New Features and Other Changes
When new features or other changes are introduced in WFM releases, they can sometimes affect migration. Check what's new in each release, to ensure your migration is successful.
To find out what's new or changed in WFM 8.x releases, click the links below. Changes that affect WFM 7.x, and WFM 6.5 migration are briefly described in the sections that follow.
8.x releases
- For WFM 8.5 releases, see Workforce Management 8.5 Release Information.
- For WFM 8.1 releases, see Workforce Management 8.1 Release Information.
- For WFM 8.0 releases, see the section "New Features in 8.0" in the Workforce Management Administrator's Guide.
Migrating security settings to 8.x
If you are migrating from WFM 7.x, users are imported with the same security settings.
If the security settings have been divided into more specific functions, users who had access to the functionality in the prior version keep the same permissions. However, in some cases you might want to adjust the security settings to take advantage of the increased granularity.
For example, users who had permission to edit the Calendar now have permission to Add/Edit/Delete items and to Prefer/Grant/Decline items. You can change the security settings to allow one set of calendar modification settings but not the other.
7.x releases
WFM 8.5.x deployment—that is, configuration and installation of the components—is essentially the same as for version 7.x with one notable change, starting in 7.2, WFM Reports Server is no longer a separate installation package.
6.5 releases
If you are currently running WFM 6.5, deploying Workforce Management 8.5.x releases differs from your current version in two ways:
- WFM Database Utility is discontinued in 8.5.2 and replaced by the WFM Backup-Restore Utility (BRU). Therefore, you cannot migrate directly from 6.5.x to 8.5.2. Instead, you must install the WFM 8.5.1 Database Utility and migrate the database to 8.5.2.
- The installation of WFM components is now performed using separate installation packages rather than a single package.
- The increased capabilities of the WFM Web component eliminate the need to deploy a Windows-based client for many current WFM users. The majority of WFM users, with the exception of those who need to configure the WFM system and its working rules, use the browser-based WFM Web Application only.
When your database objects are migrated to a WFM 8.5.x release, some terms have changed. See New Terminology in Post-6.x Databases for a list of these changes.
New terminology in post-6.x databases
WFM 7.1.2 introduced some new terms and made changes to some existing configuration objects. The table below provides only basic information about the changed terms. For detailed explanations of these terms, and all WFM objects, see the Overview and Deployment Planning.
The following new terms did not exist in 6.5:
- Task
- Task Sequence
- Calendar Item