I have been getting a lot of questions from customers and partners about Micro Focus plans for GroupWise in 2017.   We had a lot of activity in 2016 around GroupWise, It's only natural to wonder what we will do in 2017.

At a high level we have two major releases for GroupWise planned in 2017.  In the first half of 2017 you will see GroupWise 2014 R2 SP2 (14.2.2).   In the second half of 2017 you will see GroupWise  "Wasatch"  and a new offering codename "Uinta"   There will other minor releases in the year, for this blog let's stick to covering these releases.

I have mentioned this in other blog entries, but I do want customers to get used to GroupWise Mobility being a part of GroupWise.  It has always been that way, but it used to carry a separate version and that led to confusion.  Last year we re-versioned mobility from 2.x to 14.x to help eliminate some of that confusion.  The mobility component goes with GroupWise and the versions should closely match.  As we add new features to mobility,  work must be done on the GroupWise side to make those new features work, so they will release together or close together.  Mobility is a component of GroupWise.

Now that part is clear,  lets talk about 2014 R2 SP2 (14.2.2).   In the first half of 2017 we will release GroupWise 2014 R2 SP2 (14.2.2) with an updated Mobility Server (14.2.2).   While this will mostly be a traditional support pack with top customer reported issues resolved and security updates included.  This release will also have some significant new features that include:

• Out of Office / Automatic Reply on Mobile devices

• Web Access improvements on Vacation Rules

• Filr Integration into the GroupWise client.

• Improved GWAVA Support and Integration for Mobility

For mobile devices this is exciting news.   Devices that support vacation rules, you can create and modify the rule on your mobile device and it will be synced to GroupWise and vice versa.   We also have updated the Webaccess vacation rule to work just like the GroupWise client vacation rule and to work with mobile devices.

The integration with GWAVA and mobility also enhances security at the mobile device.  We continue to work through our integration with the GWAVA products and in 2017 you will see more news and progress.  Look for more information in upcoming blog posts.

Filr Integration is also exciting.  At a high level this means that I can place an attachment into Filr when sending it and creating a share/reference instead of storing that document in GroupWise.   That way recipients always can view the latest version of that document from Filr if anyone with edit rights makes changes to the document.

That is a very high level view of those features being added to 14.2.2.   Look for more information on those features as we get closer to release.

The next GroupWise release is the "Wasatch" release of GroupWise.   Wasatch is the codename, a version will be announced closer to release.  This will be a new release of GroupWise and that will reset the lifecycle for GroupWise.   This illustrates Micro Focus continued commitment to the GroupWise product line.    This release will also have some significant new features that include:

• Integrated GroupWise Messenger into the GroupWise Administration console

• Introduce a new social threading / conversations into the GroupWise client to improve team collaboration

• Multiple enhancements directly from the IDEAS forum

• Improved Calendar functions on mobile / Attachments on calendar items

I have always believed that every GroupWise user should be a Messenger user.  If you are current on maintenance your users are entitled to Messenger.  It has gone under utilized due to the fact that Messenger is currently still on ConsoleOne and tied to eDirectory.  That will all change in the "Wasatch" Release.

2H of 2017 will also bring the release of "Uinta".   Uinta is the codename for a new offering/component for GroupWise.   Uinta is our commitment to bring Enterprise Social Networking features to GroupWise users to improve team collaboration.   Some of the core themes for this offering include:

• Mazimize team productivity with dedicated team and project rooms
  
  
  
  • Users choose their client,  mobile, web, or GroupWise
  
  

• Share content related to that team/project in the room

• Conversations
  
  
  
  • Instant & Persistent, Linear & Threaded
  
  

• Presence

We plan to show our first proof of concept and allow customers and partners to get a look at Uinta in April at the Open Horizons Conference.  All attendees will have access to use it at the conference, in addition to some hot labs and focus groups where we will take a detailed look at Uinta.   Uinta is planned for release in 2H 2017.

There is a lot of activity planned for 2017.  In the first half and the second half.  So tuned to this blog for more information and I hope to share more details about these features with you.   Oh,  I almost forgot.   In the first half of this year we also plan to have a Beta for the Wasatch release.   I will announce instructions on how to apply to participate in the Beta on this blog when its ready.