Tessitura v12.1.2 General Release is available for download in TASK Online

We are pleased to announce the General Release of Tessitura Version 12.1.2. Version 12.1.2 is an updated release of v12.1 (the second part of the v12 Release Cycle) and does not introduce any new Tessitura functionality over the features available with v12.1; however, v12.1.2 contains a fix to resolve an issue where users may randomly encounter an "Invalid Column Name" error that has required an application pool recycle to resolve. If your organization is encountering this issue, you should consider installing this release. Additionally, the v12.1.2 release contains all previously posted hotfixes for v12.1.

The Tessitura version v12.1.2 General Release has been posted in TASK Online and is available for download in the "Tessitura Version Upgrades" category of the "Version Upgrades and Patches" workspace. The build is in Solution #80 titled "Tessitura Version 12.1.2 General Release Upgrade Files." Please note that Solution #80 includes two file links with upgrade installation instructions, one for licensees upgrading to v12.1.2 from v11 and one for licensees upgrading to v12.1.2 from v12.x.x. Please ensure that you are using the correct upgrade instructions for your situation. 

As an official General Release, v12.1.2 is sanctioned by the Network for installation in the production environment. It is very important to note that this release, as is always the case, should be installed in your testing environment prior to upgrading production so that any problems encountered can be worked through with Tessitura Support before your live environment is impacted. It is very important that the release be fully tested before upgrading your production system. The Network strongly recommends testing not only the new features introduced in v12 but testing day-to-day operations, testing your website, report schedules and any custom reports, screens or procedures to ensure that everything works as expected in the new version. 

Prerequisites

• You must be running one of the following versions of Tessitura to install the v12.1.2 General Release: v11.0.3, v11.0.4, v12.0.1, v12.0.2, v12.0.3, V12.1 Beta 1, v12.1 Beta 2, v12.1 Pre-Release 1, v12.1 Pre-Release 2 or v12.1 General Release.
• In order to install Tessitura v12.1.2, SQL Server 2008 R2 or SQL Server 2012 R2 must be in place on the applicable database server. The database and service servers can run on Windows Server 2008 R2 or Windows Server 2012.
• If installing to a v11 system, the v12 Data Migration Toolkit must first be installed and the required data mapping must be completed. Although the Migration Toolkit may be installed and used on any release of v11 (the v11.0.3 General Release or the v11.0.4 post release patch versions) the v11.0.4 patch should not be installed after the Migration Toolkit has been implemented. The v12 Data Migration Toolkit is available for download in Solution #53 of the TASK "Version Upgrades and Patches" workspace.
• If installing to a v11 or v12.0.x system, organizations using TNEW are required to upgrade to the latest release of TNEW, v5.0, before the v12.1.2 upgrade. To determine the version of TNEW you are running, right-click on any TNEW page, select "View source" and scroll to the bottom of the page. The current TNEW version will be the first line displayed in green text. To schedule your TNEW upgrade simply open a TASK ticket in the "Web Products" workspace.
• Beginning with version 12.1, several new N-Scan features were introduced such as composite tickets for packages, membership based admissions, and external barcode support for imported orders. Additionally, attendance data is stored in a new table, T_ATTENDANCE, and existing attendance data is migrated to the new table as part of the v12.1.2 upgrade. If installing to a v11 system or a v12.0.x system, the Network strongly recommends upgrading to N-Scan 6.0 immediately after upgrading to Tessitura v12.1.2. If you are not using N-Scan at this time, no action in this regard is required. The N-Scan v6.0 General Release upgrade is available for download in Solution #75 of the TASK "Version Upgrades and Patches" workspace.
  • If coordinating your N-Scan v6.0 upgrade with your v12.1.2 upgrade is not possible, N-Scan v5.31 can be used with Tessitura v12.1.2, but you will not be able to use any new N-Scan functionality and attendance data will not be recorded to the new T_ATTENDANCE table (and will require additional migration after your N-Scan upgrade is complete).
  • IMPORTANT NOTE: Motorola MC50 units are not supported with N-Scan v6.0. If you currently have MC50 units in service and cannot upgrade to N-Scan v6.0 compatible models (Motorola MC55, MC65, MC70 and MC75 devices running Windows Mobile 5.0, 6.1, or 6.5) in a timely fashion but need to implement Tessitura v12.1.2 please contact Bob Bell at bbell@tessituranetwork.com.
• If you are currently using Print Server v12.5, a v12.1.x-specific version has been posted to Solution #32 of the TASK "Version Upgrades and Patches" workspace. This version supports composite ticketing and should be applied after the v12.1.2 upgrade.

Please direct any questions about these prerequisites to Tessitura Support by submitting a TASK help ticket in the "User Support Tickets" workspace. 

Please note the following

• The installation of v12.1.2 in production is optional. You can wait and install v12.5 (the third and final part of the v12 Release Cycle) when it is in General Release early in 2015. The v12.5 release will be comprehensive and include all the functionality that is in the v12.0 and 12.1.x releases. As such, no upgrade deadline date will be set until the General Release of v12.5.
• If you are a RAMP customer interested in having v12.1.2 installed, please submit a TASK ticket in the "RAMP Support" workspace and the team will contact you to schedule the test and production upgrades.
• Locally installed sites that are currently converting to Tessitura are asked to contact their Implementation Specialist for assistance in installing this upgrade.
• Special Notes for licensees upgrading from v11 to v12.1.2:
  
  • Sites with over 60 zones in a price map should not apply v12.1.2. The maximum number of zones that can be displayed in a price layer is 60. Price layers with more than 60 zones will raise an error. The v12_Migration_Checks.sql script, which is included in the v11 to v12 Migration Toolkit, will point out price maps with over 60 zones. This limit will be increased in v12.5. Please contact support with questions.
  • As part of the v12 upgrade, several different REST services have been consolidated into a single Tessitura Service (REST) service. The upgrade process will install the new consolidated service and remove the old v11 services.
  • The new Tessitura Web application, Tessitura On the Go, which replaces the Web Reports application, makes select Tessitura features available through a web browser, including on mobile devices. Using Tessitura Web you can access the following features from any browser:
    • Constituent Records
    • Plans and Portfolios
    • Reports (this is an integration of Web Reports)
• The Web Reports application will be automatically uninstalled during the Tessitura Web application installation.
• To make the Tessitura Web application available externally, you will need to install the application on a DMZ server as well. For instructions on preparing the DMZ server see the Tessitura On the Go and Tessitura Dashboards External Access Guide.

As always, Network Support is available to assist with questions regarding the 12.1.2 version upgrade instructions and to provide planning and troubleshooting advice. Additionally, the Tessitura Network Consulting team is available to help any license holder with installing v12.1.2 and future releases. Tessitura Network Consulting offers several types of bundled v12 Packages targeted for those who don't want to go it on their own. These options are packaged at specially reduced Network member consulting rates and are bundled based on assistance which can be selected as a package containing multiple services for the most savings, or on an à la carte basis. License holders interested in post-implementation consulting services should contact consulting for further information. 

Please report any problems you detect with the General Release by submitting a TASK help ticket in the "User Support Tickets" workspace, and please be sure to select "12.1.2" as the version. Please contact Bob Bell at bbell@tessituranetwork.com when your organization has installed v12.1.2 in production. 

For those of you that are new to Tessitura, a note that Tessitura does not charge for upgrades. New versions are included as a benefit of our nonprofit membership-based cooperative company.