August 2021 Release
This release has been approved by eTASK for use in production environments. You can download the release now and install it on your server.
Users of the eTASK App for Windows
With the release of this update, a current version of the eTASK app has also been released in the Microsoft Store. Please note that this latest app version is compatible exclusively with the current release version of the portal; that is, both the portal AND all connected mobile devices must be updated.
The current version 2021.1.556.53541 of the eTASK app will be available in the Microsoft Store starting July 31, 2021.
Therefore, please update your mobile devices only if you also plan to update your portal to the latest release at the same time. If this is not desired or possible, please disable the automatic installation of updates for the eTASK app on your devices. Please note, however, that after a previous update of your portal, your devices must also be updated to the latest app version.
Please make sure to sync your mobile devices before the update.
eTASK.Onboarding
Improvement: Contact details included in the onboarding request
For easier navigation, the onboarding requests now include the new employee’s contact information. This view clearly displays the phone number, mobile number, and email address of the new employee, their supervisor, and their mentor. Using this information, additional IT services can be easily requested.
eTASK.DeskSharing
Improvement: Restriction of the room list for bookable workstations
The selection of rooms in the booking form is now restricted so that only rooms (and, within the structure, locations, buildings, and floors) that have at least one workstation set to Bookable = True can be selected.
See also: 📄 Desksharing IC2020
eTASK.BIM
New Feature: Color-coded highlighting in the BIM Explorer now available for two additional display options
The BIM Explorer allows you to choose different display variants for viewing your buildings. The display variants use, among other things, color coding of specific objects or building parts according to a defined legend. This feature is now also available for the display variants "023L - Parent Department (Employees and Rooms)" and "043-L Room Departments".
See also: 📄 Die Bedienelemente im BIM-Explorer IC2470
Improvement: Revit Add-In now also runs in Revit 2022
Autodesk Revit has released a new version, Revit 2022. We have updated our Revit Add-In to support this new version, so you can now use the Add-In in versions 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022.
Improvement: BCF files created via the BIM Explorer now also include information for visualization in the building model
Using the BIM Explorer, you can select individual objects and create a BCF file for them by creating a service ticket. When you open these files in another BIM viewer such as Solibri, Revit, or BIMCollab, the building model display is now set directly to the configuration you had in the BIM Explorer at the moment you created the service ticket and thus the BCF file. This can include, for example, the selection of specific floors, the display or hiding of walls or other elements, the viewing angle, and the zoom factor.
eTASK.Outlook Room Booking
Improvement: Improved login process in your eTASK.Outlook add-in
When logging in to your eTASK.Outlook add-in, you will—as before—be redirected to a login page that informs you whether your login was successful or not. We have now designed these pages to be visually appealing and informative, making your login process more pleasant and straightforward.
See also: eTASK.Outlook Add-In
eTASK.Operating Cost Billing
Bug Fix: Change to Tenant Name Now Appears in Service Charge Statement
Under certain conditions, it could happen that the tenant name was not updated in the operating cost statements when a change was made. The tenant name is now updated with every change and is displayed correctly in the statement form.
See also: Service Charge Statement
eTASK.Training Management
New Feature: 2 New Reports on the Training Status of HSE Officers
With this release, we are providing you with two new reports on the training status of HSE officers: "Training Status of Employees with HSE Role + Email" and "Training Status of Employees with Basic Role + Email." They are based on the existing reports of the same name and, in addition to the familiar information, display the officers’ email addresses directly in the report. So decide for yourself whether you need the email address or not and select the appropriate report.
New feature: "Participant History Details" table expanded to include participants’ email addresses
The "Participant History Details" table now displays the email address stored in the personnel record for all participants.
eTASK.Maintenance
New feature: New workflow for processing maintenance orders without the involvement of the executors
By default, our workflow for processing maintenance orders includes the option for direct involvement of the executor. If this is not included in your workflow, you now have the option to customize your maintenance workflow accordingly. This removes the role of the executor. To do this, download the "5246" plugin and update your other maintenance plugins.
Bug fix: Adapt data source for maintenance calendar to dyn. Maintenance
The maintenance workflow has now been revised. The maintenance calendar was also adjusted as part of this revision. It now offers an improved view thanks to the new workflow control, which displays the participants.
eTASK.FM Portal
New Feature: New Parameter for Configuring the Server’s Internet Capability
If your eTASK.FM portal is used in an environment that denies the portal access to the internet, delays and error messages may occur when using the portal. This also affects actions within the portal that do not require an active internet connection. Using the new configuration parameter "INTERNETAKTIV," you can prevent internet requests when using your portal. Set the value to "0" for this. By default, the value for this parameter is set to 1 (the portal has internet access).
New Feature: Number of Records Displayed in Tables Can Be Configured
For tables, you can now configure the number of records displayed per page in the System Control Panel. Previously, this was limited to 25 entries; now, up to 100 records can be displayed per page. You can adjust the configuration value for each table via TableConfig in the ConfigExplorer.
New feature: New configuration parameter for header alignment available
With this release, the FM Portal offers the ability to customize the look and feel for users to match their own systems. In the Control Panel, you can now define whether the portal’s header elements should be aligned to the left or right. A new configuration parameter, HEADER_ALIGN, has been developed for this purpose and can be adjusted via the System Configuration menu item. By default, this parameter is set to left, meaning the respective portal information (SiteHeaderImage and portal title) is displayed on the left, while the company logo (SiteLogo) is displayed on the right.
See also: Configuration Parameters
New Feature: Expansion of Contract Management
Contract management has been expanded with several new details and functions. You can now store your contract values in time periods and divide them into as many sub-values as you like. If you wish to change your contract values, you can easily copy the old ones and adjust them. This allows you to view not only the current contract values but also how they have evolved over time. Additionally, you can define events related to your contracts that you wish to monitor, such as when payments are scheduled to resume after a rent payment hiatus. These events are also taken into account in the automated contract follow-up. With this release, you can organize your contracts hierarchically. To do so, simply assign a contract to a master contract. A master contract can in turn be assigned to another master contract, allowing you to represent many dependencies. Various reports are available for these new, more detailed contract values. As usual, you can find all forms and tables for contract management in your FM portal under Basic Data - Contract Management.
New Feature: Show or Hide 2D Symbol for an Object in the BIM Model
You can now decide for each object whether an associated 2D symbol (also called a footprint) should be displayed for an object in the BIM Explorer or not. This can apply to doors, for example, but also to other objects.
Using dynamic mapping, selected IFC attributes can also be used to control whether the symbol is displayed or hidden.
See also: Hide 2D symbol for object
New feature: You can now manage permissions for API paths yourself
Previously, the approval of individual API paths had to be done in collaboration with eTASK. With this release, you can now manage permissions for your API paths yourself, independently of eTASK. Easily adapt the API permissions to your existing permission structure! To do this, use the assignment of permissions for menu items and select the API paths found under System Settings - Portal Options - Interfaces - eTASK.API.
See also: Assigning Permissions to Menus, Info Areas, and API Paths
Troubleshooting: Report - Open Tickets by Assignee - Assignee Can Be Reselected
In the Open Tickets by Assignee report, the assignee can now be deselected. The selection is now optional. If you enter a name/text as a search term, only tickets that contain this name/text in the Assignee field will be displayed.
Bug fix: Report can be opened even if the image file is missing
If no company-specific header was created for reports in Rental and Cost Accounting that can also be used as letters (such as outgoing invoices), the missing image file (e.g., for a logo) caused an error message. This issue has been resolved.
Bug fix: The number of objects is now displayed correctly in the Room Book
In the Room Book report, objects were being incorrectly totaled. The report now uses the entry in the "Number" field of the object record, thereby calculating the total correctly.
See also: Space Management
Bug fix: Attachment of an electronically sent outgoing invoice available in the inbox
For an electronically sent outgoing invoice, the attached invoice document was not correctly transferred to the inbox in eTASK. This issue has now been resolved. Invoice documents are now correctly displayed in the portal’s inbox.
Bug fix: Incorrect error message removed from Excel data import
In the Excel data import, the error message "Incorrect syntax near ','." has been removed. This message was displayed when importing into tables with GUID as the primary key, even if the import test was successful.
Bug fix: Format of barcodes generated by eTASK changed to Code128b
Previously, barcodes in the TGM barcode list were generated using Code 39. This has been changed: Barcodes are now generated using Code 128b.
See also: Barcodes
Bug fix: No account statements are retrieved when account polling is disabled
Account statements were still being retrieved even when account polling for a bank account was disabled. This issue has now been resolved: If account polling is disabled, you will no longer receive account statements.
Bug fix: The "Rented Properties" report includes summed net/gross amounts
The "Rented Properties" report (PDF) did not include the summed net/gross amounts. This has been fixed. The report is now displayed in full.
Bug fix: "Space Usage by Cost Centers" report revised
The "Space Utilization by Cost Centers" report displayed an error message regarding a supposedly missing area in a drawing, which was based on the use of eTASK.CAD. With the use of eTASK.BIM, this error message is no longer necessary and has therefore been removed.
See also: Space Management
Bug fix: Sorting favorites in the FM Portal is now possible
Sort your favorites by dragging and dropping in the Favorites Manager! Previously, favorites could only be sorted up to a maximum of 25 items. Now, sorting is also possible with a larger number of favorites. The FM Portal now also allows you to sort favorites that refer to the same menu item but have different filter options. To use the new sorting function, filters that refer to the same menu item multiple times must be recreated.
See also: Favorites Management
Bug Fix: Improved configuration of the "Workstations" tile on the dashboard
On the portal dashboard, the Workstations tile could not be displayed if the area for the standard workstation size had a value of zero. As a result, the underlying calculation could not be performed successfully. The tile configuration has been adjusted, and the underlying values in the system now require the entry of a minimum value.
Improvement: Improved accessibility of the FM portal
We have improved contrast in the FM Portal so that content and editing interfaces are more easily discernible. With these changes, the FM Portal now complies with Level AA of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).
Improvement: Improved table view in the FM Portal
The FM Portal now includes a horizontal scroll bar even for tables with only a few columns. If you want to view more columns than are visible in the default view, you can scroll to the side as usual.
Improvement: Improved error messages
Your eTASK.FM portal now provides an even more reliable display of error messages when you access a record via a link (for example, from an email) that no longer exists—for instance, because it has been deleted in the meantime. Previously, this clear error message was missing for some links. We have now expanded the display so that it appears for every link when the accessed record no longer exists.
Improvement: Improved workflows for processing special characters
Our workflows now handle special characters that appear in the data to be processed even more robustly. Previously, there were occasional issues with passing data to the next workflow step if the data contained certain special characters. Now, the special characters are recognized and processed successfully, ensuring that the step handover works reliably.
See also: Workflows in the FM Portal
Improvement: Adjustment of specifications for Excel import
The Excel import in eTASK has been adjusted so that all column names are enclosed in square brackets. This means that column names that do not conform to the naming conventions (e.g., contain special characters) can now also be uploaded.
Improvement: Invoice data transmission via ZugFerd now possible
The eTASK FM Portal is now capable of transmitting invoice data in ZUGFeRD format (ZUGFeRD 2.1). Invoices in ZUGFeRD format embed a PDF document that contains a viewable version of the invoice as well as the XML data for the invoice. This XML data can then be used by the system for electronic invoice processing.
Improvement: Screen reader accessibility enhanced
The help buttons in the system now display the text "Help" again instead of a question mark icon. This makes it possible to have this button read aloud by a screen reader.
Improvement: Email notification when a workflow role is unassigned
Workflow administrators now receive an email when a workflow is transferred to a step for which the workflow role is not assigned. This makes it even easier to keep track of all workflows and take immediate action in case of issues.
Improvement: Modern Authentication available for the eTASK.FM portal
With this release, eTASK offers portal administrators the option to use Modern Authentication to authenticate their portal users. To do this, your own Azure tenant must be configured in the system settings of the respective FM portal, and public client flows must be enabled in the Azure app. Modern Authentication offers greater security than Basic Authentication, as login credentials are no longer stored within the respective service (e.g., Outlook). With Modern Authentication, users authenticate with Azure AD using a token stored on the client. Since the password is not stored directly on the client, it cannot be accessed from there.
Improvement: Object Data Sheet report improved
The Object Data Sheet report has been updated: It now displays assets structured by object types and objects in a clearer format.
Improvement: Enhanced security in Excel exports from the FM portal
In your eTASK.FM portal, you can export any table to Excel. Since changes can be made to your computer from within Excel, this feature can also be exploited for hacker attacks and similar purposes, e.g., by inserting specific character strings into your data. With this release, however, a QuotePrefix is inserted at the beginning of every cell in these Excel exports. This is invisible in the interface but prevents any execution prompts from being recognized and executed by your computer; instead, they are treated as normal text.
Improvement: Deselecting individual object attributes is now possible
After an object was saved in the FM Portal with an object type, some individual object attributes (in optional fields) could only be assigned once. Now, further editing of these attributes is possible: The values entered in selection fields of individual object attributes can now be removed by clicking the X in the selection. For selection fields marked as required, this prevents the data record from being saved, as usual.
See also: Defining object types
Support Information: CAFMconnect - Export/Import of IFC Building Models Temporarily Disabled
The export/import function via the CAFM Connect page is not available as of this release, as editing the building in various source applications and exporting from them can lead to conflicts. Once a building model has been imported into the FM Portal for the first time, the import configuration (static/dynamic) was also defined during that process. For building models published dynamically, CC export and import cannot be used temporarily to avoid data conflicts with existing IFC building models. Re-importing into IFC building models already existing in the portal is currently only possible via static import.
Support Information: Enhanced Security Settings for the FM Portal
The security of the FM Portal has been enhanced with regard to cross-site scripting. The application now uses a comprehensive filtering mechanism.
Support Information: eTASK App Now Available as a Windows 10 Version
The eTASK app for recording meter readings or conducting inventory checks on the go is now available as a Windows 10 version in the Microsoft Store. Aside from technical updates, there are no changes to the app’s functionality. Both versions of the app will remain valid for a transitional period until the next release, so you can install the new app whenever it’s most convenient for you. Synchronize the data, uninstall the old version of the Windows app, and download the new app from the Microsoft Store to install it. The new app is easily recognizable by its new name, eTASK mobile. With the next release, we will remove the eTASK app from the Microsoft Store.
Highlight: Enhanced Permissions Management
eTASK’s permission management has been expanded: The previous permissions “Full Access” (including edit, create, and delete), “Read,” and “Remove” have been supplemented, enabling more granular permission assignment. The FM Portal’s admin environment now offers the following permissions for menu items and forms:
Read-only
Full access
Modify
Bulk edit
Create
Create new and bulk edit
Delete
Delete and bulk edit
Full access including deactivation
Create new and deactivate
Deactivate only
The integrated permission combinations enable detailed access management. The permissions assigned in your FM portal are not changed by the new release. However, with the new release, you have the option to refine the permission structure yourself.
See also: Rights Management
eTASK Key Management
New feature: Personnel records can be exported from eTASK to Kaba Exos
You now have the option to export your personnel records from your eTASK.FM portal to the Kaba Exos access management system using a connector. This helps you avoid duplicate data entry and ensures you always have the most up-to-date information. Information on how to set up the interface will be available soon in our SupportCenter.