This page provides a summary of enhancements and bug fixes for version 7.1.0.

This release of HCL Launch is a maintenance release and includes various bug fixes and enhancements. This release is recommended for all customers.

Use HCL Launch to standardize and simplify the process of deploying software components to each environment in your development cycle.

Quickly become productive with HCL Launch by following these steps.

You can act to ensure that your installation is secure and set up user access controls.

Tutorials for new users.

Tutorials for experienced users.

Advanced tutorials for experienced users.

The HCL Launch server runs on Windows™ and UNIX™ systems. Following some guidelines can improve the performance of the server and agents.

Before you install the server, you must ensure that servers, agents, and other systems can connect to each other through your networks and firewalls.

HCL Launch requires a database. You can use the following database types for an evaluation or production server.

The server provides services such as the user interface used to configure application deployments, the workflow engine, the security service, and the artifact repository, among others. Installing the server involves specifying configuration information for the server, such as the ports that the server uses.

The HCL Launch server can be installed in a cloud-based environment, as a containerized server cluster, managed by Kubernetes. HCL Launch works with Kubernetes to simplify application deployment and manage versions in the containers.

You can install agents from the server or from the command line on the agent system. To configure a failover server for an agent, you must install the agent from the command line.

An agent relay is a communication proxy for agents that are located behind a firewall or in another network location. You can install agent relays in interactive mode or in silent mode.

Plug-ins can be installed at any time. You do not need to restart the server after you install a plug-in.

Both UNIX™ and Windows™ installations require the HCL Launch server and at least one agent. If you are using a database other than Derby, make sure that the appropriate driver is installed and configured.

You can back up and recover the contents of your HCL Launch installation.

Test fixes are provided by IBM® support to correct specific issues. They are applied to the server as patches.

You can upgrade the HCL Launch server to incorporate to a later version. Always upgrade agents, agent relays, and the blueprint design server in addition to upgrading the server. Upgrading the server, agents, agent relays, and blueprint design server are each completed independently. Unless specified, upgrade the server before you upgrade the agents.

All servers that are configured for the HA feature must be on the same version. Thus, all servers must be upgraded at the same time.

In most cases, you upgrade agents from the server interface, but you can also upgrade the agents from the command line. Always upgrade agents and agent relays in addition to upgrading the server.

In most cases, you upgrade agents relays from the command line, but starting from 7.0.4.2 version, you can upgrade the server from the interface. Always upgrade agents and agent relays in addition to upgrading the server.

When you upgrade the server from version 6.0.1.1 or earlier to a version later than version 6.0.1.1, you can upgrade the SSL encryption.

The server installation files include a script that migrates the server database from Derby to another database system. You can not migrate from any database other than Derby.

You can migrate your HCL Launch server from an on-premises production installation to a containerized instance that runs in a Kubernetes or Openshift cluster.

To uninstall the server, stop the server and then delete the main directory for the server.

To uninstall the agent, stop it, remove its service and registry keys, and delete its files.

You can use IBM® Rational® Asset Manager to store and catalog build outputs, test results, and related packages as part of component processes in HCL Launch.

You can use IBM® Rational® Test Workbench to virtualize services and to run integration tests as part of component processes in HCL Launch.

HCL Launch includes support for the z/OS platform. Although the articles in this Knowledge Center for using HCL Launch to deploy applications, certain platform-specific configuration factors must be considered when using a z/OS model.

Use the toolkit to deploy to the IBM® z/OS® platform.

You can configure clustered HCL Launch servers, blueprint design servers, and agents for high availability. You can also configure agents and agent relays for failover.

To configure a high-availability cluster, you store shared files on network storage. Then, you configure multiple servers, set each server to access the same files and database, and configure a load balancer to distribute the traffic between the servers.

To configure agents for failover, you specify two or more target servers for the agent to use. If one of the servers fails, the agent switches to another server from the list.

To configure agent relays for failover, you specify two or more target servers for the agent relay to use. If one of the servers fails, the agent relay switches to another server from the list.

After you install HCL Launch, you can modify the server configuration and configure more options.

Each user can specify display options for the server, including the language for the server and how the server shows times and dates.

After you install an agent for HCL Launch, you can modify its configuration or create an agent relay to facilitate communication to remote relays.

HCL Launch provides a 60-day license-free evaluation period. To use all product features after the evaluation period, you must have a license.

HCL Launch includes a wizard to help users become familiar with the procedures and steps in creating a deployment. Some configuration is required before the wizard can be used.

Customize a table view in the HCL Launch application by hiding or showing, and reordering of the table columns.

After you upgrade to HCL Launch 7.0.5 and later, you can compress the amount of large object (LOB) storage space that HCL Launch uses in the vc_persistent_record database table.

Although there is no single best way to set up security for the server, the following steps are sufficient in most cases.

With Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) technology, clients and servers can communicate securely by encrypting all communications. Data is encrypted before it is sent and decrypted by the recipient. This communication cannot be deciphered or modified by third-parties. In addition to encryption, SSL can also support authentication.

Use the Authorization Realms pane to create authorization realms and user groups for the server. Groups can be imported from external systems, such as LDAP.

Authentication realms manage users and determine user identity within authorization realms for the server.

A role is a list of permissions that users have on the HCL Launch server. These permissions include the ability to create, edit, and delete objects, such as applications, environments, and components. The permission also includes the parts of the server interface that users can access.

Users and groups on the server are assigned roles when they are added to teams.

Security types define categories of objects on the server. You can put all objects into a single category, or you can put them in separate categories and give roles different access rights to different categories.

Tokens provide authorization for agents, agent relays, users, and external systems or applications from the server. Agents use tokens when they run process steps and communicate with the HCL Launch server and external services.

You can view the API key of an agent and reset the key.

Components represent deployable items along with user-defined processes that operate on them, usually by deploying them.

A resource is a logical deployment target that typically resolves to an agent and a user-defined construct that is based on the architectural model of HCL Launch.

Applications are responsible for bringing together all the components that must be deployed together.

An environment is a user-defined collection of resources that hosts an application.

With an application template, you can save and reuse a collection of resources, environments, processes, and tagged components or component templates to create a standardized application.

Application processes, like component processes, are created with the process editor. You use application processes to deploy or to roll back components.

An application blueprint maps application components to a resource template. When you create an environment or provision one from the cloud, you can use the blueprint as a model.

A snapshot is a collection of specific versions of components and processes. Typically, a snapshot represents a set of component versions that are known to work together. In most cases, snapshots include all of the components in an application.

A manual application task interrupts an application process until manual intervention is done. To create a manual task, add a manual step to an application process and select a notification template.

Approval processes are created when you want a manual intervention in executing a particular task or process step.

You use different inventories to track installed components and properties in HCL Launch elements.

Processes are automated tasks that run on agents.

Create and apply statuses to track component inventory states or to track component versions in environments and resources.

Properties are variables that store information about many different elements, including components, environments, processes, and applications. You can also set global properties for the system.

A tag is a user-defined, shared, short label that you use to classify, view, and conduct operations on objects such as applications, components, agents, and resources.

You run a deployment by running an application process in a target environment.

To deploy application components, run an application process on an environment.

HCL Launch has a built-in deployment scheduling system for setting regular deployments, or even black-out dates, for your Deployments.

You can clean up deployment history files to reduce database and file system storage that HCL Launch uses.

Deployment reports contain historical information about deployments, such as the total number of deployment runs and the average duration of those runs.

Security reports provide information about the user roles and privileges that are defined with the HCL Launch security system.

Recurring reports run on a schedule and e-mail the results to you.

You can print and save report data for all report types. In addition, you can save filter and sort order information for deployment-type reports.

You can save filter and sort-order settings for deployment reports. Saved reports can be retrieved with the My Reports menu on the Reports pane.

With an external monitoring tool, such as IBM® Performance Management on Cloud 8.1.3 or New Relic, you can use Managed Beans (MBeans) to review numerous details about HCL Launch. For example, you can view statistics that specify how many components are available or see how long it takes for an application process to run to completion. You can use these statistics and details to assess the health of your deployments and deployment processes.

UrbanCode plug-ins provide tools for creating component processes and integrations. IBM UrbanCode provides plug-ins for several common deployment processes, and others are available to integrate with a wide variety of tools, such as middleware tools, databases, and servers.

Notification templates are the basis for emails that the server sends to users after an event occurs on the server. You can create customized notification templates by modifying the default templates provided, or by creating new templates of your own.

The HCL Launch server and blueprint design server each have a separate REST interface. You can use these REST interfaces to automate tasks on those servers.

CLI is a command-line interface that provides access to the HCL Launch server. It can be used to find or set properties and to run numerous functions.

Troubleshooting is the process of finding and eliminating the cause of a problem. When you have a problem with HCL Launch, the troubleshooting process begins as soon as you ask yourself what happened.

The server maintains logs for auditing and troubleshooting.

Troubleshooting information that is specific to the server and agents is provided here.