, . You simply need to select the section you want to modify.
         

Exporting mail components

The functionality is now available in the Import/Export menu.
         

Time zones in date filters

All date-related filters and groups have been validated and will now work correctly, regardless of the user's time zone.

What's new in questionnaires

An in-depth review of the system of questionnaires is continuously performed. The new functionalities added to this version enable the entire system to define the most sophisticated questionnaires.

           see Good practice - Questionnaires

Multi-section questionnaires

Questionnaires have been enhanced to integrate advanced functionalities that split large questionnaires into several pages. You can now insert questions whose contents depend on the answers to previously asked questions. These two new functionalities are based on the concept of questionnaires with multiple sections and are integrated in the interface for entering questionnaires.

Using sections

A section is functionally similar to a traditional questionnaire. However, it cannot be used in a simple questionnaire. It must be used within a multi-section questionnaire to group different sections of the questionnaire.

Sections are used to: 

• Manage questionnaires with multiple pages. Each section represents one page with the [ BACK ] and [ NEXT ] buttons for navigating.
           

• Ask questions whose values depend on the answers to previously asked questions.

• Be shared with other multi-section questionnaires.

Creating and managing multi-section questionnaires

The list of multi-section questionnaires is available in the References menu.
         

• Click  to create a new multi-section questionnaire.
           

• Complete the description of the questionnaire and the title displayed on pages for entering the questionnaire. Click [ FINISH ]. The form of the new multi-section questionnaire will appear.
           

• Select the Manage the sections wizard. You can then click  to associate an existing section with a questionnaire or click [ NEW SECTION ] to create a new one.
           

• The New Page column is used to indicate if the corresponding section will appear on a new page or at the end of the current page. This option is usually used for questions whose content depends on previous questions. The  arrows enable you to define the order of the sections.
           

• Click  to edit a section.
           

How multi-page questionnaires work

When a multi-page questionnaire is run, the answers entered in each page are saved in the database when users validate by moving on to the next page.

If users click [ CANCEL ] in one of the pages, answers to questions in the previous page will remain saved in the database.

Questions depending on the answers to previous questions

These questions usually correspond to cascading choices where a new question presents a list of options whose values are filtered based on the answers to previous questions.

• Question 1: Choice of group  -> A list of groups is presented.
• Question 2: Choice of Support person -> A list of Support persons belonging to the previously selected group in question 1 is presented.

This requires each conditional question to be displayed in a new section. Each page is saved when it is validated. The database is then queried to define the filter to be applied. To do this, a tag dedicated to this functionality has been added.

• To display all sections containing conditional questions on the same page, unselect the New Page box for these sections.
           

• Complete the first page, Intervention Report. This displays a questionnaire with only one question for selecting the group. The type of question is SQL List. Note: The Group code of the question is required for the conditional question.
           
           

• Complete the next section, Intervention Report where the New Page box was unselected. It contains only one question for selecting the Support person. The type of question is SQL List.
           
           

• The WHERE clause is conditional to the new tag, QUESTION_CODE #[QUESTION_CODE.Group]#, used to retrieve the result of the question corresponding to the code, e.g. Group. To do this, a new tab added to the tag definition window enables you to retrieve the results of previous questions.
           

• How is the questionnaire run?

  1. Select the group.
           

  2. After validation, select the Support person from the list whose values are filtered based on the previously selected group. Note: The [ NEXT ] button enables you to return to the page for selecting the group.
           
           

Exporting multi-section questionnaires

The functionality is now available in the Import/Export menu.
         

Note: All sections referenced in the multi-section questionnaire will automatically be exported.

New survey questionnaires

• Survey questionnaires are made up of two parts, a header (1) and a radio button group box (2), configured using two types of questions.
           
           

• Header questions: Used to define header text in several columns. Note: You cannot specify the alignment.
           

• Radio button questions: Used to spread radio buttons out in a single row based on the number of columns, specify whether or not the button label should be displayed, and define the alignment of the radio button within the column.
           

Duplicating questionnaires

A functionality for duplicating elements has been added to questionnaires, sections and multi-section questionnaires.
         

Note: When you copy a questionnaire, this does not duplicate the questions. When you copy a multi-section questionnaire, this does not duplicate the sections.

Questionnaires specific to the exit values of an approval step

You can now define a specific questionnaire to be displayed for each exit value that can be selected during an approval step.
         

Note: Questionnaires completed for the exit values of an approval step will overwrite any questionnaire defined directly in the step.

What's new in business functionalities

Several incidents associated with a problem

A new wizard now enables you to associate in just one go several incidents with a given problem.
         

What's new in REST

Service Manager now has a REST API and integrates a full layer for client access in order to allow calls from other REST APIs.

Note: The information below requires in-depth knowledge of REST.

REST step in the workflow

The integration of REST in Service Manager is performed in new steps in the workflow editor and via new options in the Administration menu.

Main concepts

The Service Manager REST client is based on the concept of service, connection and resources.

REST services

A service corresponds to a REST API.

• A list of standard services is shipped together with the Service Manager setup. You can create new ones.
           

• A service is defined by its name, URI, icon and authentication type.
           

• The service URI can contain variables placed in curly brackets { }. These settings depend on each REST API. They are used to create generic REST services.

Connections

A connection defines the authentication elements required for connecting to a given REST API.

• If required, the service URI settings are defined in the connection.
• For an API whose authentication is Basic, the login and password must also be entered.
           

Selectors

A REST API returns data in JSON format which cannot be read by Service Manager. A selector is used to indicate the information you want to extract. Note: This concept is identical to the one in Service Apps.

• A selector can only be used if there is a connection to a REST data source.
• The selector is used to select part of the JSON table (input or output). The query rule is similar to CSS Selector which is well documented on the Internet.
           
  • (1) Field for entering or displaying the current selector.
  • (2) Pane for displaying the JSON table. Click one of the objects to set this definition as the current selector.
  • (3) JSON table filtered by the selector.
  • (4) Results displayed in a table.

• To define a selector automatically, click in the left pane (2). You can also enter it manually in (1).

Resources

A resource corresponds to an object that can be manipulated using the corresponding REST API.

• A list of standard Service Manager resources is shipped together with the Service Manager setup.
           

• A resource is defined by its name, URI, access method and selector, if applicable, which can be accessed when you click .

• The information to be specified depends on the method through which the resource is accessed.* GET method for obtaining information

    Resource for accessing incidents Service Manager
  

  • PUT and PATCH methods for creating information using the JSON input table whose format is defined in the Content field. You should specify the settings in curly brackets { } when creating the corresponding REST step in the workflow.

      Resource for creating users
    
     

Using REST steps in the workflow

The workflow editor enables you to include new REST steps.

• You can access REST steps in the new tab. Note: As services are added on a regular basis, your configuration may display other types of steps.
           

• To create a new REST step, click and drag the REST action to the workflow editor pane.
• To configure the REST step, you must select the connection and the resource.
           

• The settings to be specified depend on the resource you select and can be entered in the tag definition window.
           

Managing REST services

You can add your own REST services and your own resources for new or existing services. Note: OAuth services cannot be created from scratch because they require specific development in order to be correctly adapted.

• Select Administration > REST in the menu.
           

• Click  in the relevant list to create services, connections or resources.
           

What's new in the REST API server

Service Manager has now integrated a full REST API that offers several possibilities. The documentation and developments available in this version extend beyond the scope of this version release document.

You can obtain specific documents on the API and consult the information available in the wiki pages. To find out more, please contact EasyVista.

Miscellaneous developments

Improvements to the workflow editor

• Now, when you move a step, grid lines enable you to align connecting lines between steps perfectly.
           

• When you move workflow steps, they will automatically snap to grid using 5-pixel spaces.
• You can now select multiple steps in a more visual way using the rectangular selection tool. It is compatible with the current zoom.
           

Manual insertion of the Click here link

A Click here link can now be inserted automatically to each email sent from a workflow step (This is used to access the generated action), when you activate the other parameter {ADMIN} Enable auto connection link in emails for groups (email sent to a group) and/or the parameter {ADMIN} Enable auto connection link in emails for individual users (email sent to a named user).

• By default, the link is added at the bottom of the email.
• To put it somewhere else in the email, a new tag, #CLICK_HERE_LINK#, is available in the Special Cases tab.
           

Exporting profiles in XML format

Each profile can now be exported in XML format. This enables you to archive existing profiles easily and to compare a given profile at two different dates to see what has been modified.

Because the storage of profiles is complex, exporting them in XML format makes it easier to display embedded data. Online utilities and services, many of which are free (e.g. Notepad++), can be used to view, format and compare these files.

• You perform the export using a specific wizard in the list of profiles. You use it to export one profile at a time and you can download the XML corresponding to the profile.
• The name of the file contains the generation date and time, which is useful for incremental archiving.
           

Moving from Flash to JavaScript

CMDB graph

The CMDB graph is currently undergoing revamping in JavaScript. It is available in beta version as well as in the current version and can be displayed by setting the parameter cmdbjs=1 in the URL.

Note: As it is available in beta version, we recommend that you avoid using it in production databases.
         

Displaying gauges in JavaScript

Gauges that were formerly in Flash are now generated using JavaScript.
         

File upload button

The file upload button is now in JavaScript.