What's New in 4.46?
Welcome to the final release of 2024, ebs 4.46. This release draws to a close a programme of extensive improvements to our Progress & Performance suite, heralding the arrival of ebs Reimagined. Investing in the cloud-SAAS future of ebs from 4.47 will mean extensive improvements in existing modules as we migrate them from client to web. To turn our attention back to ebs 4.46, this release includes updates to our ILP, Safeguarding, and Markbook modules, as well as exciting new integrations.
As with the previous release, users of ebs: central will be prompted to view the release notes post-upgrade. All changes are documented in the release notes, which we recommend all customers read; they contain key information on product updates and how you can make use of them. A release webinar with a software demo took place on 11th November; the recording of this webinar is available on Communities with timestamps for key information.
Database changes for this release include extensive changes for the FES return for our first Scottish college. In line with our SAAS strategy, FES will be available in Ontrack, so these changes align with new web services for the fields.
The new Ontrack Concierge supports staff to find or create a learner in web, and process an application. This work is the start of the development of enrolments functionality in web. For ebs 4.47, the team move on to redeveloping interviews and enrolments into accessible web functions.
As part of our commitment to offering up-to-date functionality, this release offers new integrations with CENTURY (for initial skills assessments) and Flywire (for payments). Both integrations are a Phase 1, with continued development planned for 2025; we would welcome your feedback if you adopt either integration upon release.
Markbook Verification users will be pleased to see a new version released in 4.46, along with a results release function. Users should be aware that this comes with a desupport for the old ‘staff’ Markbook Verification, which will be de-supported from ebs 4.49.
Staff managing Ontrack administration can now use the Permissions feature to view and update permissions across Ontrack. This feature should enable faster and more effective administration of existing screens and clearer ownership of custom screens. The new Sitemap function allows a single-page sitemap for Ontrack navigation, supporting WCAG 2.4.5. The ‘visible in Sitemap’ checkbox allows administrators to hide pages from general view. Navigation is still permissions-driven, and the page is licence-controlled, so only pages and modules licensed to the institution and their own custom pages will display.
Furthering our approach to improving secure authentication in Ontrack, URL parameters can now be used to direct users to sign in using a specific authentication method, either Entra ID (Azure Active Directory) or Azure B2C. Auditing has also been improved for external authentication providers.
2024 has been a great year for ebs, with plenty of new institutions joining us, and several sites reviewing their infrastructure ahead of a migration to Tribal Cloud. We hope this release sets you up well for the end of the year, and look forward to an exciting 2025 as we start our journey to removing the need for an installed desktop client.
As ever, I welcome your feedback,
Gabi Walshaw, Product Manager for Vocational Learning and Engage