Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2
Release Notes
December 2019
Introduction
Workflow Manager helps enterprises efficiently manage the Application Readiness and Software License Optimization processes to streamline the procurement, preparation, deployment, and ongoing management of applications. Workflow Manager maximizes productivity of the IT team by automating change management, asset management, and other ITIL processes as part of the enterprise application lifecycle.
When IT-wide processes such as preparing application for deployment, migrations, and license optimization are managed poorly, expensive errors can occur, resulting in costly delays, lost productivity, and overspending. Workflow Manager standardizes, coordinates, and streamlines the management of applications through the entire enterprise lifecycle, reducing costs and maximizing productivity.
Workflow Manager supports both AdminStudio Suite and FlexNet Manager Suite for Enterprises. IT teams of every size use Workflow Manager to coordinate software asset management—from application packaging and deployment, though software licensing and optimization after deployment. Workflow Manager can manage desktop management processes, such as preparing for Windows migrations and application virtualization, as well as procurement, auditing, and retirement of software assets.
New Features in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2
In Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, the following new features and enhancements are introduced:
| • | Introducing New Data Elements |
| • | Identifying Unique Record using Web Service Call |
| • | Naming Workflow Folder Structure |
Note • In addition to these new features, several additional customer issues were addressed. For more information, see Resolved Issues.
Introducing New Data Elements
In Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, the below data types are introduced:
| • | Upload Folder Content |
| • | AdminStudio Package Content Upload |
Upload Folder Content
In previous releases of Workflow Manager, you can upload link in a workflow step which enables a user to upload application, documentation, or dependency files to a specific location on the Workflow Manager file server for the selected workflow request.
A new data element named Upload Folder Content is introduced in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2. This new data element enables users to upload multiple files in a folder at once. This new data element provides the control to create a folder structure and upload multiple files into each of these folders all at once. All the files and folder structure defined in this data element will be uploaded to a specific location on the Workflow Manager file server for the selected workflow request.
If a data collection step contains a data element of type Upload Folder Content, the person completing the workflow request will be presented with an Upload button.
Clicking this button will open the File Upload dialog box, where one or more files may be uploaded.
Tip • You can find the list of uploaded files in the Uploaded Files tab of the selected workflow request.
AdminStudio Package Content Upload
In previous releases of Workflow Manager, you can import a package into AdminStudio Application Catalog using the data elements AdminStudio Package Upload and AdminStudio Package Upload from the Import Path.
A new data element named AdminStudio Package Content Upload is introduced in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2. This new data element provides the capability to import an uncompressed setup file (msi or exe), along with its supporting files and folders into AdminStudio Application Catalog. This new data element gives you the control to create the folder structure to match the folder structure of an uncompressed setup file. After the folder structure is created, you will be able to upload multiple files at once into each of these folders to match the folder content of the setup file. This new data element also provides control to specify the actual setup file (msi or exe) to be imported into the catalog and to specify the transform file, if any. All the package files and folder structure defined in this data element will be uploaded to a specific location on the Workflow Manager file server for the selected workflow request from which the package will be imported into AdminStudio.
When you click the Upload Package Content button, the Upload windows pane opens.
Tip • You can use clear button 
to clear the selected Package File and Transform File.
On the Upload windows pane, you can select multiple files using Browse option.
When you have finished selecting files, click Upload. Progress messages will be listed.
All uploaded files will be moved to the selected folder structure. Select the Package File radio button, and select an application file which you want to import into the AdminStudio catalog.
Select the Transform File radio button, and select the relevant supporting file which has to be imported along with a selected application file into the AdminStudio catalog.
Click Close to return to the workflow step.
You can see the uploaded Package File and Transform File, then click Submit to complete the step.
At that point, a subsequent workflow step begins processing the import, as described in Creating a Workflow Step to Process the Import.
Identifying Unique Record using Web Service Call
In Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, a new property named Persisted column is added for the data element Web Service call. This new property is applicable when the value of the property UI Type is Grid.
This new property helps user to define columns to fetch a unique record from the output returned from a web service call.
Persisted Column—Enter a column name or names, separated by semicolon, which identifies and returns a unique row item or record.
For instance, in the below figure, the column name Country has multiple entries with the same value (USA). In this case, this column alone cannot be used as primary key to identify an unique record.
You may have to either specify name of a single column which has unique values or multiple column names whose values combine to identify and fetch an unique record. Specify single or multiple column names in this new property Persisted column like this: Country ; Order No or Sales Rep ; Order No or only Order No.
Naming Workflow Folder Structure
In previous releases, while submitting a workflow request, a folder with a name entered in the Workflow request name field will be created in the folder path C:\AdminStudioWebComponents_2019\SHAREPATH\Workflow_Administrator\Workflow_Consumer.
In Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, you can create the folder with a desired name, the folder will get created in the folder path C:\AdminStudioWebComponents_2019\SHAREPATH\.
A new check box Specify Workflow Folder Name is added in the Settings > Company Preferences.
If you select the check box Specify Workflow Folder Name, in the Settings > Company Preferences, You can see the Workflow folder name field in Submit Workflow Request page. 
Select this option to instruct Workflow Manager to ask for a desired folder name while submitting a workflow request. The workflow folder will be created in a name which user enters in the Workflow folder name field.
Click Submit Workflow Requests on the Workflows menu of the navigation bar. The Submit Workflow Request page opens.
You can enter a descriptive name for your request in the Workflow folder name field.
A folder will be created in the folder path C:\AdminStudioWebComponents_2019\SHAREPATH\ with a name given in the Workflow folder name field.
New Features in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1
In Workflow Manager 2019, the following new feature is included:
| • | Editing a Template and Update the Changes to In-Progress workflows |
Note • In addition to these new features, several additional customer issues were addressed. For more information, see Resolved Issues.
Editing a Template and Update the Changes to In-Progress workflows
In Workflow Manager 2019, you can now edit the Template which has been used to create a workflows and update the new changes to In-Progress workflows.
Note • For more information see Update-Template changes to In-Progress Workflows
In Workflow Manager 2019 the following changes can be made:
| • | You can now edit an existing Template which has In-Progress workflows, see Editing a Template That is in Use. |
| • | In the Workflow Phases: |
| • | You can Add >> New Workflow Phases |
| • | You can Add >> New Workflow Steps |
| • | In the Data Groups: |
| • | You can Add >> New Data Groups |
| • | You can Add >> New Data Element |
| • | The new tab Validate is added, click F5 after updating a changes in the Template. Validate tab opens. |
| • | In the Validate Tab: |
| • | Validate Button - click this to validate the Template. |
| • | Update In-Progress Requests Button - Click this to update the changes to In-Progress workflows. |
Note • You can update the changes to In-Progress workflows only after validating the Template.
| • | When a new changes in the validated Template successfully updated to an In-Progress workflows, you will receive the notification message. |
Upgrading Workflow Manager Older Version to Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2
To upgrade an installation of Workflow Manager 2018 Update 2 or older to Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, you must first uninstall the older version of Workflow Manager.
To upgrade an older version of Workflow Manager to Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2, perform the following steps.
To upgrade an older version of Workflow Manager to Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2:
| 1. | Download the installer for Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1 from the Flexera Product and License Center: |
https://flexerasoftware.flexnetoperations.com
| 2. | If you have Workflow Manager 2018 or older is installed, open the Control Panel and uninstall it. |
| 3. | Launch the installer you downloaded in Step 1. Follow the instructions in the Installation Wizard until installation is completed. |
| 4. | After successful installation, AdminStudio Configuration Wizard will automatically launch. |
| 5. | On the Create or Update an AdminStudio database panel of the AdminStudio Configuration Wizard, provide the details and credentials of the SQL Server and database that was used in the older version of Workflow Manager. |
| 6. | Follow the instructions in the Configuration Wizard until it is completed. The wizard will upgrade the database and make it compliant with the new version of Workflow Manager. |
| 7. | Refresh/restart IIS on the Workflow Manager server. |
After performing these steps, you can launch the updated version of Workflow Manager.
Resolved Issues
This section lists the customer issues that were resolved in the following versions of Workflow Manager:
| • | Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2 |
| • | Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1 |
| • | Workflow Manager 2019 |
Workflow Manager 2019 Update 2
This section lists the customer issues that were resolved in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1:
|
Issue |
Description |
|
IOJ-1996842 |
Last Phase in a template has branching and link to next phase options enabled |
|
IOJ-1991874 |
New Data Element required to Upload Folder structure. |
|
IOJ-1920785 |
Consumer users should be able to see all the workflow requests in “All Workflow Requests" page. |
|
IOJ-1897486 |
Data Element for File Share Directory Name. |
|
IOJ-1886939 |
User is able to view assignments When the role doesn't have permissions. |
|
IOJ-1870555 |
Incorrect permission and notifications behavior for Workflow. |
|
Web Service Call control chooses incorrect record if values in first column are not unique. |
Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1
This section lists the customer issues that were resolved in Workflow Manager 2019 Update 1:
|
Issue |
Description |
|
IOJ-1990898 |
Workflow Manager url in FSG server should also support HTTPS protocol. |
|
IOJ-1986751 |
Unable to Edit Templates After Upgrade To WFM 2018 Update 1 |
|
IOJ-1927509 |
Few visual issues are present on work assignment step after a search has been performed to assign the step to a user. |
|
IOJ-1922444 |
The security token is invalid error message is returned when trying to call Create Workflow Request method when windows authentication is used. |
|
IOJ-1920763 |
Write option should be renamed to Edit in Apply Permission to Templates drop down in Role Details page |
|
IOJ-1920209 |
Days in Phase and Submitter Columns Not Populated Correctly |
|
IOJ-1912054 |
Several references throughout the documentation in helpnet refers to Workflow manager 2016 |
|
IOJ-1912017 |
Help link on Dashboard page (possibly elsewhere) point to Workflow Manager 2017 documentation. |
|
IOJ-1911913 |
Web page Formatting issues with 2018 |
|
IOJ-1908398 |
Unable to Save Approval Template Need to Add At Least One Approver |
|
IOJ-1908027 |
Update Data Appends Symbols to Data if Submitted With no Change. |
|
IOJ-1907414 |
Will Changing the AMS_Condition Table ItemName Column Affect Things? |
|
IOJ-1907123 |
Subesquent Saves Fail If the Internal Name is Left Blank When Saving a Single Selection Data Element on First Attempt |
|
IOJ-1905536 |
What Can Cause SetWorkAssignments Exception? |
|
IOJ-1876823 |
Cannot associate package with Workflows |
|
IOJ-1867187 |
Modifying a Template in Use Breaks Existing Completed Workflows. |
|
IOJ-1819679 |
Text Area data element is causing auto rollback to not work |
|
IOJ-1990409 |
Unable To Update Workflow Phase Branching Correctly |
Workflow Manager 2019
This section lists the customer issues that were resolved in Workflow Manager 2019:
|
Issue |
Description |
|
IOJ-1806780 |
Rollback does not undo assignment step. |
|
IOJ-1894635 |
Folder location has extra backslash. |
|
IOJ-1895723 |
PackageUploadDirectory does not appear to be used for AdminStudio Package Upload. |
|
IOJ-1887310 |
Export ability of Custom Stored Procedure Report shows blank screen. |
|
IOJ-1860637 |
Renaming a Data Group should also rename conditions connected to Data Elements in the group. |
|
IOJ-1922494 |
Not all users are shown when searching from the Assignment Step. |
System Requirements
This section lists the system requirements for Workflow Manager.
| • | Workflow Manager Web Server |
| • | Workflow Manager / AdminStudio Database Server |
| • | File Share Server |
| • | Workflow Manager End User Computers |
| • | Portal Web Server for Intranet Clients |
| • | Portal Web Server for Internet Clients |
| • | Workflow Manager System Account Requirements |
Workflow Manager Web Server
The following table lists the system requirements for the Web server that hosts the Workflow Manager Data Web service and the actual Workflow Manager Web site.
|
Item |
Description |
|
Processor |
32-bit or 64-bit processor at 2 GHz or greater. Note • Workflow Manager runs in 32-bit mode on a 64-bit OS. |
|
RAM |
4 GB or greater (8 GB preferred) |
|
Hard Disk Space |
100 GB or greater |
|
Operating System |
Windows Server 2008 R2 or later / English base language (Windows Server 2012 preferred) |
|
IIS |
IIS 7.0 or later |
|
.NET Framework |
.NET Framework 4.6.1 or later |
|
ASP.NET |
ASP.NET 4.0.30319 or later |
|
MSXML |
MSXML 6.0 Note • MSXML is installed by the Workflow Manager installer. |
Workflow Manager / AdminStudio Database Server
This following table lists the recommended system configuration for a Workflow Manager/AdminStudio Application Catalog database server:
Note • While minimum requirements are listed below, the recommended system configuration for a database server is dependent upon the number of users and the number of packages that will be imported into the Application Catalog database
|
Item |
Description |
|||||||||||||||
|
Processor |
32-bit or 64-bit processor at 2 GHz or greater |
|||||||||||||||
|
RAM |
4 GB or greater (8 GB preferred) |
|||||||||||||||
|
Hard Disk Space |
80 GB or greater |
|||||||||||||||
|
Operating System |
Windows Server 2008 R2 or later (Windows Server 2012 preferred) |
|||||||||||||||
|
Database Software |
SQL Server 2008 R2 or later databases, including SQL Server 2012 and SQL Server 2014 (latest version preferred)
Latin1-General, case-insensitive, accent-sensitive, kanatype-insensitive, width-insensitive for Unicode Data, SQL Server Sort Order 52 on Code Page 1252 for non-Unicode data
Note • Before attempting to connect to an existing Microsoft SQL Server, open SQL Server Configuration Manager and make sure that the following three protocols are enabled:
|
File Share Server
This following table lists the system requirements for the machine that stores Workflow Manager’s uploaded source files and the repackaged output files:
|
Item |
Description |
|
Processor |
2 GHz or greater |
|
RAM |
2 GB or greater |
|
Hard Disk Space |
1 TB or greater |
|
Operating System |
Windows Server 2008 R2 or later |
Workflow Manager End User Computers
This following table lists the recommended system configuration for a Workflow Manager end user machine:
|
Item |
Description |
||||||||||||
|
Browser |
|
||||||||||||
|
Monitor Resolution |
1024 x 768 pixels or higher |
Portal Web Server for Intranet Clients
A portal is not required to support Windows NT authentication. You can enable Windows NT authentication directly on the web site.
Single sign-on is only supported when the user that logs into IIS has been imported into the Workflow Manager database using Active Directory. The administrator can either import the complete group or only one user. If a complete group is imported, then all the members of the group can be logged into Workflow Manager using single sign-on.
The system requirements for this machine are the same as for the Workflow Manager Web Server.
Portal Web Server for Internet Clients
For better security and to manage access to the Workflow Manager Web Server, it is recommend to also set up a portal Web server for Internet clients.
If Workflow Manager needs to be accessed over the Internet, it is recommended to set up a portal Web server, residing in a demilitarized zone (DMZ). This Web server:
| • | accepts the requests from the Internet clients, |
| • | forwards them to the Workflow Manager, |
| • | gets responses from the Workflow Manager, and |
| • | forwards them to the clients |
You can configure the Workflow Manager to entertain the request only if it is coming from the Portal Web server, and otherwise reject the request. The Portal Web server manages access to Workflow Manager and ensures that clients are not able to access any data or documents without logging in.
The system requirements for this machine are the same as for Workflow Manager Web Server.
Workflow Manager System Account Requirements
The AMS_SYSTEM account on the Workflow Manager server requires the following privileges:
| • | IIS_WPG group member—Must be a member of the local IIS_WPG group (or IIS_USRS) on the web server. |
| • | Modify permissions on file share—Must have “modify” permissions on the Workflow Manager file share. |
| • | Email permissions—Must have permission to send e-mail through the SMTP server. |
| • | Active Directory query permission—Must have permission to query Active Directory. |
Legal Information
Copyright Notice
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All copies of the technology and related information, if allowed by Flexera, must display this notice of copyright and ownership in full.
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The Software is commercial computer software. If the user or licensee of the Software is an agency, department, or other entity of the United States Government, the use, duplication, reproduction, release, modification, disclosure, or transfer of the Software, or any related documentation of any kind, including technical data and manuals, is restricted by a license agreement or by the terms of this Agreement in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation 12.212 for civilian purposes and Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement 227.7202 for military purposes. The Software was developed fully at private expense. All other use is prohibited.