webMethods 10.7

Is there an easy mechanism for updating eclipse designer with patches\fixes.

At moment the only way i know is to create a new image and share that will all users, to reinstall over their current setup, which is not ideal.

Easy is a relative term. The standard approach to applying fixes to Software AG products is Update Manager but I wouldn’t go as far as saying it’s easy. You can download the bootstrapper and documentation from Empower.

The installer now does support installation of fixes as well, which has sort of blurred the lines a bit, but behind the scenes, it still appears to use Update Manager. Given that, I have opted to continue to use a standalone installation of Update Manager to keep my product and fix installation separate and distinct from each other. You can also create images with Update Manager so you can continue a similar approach to what you’re doing (i.e. distributing a common image to all the users), the difference being that you will have a fixes image that is separate from your products image, which I prefer.

I also recommend creating an installation script that leverages Update Manager’s command line client. This way, all users can simply download the script and let it rip and you can then more easily enforce a common development environment for all users.

Percio

Hi,
You no longer need to use installer nor update manager, simply download the zip version of Designer Workstation from tech community webMethods Service Designer Download

We update it regularly with fixes, we will in the future publish regular notifications so that you know that it has been updated.

You can swap out the trial license with your official license and there are no technical limitations compared to a standard installation. Other than it does not include BPMS, nor cloud stream connectors. We will be adding cloud stream connectors in a later version.

regards,
John.

Thank You for the helpful replies

I just created a new install image just with the designer, so I could get another developer upgraded yesterday. I was sort of hoping we could auto update using eclipse, but just downloading zip will be much easier than creating the image

I will try and use the zip on another machine that needs updating next week.

@John_Carter4 I will check it out but does the webMethods Service Designer download contain all features? One example that comes to mind is CloudStreams Development as we have developed custom CloudStreams connectors at my current project.

@Mark_Mcniff1 Software AG used to have an Eclipse update site a few years ago which allowed us to update Designer from within Eclipse itself. It was quite convenient but my understanding is that approach was discontinued in favor of Update Manager.

Percio

By the way, whether you use Installer, Update Manager, or the direct download, the thing that I’d like to reiterate is this: automate it! If using installer or update manager, use those tools’ script and image capabilities to create your own automation script. Similarly, if using the direct download, create a script that leverages curl, for example, to automatically download the zip file and unzip it in the proper location.

At my current project, we created a couple of projects in Gitlab that developers can clone or download, and then simply execute a script within the project to have their desktop quickly setup. Our developers VDI’s run Windows so the scripts leverage PowerShell and winget to install common every day tools like Postman, Slack, VSCode, Zoom, etc along with setting up their Software AG development environment.

Hope this helps,
Percio

Currently it doesn’t include the cloud streams connector builder, but we will change that in an upcoming version. We are thinking about reintroducing an eclipse update centre, but no promises
regards,
John.