The following sections present an overview of many of the new features in adTempus. See the adTempus Web site for a complete list of changes in this release.
Newly-introduced Job Queues allow you to set limits on the number of jobs that can be run concurrently, enabling you to better manage resource usage on a server. For example, you may have two jobs that use so much CPU time that you don't want to let them run at the same time. Previously this required setting conditions between the jobs, and could be difficult to enforce, especially if jobs were run manually. Now you can simply assign both jobs to the same queue, and limit the queue to one job at a time. If a second job is submitted for the queue, it will be held until the first job finishes.
The new Job Variable feature makes it easier to change parameters for job tasks and to "templatize" jobs so they can be easily duplicated or copied from server to server. Job Variables are user-defined variables that can be used in many places within a job (in the same way that environment variables can be used in earlier versions). The values can be changed easily to simplify changes to jobs.
For example, you may have a group of jobs that all act on files in a particular directory. Within each job, you call a program, passing it the directory name. Instead of "hard-coding" the path on the command line for each job or job step, you can now use a Job Variable (such as "%TargetPath%") that is defined for the group. At runtime, the "%TargetPath%" token is replaced with the actual path you have specified. If you subsequently need to change the path (or copy the jobs to another server where the path is different), you can change the path in a single place and all jobs will use the new value.
Job Variables can be inherited (from server-level variables to group-level to job-level to step-level) and overridden at any level.
Users running a job manually can also override variable values. This allows you to set up parameterized on-demand jobs, where a user can specify parameters such as selection criteria without needing to modify the job definition.
Credential Profiles allow users to schedule jobs under a Windows security account without needing to know the password for that account, provided that they have been granted permission to use the Profile. This allows administrators to set up a standard "batch" account that is used by all jobs, without having to give adTempus users the password for this account.
adTempus now supports scripts written in VB.NET and C#, and features a much-improved script editor. Now many routine administrative tasks can be easily automated through .NET programs that are written and maintained within adTempus. There's no need to write (and keep track of) a standalone program or to suffer with creaky VBScript scripts.
adTempus allows jobs to run "interactively" (visible to the user), but in previous versions an interactive job was only visible from the computer's console session, and not from Remote Desktop sessions. Changes in the desktop selection options now make it possible to run a job in the console session, the session of the user whose account is used on the job, or the session of the user who is running the job manually.
The adTempus security framework has been overhauled to support security inheritance, similar to the security inheritance of folders and files in Windows. This greatly simplifies security administration compared to the old model, which required that security changes be made separately to each job.
A new "Web Request" task has been added that allows your job to request a Web URL. This can be used to request a page that triggers processing on the remote server, or to download content from the server. The page or file returned by the Web server can be saved to disk and/or saved as a captured file in the job's history.
In previous versions of adTempus, the Job Wizard could be used to generate a script that could run and monitor SQL Server Agent jobs. In adTempus 3.0 this has been replaced by a full-fledged task that offers the same functionality but is easier to configure.
More options are now available when a user runs a job manually from the Console, offering better control over job execution. The user can now select which step(s) of the job should run, and determine whether Responses for the job should be executed.
Responses can now be triggered based on the length of time a task has been running. For example, you can now configure a Response to send a notification message if a program runs for more than one hour. Previously, the only action that could be taken based on task execution time was to terminate the task after a specified time had elapsed.
Previous versions of adTempus allowed you to "acknowledge" failed job instances shown in the failed job view by changing the filter date to exclude those instances. adTempus 3.0 introduces true acknowledgment: a user can selectively and permanently "acknowledge" the failure of any instance, and doing so removes the instance from the failed jobs view of all other users as well.
System operators or other authorized users can now add comments to a job's history. For example, if a job fails, the operator may want to record details of what caused the failure and what error resolution steps were taken. Comments for each instance are viewed and edited on the new Comments page of the Job Instance Details window (displayed when you view the details from an instance on the History page of the main job list).
System operators or other authorized users can override the status of a completed job, forcing adTempus to show a "Succeeded" or "Failed" status for the instance. This can be used when you need to let jobs that depend on the job execute despite a failure.
In previous versions of adTempus, a job's history (execution history, log messages, and captured files) could only be purged through the automatic process controlled by the retention settings for the job. The adTempus Console now provides the option to purge the job's history complete on demand, and optionally to reset the statistics for the job as well. This new option can be found on the Statistics tab when the job is selected in the main job list.
Many changes have been made to the adTempus Console to improve usability:
Improved Search/Replace capability.
New Go to Job command lets you find a job quickly
Job Group duplication duplicates a group and all jobs in it.
adTempus is now fully compatible with Windows Vista and Windows Longhorn. Some visible changes to support these operating systems include:
When configuring a job that runs under an administrator account, you can specify that the job should be run "with highest privileges," which is equivalent to running the program "As Administrator" from the Windows shell. adTempus will then run the program with full administrator privileges enabled, without a user access control (UAC) prompt.
The adTempus Console and other client tools are marked to be run with elevated privileges when run by an Administrator. Administrators will therefore see UAC prompts when running the client tools.
Previous versions of adTempus used an undocumented binary file format for exporting and importing data. adTempus now uses XML for exports and imports, making it easier for customers to modify exported data before it is imported into adTempus.
Due to this change, this version cannot read export files produced by earlier versions. If you want to preserve data in export files, you must import it before upgrading to adTempus 3.0, then export it again in the new format after upgrading.
Job Templates allow you to create reusable templates for jobs. Templates can be used to share job designs with other users, or to simplify the creation of similar jobs.