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 What to Expect using FirstClass 9.0
Note: click on images to enlarge.
*Important - Please read first*
 Please do not upgrade unless you have received your 9.0 license. If you do not have your 9.0 license the server will only run in an admin protected mode, so only the admin account can log in to allow updating the license version.You must be at the 8.3 version of the server before attempting an upgrade to 9.0 If you are running any versions older than 8.3 you should follow the instructions in the 8.3 upgrade documents located within the Downloads section on FirstClass Online.What will happen after I upgrade?
After the server is started, it checks the version of the current network store, and does a directory rebuild in order to upgrade it to the 9.0 version. This may take several minutes depending on the size of your directory. There is a progress bar in the Server console on Windows servers that shows the status. On Linux and OSX it will be written to the console file to be viewed. Please be patient during this step of the server upgrade, as quitting the server will
just cause it to start from the beginning, and may cause damage to your directory.Once this is completed, the server then begins processing batch admin scripts to create all the new content, including new web skins, web templates, and so on. Once complete, the server will state that it has started.
If you have not added your 9.0 license yet, you can log in as admin, open the system profile, and go to the new licensing tab. Here you will be able to browse to and add your 9.0 server license. Once this is complete, uncheck the "disable all logins" checkbox on the Server tab of the system profile. The server will then allow users to log into the system. NOTE: Only administrator accounts may log in when the server is in admin protected mode. Considerations for pre and post install
Pre-Install
You must be at the 8.3 version of the server before attempting an upgrade to 9.0 If you are running any versions older than 8.3 you should follow the instructions in the 8.3 upgrade documents located within the Downloads section on FirstClass on Line.There is currently no Syncronization Services available for the 9.0 server, and the current versions do not work with 9.0 Internet Services. Therefore you will want to plan ahead and perhaps consider one of the following 3 options: 1)Upgrade your server to 9.0, but keep Internet Services at 8.3. 2) Create a new Internet Services cluster only for Syncronization Services, and upgrade your primary gateway to 9.0, or 3) remain on 8.3 until Syncronization Services is
available for download. OSX Servers:
The 9.0 server will not run on a case sensitive partition. If you are not sure whether or not your OSX server is running in case-sensitive mode, please place the attached script file (iscs.command) in your fcns folder, and run it from a terminal window (sh iscs.command). It will then tell you if the file system for that folder is case-sensitive or not.Post-Install
It is highly recommended that you start a server audit immediately upon upgrading to 9.0 There are a number of containers that require updating to a new type, and this is accomplished at audit time.Note: The following Audit repair: Adjusted unread tracking information.[0] message may appear on the Console during an Audit. It's nothing serious and it only appears after using Batch Admin to create a container that has a SubType. It will also appear in the first 9.0 Audit after running the upgrade scripts.
New Features added to 9.0 that admins will want to know about right away include the much anticipated Internet Mail Privilege. This new checkbox is configurable at the group level only, and controls users' ability to send and receive Internet mail.The supported userid and password lengths have been increased to 63 and 27 respectively. Note: Accounts with either a userid or password greater than the previous limits (userid 15, password 12) will only be able to log in successfully using a 9.0 (or greater) client.
The Web Publishing permission is now observed as a permission, instead of a directory filtered control, thus making it easier for admins to allow or disallow this feature.It should be noted that although the FirstClass Tools repair/diagnostics functionality has been moved to the FirstClass Server, the 9.0 upgrade installer does not currently remove the old version of FirstClass Tools. The old 8.3 version of Tools will start against the 9.0 server but should not be used to perform repairs or rebuilds, and we recommend that the old version be deleted as it is no longer compatible with the 9.0 server. SSL certificate creation is planned to be included
in a new version of FirstClass Designer.Internet Services now has much improved recognition of when objects or files that are to be rendered out via http are changed by user intervention. Instead of having to hit the "reload config" button on the Internet Services monitor, IS will automatically check every 5 minutes for any changes to the filters, mail rules, and anything in it's web cache. This option is configurable in the Basic Internet Setup form, under the service tab. FirstClass 9.0 is the first release that includes Unicode functionality. For more on the considerations of implementing Unicode, please go here.New Features and Functionality
Calendaring
The new calendar punch-through feature is a powerful new tool for viewing and managing both individual and group calendars. In addition, calendars using the new punch-through technology will also be displayed correctly through the web interface. Here's how it works:
First, you may now place multiple sub-calendars into any calendar. In the example below, I've dragged and dropped alias of three sub-calendars into Phil's calendar: "Debate Club", "Hockey", "Math 7D" and "Reading Tutorials":
 When Phil opens his calendar, a new "Calendars" tab is displayed in the left-hand pane. When you click on that tab, you are presented with a list of the available calendars:
 You may choose which calendars are displayed, and also choose to display all of the events from a particular calendar in a particular color. Double-clicking on any of the sub-calendars will open it in a new window -- this is a quick way to create items on a sub-calendar, if you have the correct permissions.
In addition to these changes, FirstClass 9.0 also includes substantial improvements to calendar printing.
Archiving
FirstClass 9.0 includes a full mail archiving solution, FirstClass Archiving Services. Archiving Services will consist of one or more FirstClass Archive Servers connected to the FirstClass Core Server. The FirstClass 9.0 Core Server has new controls allowing the Administrator to turn archiving on based on group membership, and also to choose the retention period. In addition, FirstClass 9.0 includes per-group automatic transcripts for Instant Messaging, which will automatically be archived as well. The archiving of messages will be clearly noted in the message history.
The content of the FirstClass Archive Server is easily accessed by the Librarian account, and it is quick and simple to restore one or more messages directly from the FirstClass Archive Server.
Additional Features in FirstClass 9.0
As detailed in the Roadmap, FirstClass 9.0 also includes numerous other feature and quality improvements. These include:
InstantSearch
FirstClass 9.0 introduces InstantSearch, an instant typedown search, available in any container. By just typing any string into the InstantSearch box on the toolbar, you can quickly search in all visible columns. Here's an example of an InstantSearch for "local" in Enhancement Suggestions:
 Customizable Launch Bar
The Launch Bar may now be customized by both users and Administrators. Administrators may create custom Launch Bars on a per-group basis.
Improved Subscriber List Handling
Conference subscriber lists are now handled in a separate window, enabling sorting and management of very large subscriber lists. In addition, the subscriber list now displays the Organizational Units which each subscriber is a member of:
 Internet Mail Privilege
FirstClass 9.0 includes a new privilege controlling the ability for users to send and receive internet mail.
 Send and Reply From Conference
With the appropriate permissions users may now reply to conference messages as the conference (the "from" name will be the conference name), adding to the existing ability to create new messages as a conference.
Enhanced Autoreply
Auto-replies (whether set via preferences or a mail rule) are now sent only once per day per sender.
IMAP Enhancements
The FirstClass IMAP support has been modified so that by default only the Mailbox is accessed to increase compatibility with all IMAP clients, especially those clients on handheld devices. In addition, FirstClass now supports the IMAP IDLE command, for optimal performance when IMAP is used to provide push email experience on mobile devices.
Outbound Attached Object Support
FirstClass 9.0 includes the ability to send attached FirstClass objects through SMTP mail. Contacts and calendar events will be automatically converted to vCard and vCalendar attachments, while FirstClass documents are converted to HTML. Attached FirstClass messages will be converted to MIME-encoded enclosed messages.
New Contact View & Sorting
The FirstClass 9.0 Contacts application includes a new-look contact list, easy sorting, and support for InstantSearch.
New Web Publishing Appearances
FirstClass 9 introduces three new web publishing appearances, "Box", "Cosmo" and "Metro".
Increased length of User IDs and Passwords
In addition to the support for Unicode characters in User IDs and Passwords, FirstClass 9 now supports up to 63 bytes for User ID and 27 bytes for the password.
Expansion of maximum conference and mailbox size
You may now have up to 32767 messages in any conference or mailbox.
Commenting in Blogs
Blogs in FirstClass now support commenting.
Locked & Auto-rearrange Icons
Icons may now be completely locked down. In addition, icons may be arranged on custom grids, and may also be set to auto-rearrange.
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