Hello everyone! The team is happy to announce the newest version of IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation 1.1.5 (RIA), formally known as IBM Rapid Network Automation®. 1.1.5 is a much-improved version than previous releases, from the introduction of workflow templates to the availability of a freemium version of IBM RIA.
IBM RIA 1.1.5 is a centralized tool that helps manage all of a user's automations. It is a point where all your automation comes together. RIA is a low code platform that allows even people with minimal experience in programming to automate in a matter of hours, therefore making automation accessible to more people in organizations.
Starting in 1.1.5, IBM Rapid Network Automation has been renamed to IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation, to better capture the capabilities of the product. The user interface and all supporting documentation have been updated to reflect the new name.
Onboarding tours and guides
The first and one of the most important features introduced in 1.1.5 are the interactive tours and guides. This feature has been added to the User Interface to improve and make the onboarding process more seamless. Some example of tours that have been added include introductions to the dashboard, workflow lists and Authentications.
The tours and guides will highlight the key features of RIA and additionally make users more comfortable with creating workflows. It will be a huge boost for novice users to better understand RIA as they can view guides multiple times to address any confusions.
Simplified access to API endpoints
In 1.1.5 when deploying workflows to API endpoints, users can now accelerate access to these endpoints by mapping the stages that they are deployed on, to subdomains. This essentially means that users can create shortcuts to access different stages of their workflows and they can directly access a subdomain that corresponds to that stage. Simpler URLs can then be used, that contain the subdomain names, to access the deployed endpoints, rather than the API and stage names.
This feature greatly improves the management of APIs and sharing of API endpoints in RIA. Simplified access to API endpoints makes it easier for users to integrate their automations into RIA and additionally users can create more seamless and efficient workflows for automations.
In release 1.1.5 the team introduces the “freemium” SaaS version of IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation. The freemium version has all the same great features as the standard SaaS version, but without the cost! Clients can try out RIA and experience the low-code platform, that turns automated development time from weeks to hours.
After interacting with the great features of the platform, users would surely be encouraged to sign up for the standard version of RIA.
IBM RIA now has an upgraded job scheduling page. The jobs page has been improved to provide users with greater flexibility when scheduling jobs. Now users can not only schedule one off jobs but also schedule hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly jobs, along with jobs that require more complex recurring schedules.
The improvement of the jobs page allows users to better manage their time as they can set different times for various workflows to be run, and users can allocate sufficient time for each task. Additionally, with the enhancement of the jobs page users don't need to fully understand Cron expressions, as the UI has been designed to be similar to google calendar and outlook.
Introduction of workflow templates (“getting started templates”)
Another great feature that has been introduced in this release are workflow templates. In 1.1.5, several templates have been made available as a starting point for creating workflows. Users can set their chosen template as the default template for their accounts. In addition, users can choose which layout type they want to use when the workflow editor opens.
The introduction of workflow templates will help users efficiently get started with RIA. In addition, workflow templates will allow for faster creation of workflows, especially with the use of repetitive blocks in workflows.
Interacting with browser instances in workflows
In 1.1.5, Chromium integrations can now be used to create workflows that start and control instances of the Google Chromium browser. From this, a headless web browser instance can be started and controlled, essentially meaning that users can run a browser without a user interface.
This would be useful when needing to interact with systems that do not expose API endpoints and can only be accessed through web pages. Using Chromium integration blocks allows users to automate the typical interaction tasks that are performed in browsers. For example, users can create workflows that click UI elements, enter and submit text, drag elements, or upload files. 
Viewing nested output variables in the workflow editor
In this release, users can now view output variables for workflow blocks in both the flow and flat layouts. Users can view nested variables, such as objects and arrays, in an expandable and searchable tree structure. You can search the tree structure for lower-level variable names, expand the tree node to view them, and copy them to the clipboard. This allows users to have a good overview of what is happening in workflows.
Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform support and updated installation procedures
In 1.1.5, users can install IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation® on Red Hat® OpenShift® Container Platform clusters. Users can now install the application on single-node or multi node Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform or Kubernetes clusters.
IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation supports Red Hat OpenShift Container Platform version 4.17
In addition, for installations of 1.1.5, new installation procedures must be used. To install, you now download and run a script that retrieves the required images from an image registry and installs the application. Different setup and installation steps apply depending on whether your cluster is connected to the internet.
To discover more about IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation, you can register for the webinar, “IBM Rapid Infrastructure Automation - the next step in your infrastructure automation journey” occurring on the 25th of March 2025, 9a.m EDT here.
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