Contents
What's New
What's New in Dimensions CM 12.2
Library Cache Areas for Deployment
You can now use library cache areas in order to improve deployment performance in cases where deployment areas are geographically remote from the main Dimensions server.
You assign a library cache area to a deployment area by using the dmcli command UA (Update Area) or CA (Create Area) and supplying the /LIBRARY_CACHE_AREA=<area_id> qualifier.
For example, the following command will create a new UAT deployment area and associate it with the ST-LC-1 library cache area:
CA UAT1 /net=st3859 /dir=c:\deploy\uat1 /user=dmsys /pass=<password> /type=deployment /stage=uat /library_cache_area=st-lc-1
And the following command will associate an existing deployment area with a library cache area:
UA UAT2 /library_cache_area=st-lc-1
Stream Metadata Performance
Changes have been made to the way metadata is formatted, leading to improved performance.
Metadata is now stored in binary format. There is just one metadata file per folder for each type of controlled object (e.g. file, folder, work area configuration).
12.2 Clients will still be able to work with metadata created in the pre-12.2 format. Existing work areas will continue to use the pre-12.2 format but without the improvement in performance.The recommended approach for upgrading is to recreate your work areas where possible. There is however, a utility you can use to convert your work areas, see Metadata Update Utility below.
When a new work area is populated from a 12.2 client, the metadata will be in the new format. Older clients will not be compatible with the 12.2 metadata.
Accessing a remote area served by a 12.2 agent or server that has the new format metada from pre-12.2 clients using Deliver, Update, or Synchronize is not supported.
Metadata Update Utility
A command-line utility, dmmeta, is provided that enables you to update existing metadata to the new Dimensions CM 12.2 format. You can also use this to view and change values in the new binary format metadata files. Serena recommends that you do not change values in the new binary format metadata files unless expressly directed to do so by a Serena Support representative.
For details, see the Command-Line Reference.
Miscellaneous Stream Enhancements
There have also been the following enhancements to the use of streams:
- Dimensions CM now allows multiple users to perform non-overlapping deliveries to a stream at the same time. For instance, if user john delivers into a top-level folder "common_tools/" and user peter delivers into a top-level folder "application/", then these deliveries will execute concurrently.
- There have been performance improvements when delivering to a stream or project against a request.
Refactoring History View in Desktop Client
There is a new tab available in the right-hand pane of the desktop client that enables you to view the history of refactoring changes related to a request. When a request is selected in the catalog, the new Changes tab displays a list of related changes made against that request.
Windows Explorer Integration
The following new features are provided for the Windows Explorer integration:
- There is a request selection wizard available when choosing a default working request for a work area. You can select requests from your inbox or use various filtering criteria to find a request.
- You can now select a library cache area for your work area.
- File operations can now be performed for multiple selections of items and folders and are recursive for nested folders.
Synchronize Wizard Enhancements
- You can now select an item type for newly created items when synchronizing or delivering changes.
- You can display the Item History dialog for an item from within the Synchronize wizard.
For details, see the User’s Guide.
Item Header Substitution
The following enhancements have been provided for item header substitution:
- Library cache areas are now also supported for item transfers with expansion of header substitution variables.
- There is extended support for expansion of header substitution variables in the Visual Studio and Eclipse integrations, and the Windows Explorer plug-in.
- A new reversible header expansion syntax is available to allow expanded files to be edited and then delivered back into Dimensions, without losing the original file structure. This allows workflows which are more compatible with the way VM works. For further details, see Appendix B of the User's Guide.
- Behaviour of the /EXPAND qualifier on server commands has been optimised to only re-fetch and expand an existing item when the repository revision is more recent. To force a fetch and re-expand, a /REEXPAND qualifier has been added to these commands. For details, see the Command-Line Reference.
Maven Integration
Dimensions CM now provides SCM integration for Apache Maven, a tool that provides build and dependency management.
The 12.2 release will include support for, among others, the following SCM providers:
- changelog
- checkin
- checkout
- status
- update
For details, see the Build Tools User’s Guide.
Support for Embedded Integrations
Matlab and Rhapsody SCC integrations are supported for version management with Projects (but not streams). Matlab 64-bit SCC is not supported.
The recommended interface for Matlab users is the Windows Explorer integration.
The Rhapsody Eclipse-based client is certified using the Eclipse plug-in for this release, and this is the recommended Dimensions CM integration for Rhapsody.
Visual Studio Enhancements
- There has been an enhancement to the performance of the Visual Studio integration when launching the synchronization process.
- You can now associate a library cache area with a work area from the Visual Studio integration.
Miscellaneous Client Enhancements
- In the web client there is now pagination of items in the Update and Deliver wizards for streams. This improves usability and performance when delivering or updating large numbers of items.
- The merge tool now includes a Find dialog.
For details, see the User’s Guide.
Deyployment Script Enhancement
For MVS, the previous behaviour for deployment scripts was fire-and-forget. The new default behaviour is to wait for the script to connect back to Dimensions CM and mark the script as successful or unsuccessful.
Web Services and ALF Events
- The following web services have been added:
UpdateRequestDescription
GetRequestDescription
- You can now prime requests via Web Services.
- There is now a Delegate Request ALF Event.
Miscellaneous Enhancements
- Installing the desktop client is now optional for a Windows client install.
- Multi-value attributes are now supported in e-mail notifications.
Fixed Issues
This section provides detailed information on fixed issues in Dimensions CM.
Fixes in Dimensions CM 12.2
For a complete list of fixes in Dimensions CM 12.2 consult the following query in the Serena Support Knowledgebase:
Fixes in Previous Releases of Dimensions CM
For a complete list of fixes in previous releases of Dimensions CM, consult the following query in the Serena Support Knowledgebase:
http://knowledgebase.serena.com/InfoCenter/index?page=content&cat=PVDIMENSIONS&channel=DEFECTS
and select the required category.
Supported Platforms
For details of supported platforms and third party integrations, see the Serena Release Plan for Dimensions CM at:
http://support.serena.com/Roadmap/Product.aspx?sel=PVDIMENSIONS
and select the link for your release.
Agent Platforms with Dimensions Build
Dimensions Build requires an upgrade to the 12.2 or 12.1 Agent for mainframe builds, and in one special case for non-mainframe builds.
A 12.2 or 12.1 Agent must be installed on the mainframe if build is to be used. Note that the 12.2 or 12.1 Agent can be installed and operated alongside older versions of agents on the mainframe.
Generally a 12.2 Agent is not required for distributed builds, and older versions can be used. If however a distributed build requires rebuild rules to be established by Dimensions, rather than by another tool such as make or ant, then the 12.2 Agent must be installed. This situation would imply that in the tomcat setup file bws\WEB-INF\web.xml, the parameter brd.force.dependencies has the value true. If this is not the case, then the 12.2 agent upgrade is not essential.
Virtual Environment Support
Serena recognizes that virtualization technology provides significant utility and value to our customers. As such, Serena conducts functional testing and certifies our products using virtualization technology in addition to native environments. While Serena expects that our products will function properly when running on supported platforms in a virtualized environment as well as a native environment, there may be functional and performance limitations. Serena will not require that customers recreate and troubleshoot every issue in a non-virtualized environment, however there may be circumstances in which such action may be required. Serena will only make this request when there is reason to believe that the virtualized environment is a contributing factor to the issue. If the issue cannot be reproduced in a supported non-virtualized environment, customers will need to refer their issues to their virtualization vendor.
Installation Notes and Issues
Deprecated Features
Serena announces End of Development for Dimensions Connect for Remedy. Customers who still need to use this product should continue to use Dimensions CM 2009 R2.
With Serena's orchestrated ALM strategy, Serena intends to deliver comparable and better ALM - ITSM integration through an orchestrated SBM solution within 12 months.
Installing this Release
For information about installing this release please refer to the following documentation:
- Serena Dimensions CM 12.2 Installation Guide for Windows
- Serena Dimensions CM 12.2 Installation Guide for UNIX
Upgrading Previous Dimensions CM Installations
If you have installed and are using Dimensions CM 2009 R2, or 12.1.x, you should run the Dimensions CM 12.2 installer to upgrade to this release. The Dimensions CM 12.2 installer will upgrade these existing Dimensions CM installations.
Delta Libraries not Supported on HP-UX Itanium
The use of delta libraries is not supported on HP-UX 64-bit, Itanium.
Versions of Integrations
The following CM integrations have not been updated for Dimensions CM 12.2:
- DOORS
- QualityCenter
- Dimensions Connect for Remedy
- Dimensions Connect for SBM
The installer versions provided with the 12.2 downloads are the same as the versions that were supplied for 12.1, and these are the versions that should be used for this release.
Dimensions CM integration for Remedy (DEF198811)
The synchronization service for the Remedy integration is not currently available for CM12.2. The approach that should be taken is to use the integration from CM2009R2. Note - the integration requires that a Dimensions CM2009R2 client be installed. The CM12.2 client must not be installed on this machine. The CM2009R2 client and Remedy integration are available on the CM2009R2 download site. If you are already running the CM2009R2 Remedy integration no action is necessary. This issue will be addressed in a patch or future release.
Checking the Presence of the UNIX "uncompress" Utility
Certain Dimensions CM for UNIX installation activities rely on the UNIX uncompress utility and this must be present on the UNIX machine. Most UNIX machines will have this installed as standard, and its presence can be checked with commands such as:
$ which uncompress, $ uncompress -h
If your UNIX machine does not have uncompress installed, your system administrator will need to install it before you can proceed with the installation of Dimensions CM for UNIX.
Upgrading Dimensions Connect for Business Manager (SBM)
You must install the Dimensions Connect for SBM integration code whenever you upgrade the Dimensions server to a new version. For example, if you upgrade the Dimensions server to a new version such as 12.2, you must install the 12.2 version of Dimensions Connect for SBM as well. If you do not, the integration may not work as expect with supported versions of SBM. For more on installing and using Dimensions Connect for SBM, please see the Dimensions CM Connect for Serena Business Manager User's Guide.
Server Memory Requirements
The following memory is required for a server installation:
- Minimum: 1 GB
- Recommended: 3 GB
Roles Required for SQL Server 2008
Before installing Dimensions Server, the following SQL Server roles need to be allocated to the user running the install against SQL Server 2008:
- public
- sysadmin
Due to enhanced security on SQL 2008, this will also have to be done for local administrator accounts as there is no longer a BUILTIN\Administrators Login to automatically give you administrative rights on SQL Server.
Shut Down Tomcat Before a Server Upgrade
Serena Software recommends that the Serena Common Tomcat should be explicitly shut down before commencing any Dimensions software upgrade. Unfortunately, the upgrade installer is not able to automate this, so the person doing the upgrade must do it manually. If this is not done, then the Web archive (.war) files used by the upgraded Dimensions CM Web tools may not expand correctly, causing missing files in these tools.
Stopping Dimensions on Windows
When you stop the Dimensions Service on windows, the dmschedule and dmemail processes may continue to run for a period after the other processes have exited. You should ensure that these processes have actually terminated before performing an upgrade or patch installation.
Closing the Microsoft Management Console
On Windows platforms, it is recommended that you make sure that the Microsoft Management Console (i.e. Services, Computer Management, etc.) is closed before starting an installation or upgrade. (This is the option accessed from the Windows Control Panel, or on certain versions of Windows is part of the Control Panel Administrative Tools option.)
Delay After Starting the Installer
On first starting the installation, there may be a delay of up to a minute before the first dialog appears. It may take some time for the installer to process various files in between the appearance of installer screens during the upgrade process.
Unable to Connect to Database
If during the installation, you receive an error message stating that Dimensions CM is unable to connect to the database, but it does not inform you of the reason, check the following:
- Ensure that you have entered the correct database password, and Oracle DSN if applicable.
- Ensure that the locally or remotely located RDBMS database used by Dimensions CM is active ("up") by establishing that it is running, or that you can connect to it, for example using standard RDBMS database utilities, such as sqlplus.
For more details, see the section Pre-Installation Tasks and Considerations for your platform in the Installation Guide.
Installations with Oracle 11 on AIX
There is an issue with the Oracle OCI libraries specific to Oracle 11 on AIX, which causes problems both with installation and use of Dimensions CM. To work around this issue, the Dimensions CM installer installs an Oracle 10 Instant Client which will allow Dimensions CM to connect to the Oracle 11g database. However, this workaround is currently only valid on installations where Dimensions CM and Oracle 11g are on the same physical machine. For installations where the Oracle database is remote to the Dimensions CM server, please contact Serena Support for guidance.
Windows Oracle Installation on Servers with SQL Server
If you are installing this version with SQL Server on Windows, and Oracle was installed on the system at the time of the original Dimensions installation, you will need to remove a registry key before running the installation. To do so, run regedit and remove the keys:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\10.x\Install\INSTALL_OracleSid
or
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\12.x\Install\INSTALL_OracleSid
Note: Make sure that you back up your registry before making any changes using via Registry | Export Registry File.
Oracle DBA User
It is no longer necessary to use the Oracle SYSTEM user. The installer will prompt the user to enter the Oracle DBA user, which no longer has to be the default value of SYSTEM.
In addition, the following commands no longer require DBA privileges: CRDB, DELV, DLDB, EXPM, GRTV, INCR, INSV, LSGV and REKV
Dimensions Installation with Oracle 10: Service may Fail to Start
When installing 12.2 against Oracle 10 as a clean install (not an upgrade) the Dimensions service may fail to start. The workaround is to run:
dmdba upgrade /force
and then restart the listener manually.
Unable to upgrade Dimension server from 2009R2 to 12.2 on WinSer2008, SQL2008R2 (DEF202910)
A Dimensions CM server which was modified post installation to enable SSO/CAC may fail to upgrade to CM 12.2 with the error:
"Error2343. Specified path is empty.".
In this case it is necessary to first fix the registry and then reinstall.
The registry key to fix is this key for the current Dimensions version:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\12.1.0\INSTALL_DemoProductDir
or
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\10.3.1\INSTALL_DemoProductDir
Set the value to the location of the demo product directory, for example:
c:\Program Files\Serena\Dimensions 12.1\CM\Demo
or
c:\Program Files\Serena\Dimensions 10\CM\Demo
After making this fix it is possible to perform a proper upgrade installation as normal.
Installation Fails if There is no C: Drive (Windows)
The Dimensions CM Windows installer will fail before loading the first window in the install wizard if there is no C: drive on the machine. To work around this problem use the subst command to create a virtual C: drive.
Registry Keys not Deleted During Uninstallation (Windows)
Some Dimensions CM installation-specific information is retained in the registry for reuse on subsequent installations. If you have removed all Dimensions CM products from your system, you may also wish to remove this registry information. To do so, backup your Windows registry, run regedit, and remove the registry keys and their contents:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\10.x
or
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Serena\Dimensions\12.x
UNIX Installer Sometimes Displays Certain Letters in Passwords
The UNIX installer sometimes displays certain letters in passwords. Typically, only one letter is visible. This is a known InstallShield issue. This only affects the on-screen display of passwords during installation. Passwords will not be stored in clear text as a result of the installation.
UNIX Console Mode License Agreement Display (DEF207656)
When performing a UNIX console mode installation, unless the code page used for the terminal being used supports UFT-8 the license agreement will not be displayed correctly .
HPUX Install Logs: "product bean DimensionsServerFeature does not exist" (DEF208513)
When performing a clean install on either HPUX pa-risc or ia64 the logfile generated in the installation location (
(Sep 30, 2011 4:31:00 AM), Install, com.installshield.product.wizardbeans.SetProductBeanPropertyAction, wrn, Unable to set product bean property DimensionsServerFeature.active ServiceException: (error code = 315; message = "product bean DimensionsServerFeature does not exist"; severity = 0)
Checking that the Installation Has Completed
On Windows platforms there is a small possibility that the installation may not in fact have worked even though the installation has appeared to complete successfully. It is recommended that you check that the expected software is listed in the Control Panel | Add or Remove Programs window following the installation. Select the entry (such as Serena Dimensions CM Server) and click on the 'Click here for support information' link to check the version number.
Error Messages when Uninstalling UNIX Client
If you are uninstalling the UNIX 12.2 client from a directory beneath the root directory of the installation that you are uninstalling, you may receive some spurious messages, such as:
/opt/serena/dimensions/12.2/common/tomcat/6.0/conf/server.xml exists on this system and it has been modified since installation. Do you want to remove this file?
and
rm: cannot determine if this is an ancestor of the current working directory /tmp/istemp495138092221 bash-2.05# id uid=0(root) gid=1(other)
The uninstallation will nevertheless complete successfully and the messages can be ignored. Additionally, the following errors can be safely ignored:
cat: cannot open /tmp/istemp4482139051720/chunk2 , /tmp/istemp4482139051720/chunk1: No such file or directory , /tmp/istemp4482139051720/chunk2: No such file or directory
Upgrading Windows Agent
If you are upgrading a Windows Agent from version 2009 R2, or 12.1.x, you must first uninstall the existing agent before installing the 12.2 Windows Agent.
Installation Fails if Path Includes Reserved OS Words
If you customize the installation path, do not include reserved operating system terms such as “nul” in the path. Installation will fail in this case.
Upgrading of an Existing SSO/CAC installation
During an upgrade, you will be prompted for various details for your SOS/CAC configuration as you would for a fresh install. These details will be applied to your 12.2 installation. If however, you have made any manual edits to the .xml files in your previous installation, those files will be saved in:
$DM_ROOT%/../common/tomcat/6.0/SSO.pre12.2
You will need to merge/reapply any edits you previously made to these files.
Known Issues
This section contains a list of known issues that you should be aware of. For a complete list, consult the following query in the Serena Support Knowledgebase:
http://knowledgebase.serena.com/InfoCenter/index?page=content&cat=PVDIMENSIONS_12.2&channel=DEFECTS
Incorrect Context Menu in Desktop Client Area Explorer (DEF209874)
There is an issue with the Area Explorer view in the desktop client such that the context menu that appears when right-clicking a controlled file does not display the full list of options. The work around is to include one of the columns relating to the metadata in the display.
- Select the Area Explorer View (My Current Project/Stream | Work Areas | My Area).
- Right-click on the column heading and select one of the metadata-related fields (Change Type, Revision, Project/Stream, Specification, Is Checked Out, or Status).
The full set of commands will now be available when you right-click a file.
Spurious Error Message Deleting Project Folder (DEF209885)
When delivering changes to a project in Visual Studio and the Synchronize wizard, an error message is displayed when a project folder is deleted saying that the project directory does not exist. The folder is however successfully deleted, and the error message can be ignored.
Queued Job Properties Dialog Displays Error when Using MS SQL Server (DEF210738)
There is an issue when using MS SQL Server such that after scheduling a promotion for a specified time, and then viewing the Queued Job Properties dialog in the web client, a message “Error: Data wasn’t read” is displayed. The information however, is correctly shown and the message can be ignored.
Compiler Versions for Sample Trigger Events (DEF11517)
There are a number of examples provided for the Dimensions CM Events Callout Interface. These are described in Chapter 5 of the Developer’s Reference.
The compiler versions that are needed to build triggers with the examples are as follows:
AIX: XL C/C++ for AIX, V11.1 (11.1.0.0)
HPUX ia64: HP C/aC++ A.6.16
Linux RH64: GCC 3.4.6 (20060404)
Solaris: Sun C/C++ for SunOS-Sparc U5.10 (2009/06/03)
Win32: (Microsoft Visual Studio 2008) Microsoft (R) 32-bit C/C++ Optimizing Compiler Version 15.00.30729.01 for 80x86Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
Win64: (Microsoft Visual Studio 2008) Microsoft (R) C/C++ Optimizing Compiler Version 15.00.30729.01 for x64Copyright (C) Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
No Connection After Configuring CAC Login for Visual Studio (DEF196288)
You may have a problem logging in to Visual Studio on the first occasion after you have configured a Dimensions server using CAC. There may be no connection when logging in to Visual Studio using a Smart Card and entering a valid certificate. In this case do the following:
- Create a new Smart Card connection by clicking Login on the Login window (as there is no OK button to save the newly created connection).
- Open the Login window again, select this connection, and Log in.
- This time you will be able to connect successfully.
Error Opening Help from Visual Studio with .NET 4.0 installed
An exception occurs when the online help is opened from the Visual Studio integration when .NET Framework 4.0 only is installed. This is related to the issue described in:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ff602939.aspx
The help does work correctly with .NET Framework 3.5 and all the patches applied.
The problem can be overcome by editing the application config file and adding <supportedRuntime> elements as described in the above article for versions 2.0, 3.5, and 4.0, in that order.