New features and changes in version 10.0

For complete details on new features, see the 10.0 Administrator's Guide.

SAML 2.0 single sign-on

You can now configure a single sign-on login mode using any SAML 2.0 IdP server

After you set up the required configuration properties and a metadata file, users who attempt to log in through the Marketing Platform login page are authenticated through your organization's SAML 2.0 Identity Provider (IdP) server.

A configuration property, Add authenticated users to Marketing Platform, enables automatic creation of a Marketing Platform account for any authenticated user who does not have a Marketing Platform account. These users are automatically added to a default user group, ExternalUsersGroup, which has only the PlatformUser role initially. Alternatively, you can specify a custom group to which users are added.

If the Add authenticated users to Marketing Platform property is not enabled, users must have a Marketing Platform account to log in.

Usability enhancements for the HCL® Marketing Software Scheduler

The Scheduler user interface and features have been enhanced to improve usability.

  • The Scheduler can now handle calls to external APIs and scripts.
  • You can schedule system alerts and notifications from the Schedule management page.

    These alerts and notifications contain text that you create and they are independent of any notifications you might create for a scheduled task. For example you might post a system alert for a planned maintenance shutdown, which is seen by all users when they log in to HCL Marketing Software.

  • You can filter the lists of schedules and runs using an advanced filter.
  • You can start to create schedules for all supported objects from the Schedule management page.

    Where necessary, the appropriate product landing page opens so that you can select the object and create the schedule.

Windows Integrated Login via IIS Proxy

Previous versions of Marketing Platform supported NTLMv1 based Microsoft Windows Integrated login. With the arrival of Microsoft Windows 2008 Server and Microsoft Windows 7 the default minimum standard has changed and requires the NTLM v2 protocol.

NTLM v2 is not natively supported by Marketing Platform. The documentation has been updated to provide instructions on configuring NTLM v2 using Microsoft Internet Information Services (a component of the Windows 2008 Server). This solution is compatible with already released versions of HCL Marketing Software products.

Custom proxy for Digital Analytics + Campaign integration using Websense

Marketing Platform provides a custom proxy to enable integration between Campaign hosted on premises and Digital Analytics in the cloud when Websense is a required component of the environment.

The custom proxy is a Java servlet implementation that acts as a forward proxy. It is injected between the Campaign listener and Digital Analytics.

After the custom proxy is installed, you can configure single sign-on and integration between Digital Analytics and Campaign.

This custom proxy is supported with the WebSphere application server only.

Whitelist for custom dashboard portals

To enhance dashboard security, a whitelist feature has been added for custom dashboard portlets. This prevents undesirable URLs from being added to dashboards, which could lead to malware execution at the client end when the dashboard loads.

When you create a custom portlet you now perform the following additional steps.

  • Add the URL of the portlet you want to whitelist to the Platform_Admin_URL.properties file, which is located in the conf directory under your Marketing Platform installation
  • Stop and restart the Marketing Platform web application

New option during installation to create a system table data source connection in the web application server

You can allow the installer to create the connection to the Marketing Platform system tables in the web application server. To enable automatic data source creation during installation, on the Datasource Creation panel, select the Create Marketing Platform Datasource check box and supply information about your application server.

  • The installer creates the data source using campaignPartition1DS OpDetectionDS collaborateds plands UnicaPlatformDS as the JNDI name.
  • The installer creates the data source connection for one partition only. If you have multiple partitions, you must create additional connections manually.
  • Note that, if you are using WebLogic, you must add the JDBC driver to your web application server classpath manually even if you allow the installer to create the data source. The installer does this automatically for WebSphere.
  • The installer adds the JDBC driver to your web application server classpath automatically.

Context-sensitive help for Configuration properties

When you view configuration properties under Settings > Configuration, you can choose Help > Help for this page to display context-sensitive help. For example, if you request help for the Campaign | caching page, you see a help topic that specifically describes all of the caching options. You must have an internet connection to use this feature.

Enhanced user interface for Marketing Platform, Campaign, Interact, and Contact Optimization

This release updates the user interface so that it is easy to use, offers a clean, modern design, and delivers improved inline text and error messages. The new look does not change how the product works, and you can get updated documentation from the Help menu.

Upgrade paths

Because version 10.0 is a major release, you can upgrade directly from 8.6.x, 9.0.x, or 9.1.x in a single step. For instructions, see your product's Upgrade Guide.

Best practice for browser security

In Internet Explorer, on the Security tab of Internet Options, click Custom level and enable XSS Filter.