Details on Upcoming Release of GForge Advanced Server v6.1.0

It’s been a while since we’ve posted anything on the progress of our next release of GForge Advanced Server so we wanted to take a minute to let our customers know what has been cooking in our labs. In some of our last posts we hinted at some improvements and new features in GForge Advanced Server but we’ve finally been able to draw a line in the sand as to which features will make the cut for this release. While this release is bigger than our last couple of releases it really pales in comparison to what we have planned going forward.

For this 6.1.0 release, slated for Mid-May, the following features and enhancements will be:

Completely revamped Docman plugin. The user interface for our document management plugin has been completely revamped to support HTML5 and, specifically, drag-n-drop support. In addition to the updated interface, the document management plugin will allow a single a file to appear in multiple folders.
Included with the document management updates, we are integrating a new file upload widget we created to be used in Tracker Items, File Releases, Forum Posts and any other parts of the system where you currently upload files. This means the new drag-n-drop functionality will be available in all those areas, too!
The installation process has been vastly improved. On new installations administrators need only run a single script which will check that the host server is running on a supported platform and then it will take care of the rest. Our old installation not only had three steps, it also required the administrator to tell us which operating system they were running. No more!
Using Git or Subversion? In prior releases of GForge Advanced Server you had to choose using HTTP or SSH across all projects. In 6.1.0 you can specify at the project level whether you prefer to use HTTP or SSH.
Richer content. Prior to the upcoming 6.1.0 release you didn’t have much in the way of options for customizing your content. We’ve upgraded the WYSIWYG editor and baked in some industrial strength HTML filtering which means you can now securely create richer HTML content in Tracker Items, Blog posts, Wiki, etc.
Addition of script execution in Tracker Workflow. Being able to define a concrete process for your bugs and feature requests has been one of the flagship features of GForge Advanced Server’s Tracker. We build on that in 6.1.0 by adding the ability to have user developed scripts executed as part of that workflow process.
The addition of a daemon process. Currently new projects registered in GForge Advanced Server take as long as 15 minutes to be fully created. With the new daemon process newly create projects, complete with your version control repository, will be immediately available.
We’ve added password aging. By default it is turned off but you can, optionally, require that users change their password after some predetermined amount of time.

While we are putting the finishing touches on 6.1.0, we’ve already started in on the next version which highlights a few key features:

Revamped user interface – You will quickly be able to change between projects and within sections within those projects. We’ve done this in a way that eliminates the left navigation bar that is now, frankly, dated.
Addition of Favorite Projects – We realize that over time the projects you are actively engaged in changes. Now you can quickly setup your favorite projects that will only be a click away.
Access to Notifications – Notifications pending action by site administrators and project administrators are buried in the current interface. Future versions of GForge Advanced Server will make any pending notification obvious and quickly accessible to the user.
Quick access to search – Future versions of GForge Advanced Server will have a search bar right in the header allowing you to quickly find projects, users and content.
REST API – While the SOAP interface has served us well, REST is where it is at and we’re introducing a new REST API that is far easier to use over the current SOAP implementation. This means integrating GForge Advanced Server with other systems will be much easier to do.
Mobile Support – With the REST API in place, we can finally get serious about adding mobile support to GForge Advanced Server. With mobile support you’ll be able to stay engaged with your projects while you are on the go.

We hope you all are as excited as we are about the upcoming 6.1.0 release as well as what we have currently slated for future releases. We’ll begin reaching out to customers in May to setup focus groups where GForge Advanced Server customers can talk with our product development team about plans for future releases. This will give you all a chance to help us identify features and enhancements you’d like to see in GForge Advanced Server as we move ahead. As always we welcome any feedback you might have so feel free to drop us a line at feedback@gforgegroup.com or follow us on Twitter.