Novell Vibe 3.3 Readme

5.1 Updating a Vibe 3.x System

You can update from Vibe 3, Vibe 3.1, or Vibe 3.2 to Vibe 3.3. However, you need to update the database separately from the software. For more information, see Update in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Installation Guide.

5.2 Updating a Teaming 2.1 System

If you are upgrading from Teaming 2.1 or earlier, you must first update to Novell Vibe 3 before you can update to Vibe 3.3. For information on how to update to Novell Vibe 3, see “Update” in the Novell Vibe 3 Installation Guide.

5.3 Re-Indexing the Vibe Search Index

Because of an issue that was addressed regarding attachment file sizes, you should re-index the search index after you update to Vibe 3.3 in order for attachment sizes to be displayed correctly. For more information on how to re-index the search index, see Resetting Your Definitions in Update in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Installation Guide.

5.4 Incompatibility between Index Servers When Updating a High Availability System

When you update your high availability Vibe system to Vibe 3 or later from an earlier version, any deferred log records that currently exist become incompatible with each other.

To ensure that no incompatibility issues arise with deferred update logs during the update to Vibe 3 or later, you must clear all deferred update logs prior to upgrading.

For information on how to clear deferred update logs, see Performing Maintenance on a High Availability Lucene Index in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Administration Guide.

5.5 Manual Ehcache Configuration Settings Are Not Preserved on Update

If you have done performance tuning for your Vibe cache, you might experience caching issues after you update from a previous release to Vibe 3 or later, if you have modified either of the following configuration files:

You encounter issues only if you have modified either of the above files, because these files are overwritten during the Vibe update.

The issues you experience differ depending on whether you have a single-server Vibe environment, or whether you have a clustered Vibe environment.

If you have modified the ehcache-hibernate.xml file in order to optimize the caching performance for your single Vibe server, you might notice a decrease in caching performance after you update Vibe.

If you have modified the ehcache-hibernate-clustered.xml file in order to configure your clustered environment, you might notice that items that are added to the Vibe site are not always visible, or other erratic behavior. This is because information is not being cached and synchronized correctly across the various Vibe servers.

To resolve caching issues after an update:

5.6 Issues When Updating from a Previous Vibe Release to Vibe 3.3

5.7 Performance Issues after Updating to a New Version

After updating your Vibe system to a new version, you experience performance issues when you first navigate the Vibe system. This is because Vibe needs to compile the JSPs after an update.

These performance issues do not persist on subsequent visits to the Vibe site.

5.8 Cannot Reset Factory Workflow Definitions When a Workflow Is in a Custom State

When you reset the workflow definitions to the factory default as described in Resetting Your Definitions in Update in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Installation Guide, you encounter a general error informing you to contact your system administrator if you have added a custom state to a factory workflow (such as the Task workflow) and there is currently an entry in the custom state.

If you are trying to reset multiple definitions simultaneously and the factory workflow fails to reset because of this issue, all definitions fail to reset.

6.1 The Vibe Server and the Lucene Server Must Use the Same JDK

If Vibe and the Lucene Index are running on separate servers, you must use the same JDK for both servers. Using different JDKs results in undesired behavior, such as not being able to create calendar entries.

6.2 Character Restrictions in Usernames and Passwords

Do not use extended characters or double-byte characters in Novell Vibe usernames and passwords. This includes usernames and passwords that are synchronized from an LDAP directory into Vibe.

This limitation is caused by the open source Spring Security that Vibe uses for authentication, in combination with the various authentication methods—both basic authentication and form-based authentication—used by single sign-on products such as Novell Authentication Manager, by Web services, and by WebDAV. Only ASCII characters are properly interpreted in all combinations.

6.3 Username Character Restrictions for LDAP Synchronization and Login

LDAP usernames that contain special characters ( / \ * ? " < > : | ) cannot be used as Novell Vibe usernames. If your LDAP directory includes usernames with these characters, they synchronize to the Vibe site, but the associated users cannot log in.

These characters cannot be used in a Vibe username because a Vibe username becomes the user’s workspace title, and the workspace title becomes an element of the hierarchical path that leads to the workspace. These characters are not legal characters in Linux and Windows pathnames.

6.4 Character Restrictions in the Software Installation Directory Name

Do not use extended characters or double-byte characters in the installation directory name for Novell Vibe. The default location for the Vibe software is:

6.5 Character Restrictions in the File Repository Directory Name

Do not use extended characters or double-byte characters in directory names in the path to the Novell Vibe file repository. The default location for the file repository root directory is:

The Oracle Outside In viewers that are used to render various file types into HTML for viewing in the Vibe site and for indexing do not handle directory names that include extended characters and double-byte characters.

6.6 Default Database Name

When you have the Novell Vibe installation program create the Vibe database for you, the database is given the name of sitescape. This database name is currently hard-coded into the database creation scripts used by the installation program. The name dates back to the name of the company that previously owned the Vibe software.

If you want the Vibe database to have a different name, you can edit the database creation script, then run the database creation script manually before you start the Vibe installation program. If you do this, you must also update the JDBC URL when you run the Vibe installation program. Prior to upgrading to a new version, the database update scripts also need to be modified.

6.7 Restrictions on Applet Support

Applets are not supported on 64-bit Firefox on a system with a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) earlier than 1.6.0_12.

On a 64-bit operating system, updating to JRE 1.6.0.12 or later enables the applets to work.

For example, multi-file drag-and-drop from the desktop, file paste from the desktop, Edit in Place, and the graphical display in the workflow editor do not work where applets are not supported.

6.8 Edit in Place Support for Mac Users

For Mac users, Vibe looks for OpenOffice.org in the following directory on users’ Mac workstations:

/Applications/OpenOffice.org.app

If your organization’s standard location for OpenOffice.org is in a different location on users’ workstations, you can reconfigure Vibe to look for OpenOffice.org in your preferred location.

6.9 NFS Support

NFS file system mounts are supported for placing the Vibe file repository on a remote server from where Vibe is running. However, NFS file system mounts are not supported for placing the Lucene index on a remote server from where the Lucene Index Server is running.

6.10 Firewall Issue on Windows Server 2008 R2

On Windows Server 2008 R2, the firewall is enabled by default and ports 80 and 443 are blocked. Vibe needs to use these ports, so Vibe needs to be an allowed program on your Windows server.

6.11 JDK Dependency for SSL Connections to WebDAV Servers

If you want to use an SSL connection between your Novell Vibe site and a WebDAV server, and if the WebDAV server has a self-signed certificate rather than a certificate provided by a certificate authority, you must use the Sun JDK. The existing Vibe functionality for handling self-signed certificates is not compatible with the way the IBM JDK handles self-signed certificates.

6.12 Updated Visual C++ Redistributable Package on Windows

Novell Vibe uses Oracle Outside In 8.3.5 viewer technology for displaying documents and images on the Vibe site and for indexing documents. This viewer technology relies on Support Pack 1 of the Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable Package. If the Windows server where you install Vibe does not already have the latest version of the Visual C++ Redistributable Package installed, you must install it before your Vibe site can function properly. The required version of the Visual C++ Redistributable Package is available from:

For more information, see New Dependency for Outside In 8.2.0 and Newer Versions, Windows Products Only (Doc ID 468895.1) on the Oracle Support Web site. Oracle Support site login is required in order to access the support document.

6.13 Compatibility with Access Manager

To successfully use Novell Vibe with Novell Access Manager, Access Manager 3.1 SP1 IR1 is required. This version is available on the Novell Downloads Web site.

7.1 Do Not Delete System User Accounts

There are four system user accounts in Vibe. You should not delete any of these accounts, because doing so can cause issues with your Vibe system. The system accounts are: Admin, E-mail Posting Agent, Synchronization Agent, and Guest.

If you do need to delete any of these user accounts, first consult with Novell Support.

7.2 Do Not Delete a Vibe Zone

If you have a Vibe zone that you no longer need, you should not delete it. Deleting zones in Vibe can cause significant issues with your Vibe site.

If you do need to delete a Vibe zone, first consult with Novell Support.

7.3 Moving a Main Task Results in the Sub-Task Hierarchy to Be Lost

If you move a main (parent) task to another location on the Vibe site, all sub-tasks beneath that main task--even sub-tasks of sub-tasks (nested tasks)--all become main tasks within the original Tasks folder.

7.4 Saving a Vibe Document with OpenOffice on Linux Creates Two File Versions

When you edit a file in Vibe with OpenOffice on Linux, two new file versions are generated each time you save the file.

This issue is because of a bug in the way that OpenOffice communicates with WebDAV.

For more information about editing files in Vibe, see Viewing Files in Read-Only Mode in Working with Folder Entries in the Novell Vibe 3.3 User Guide.

7.5 Safari on Mac Does Not Allow RSS Feed Creation with the Add Bookmark Option

The Add Bookmark option that is available after you paste the RSS URL into the browser does not work when you use Safari on a Mac. Instead, you must use the Bookmark menu to create an RSS feed.

This is an issue with the way Safari deals with RSS feeds. It is not an issue with Vibe itself.

7.6 Adding Files with Drag and Drop Does Not Work on Mac

Because of Java limitations on the Mac, you cannot drag and drop files to add files to a folder or to attach files to an entry as described in Dragging and Dropping Files in Working with Folder Entries in the Novell Vibe 3.3 User Guide.

You can use the Vibe applet that is used for drag and drop if you copy the file that you want to add and paste it into the applet. However, dragging the file onto the applet does not work.

7.7 LDAP Synchronization Issues

7.8 Landing Page Issues

7.9 Workspace Copy Limitation

When you copy a workspace, the custom form and workflow definitions in that workspace are not transferred to the copy of the workspace. You can work around this limitation by moving the definitions to a higher level in the workspace tree.

7.10 Export/Import Limitation

When an exported workspace, folder, or entry has a link to something that isn’t included in the export file, the link doesn’t work correctly when it is imported to a different Vibe system.

7.11 File Deletion Issue with MySQL

If you are using MySQL, you might see the following error when you upload files and then delete them:

class org.hibernate.exception.GenericJDBCException
Cannot release connection

This is related to a MySQL defect. To resolve the problem, update MySQL to version 5.1.40 or later.

7.12 Password-Protected Files

Files that have been password-protected in the application where they were created cannot be viewed on the Novell Vibe site. This is working as designed.

7.13 Mirrored Folder Issues

7.14 Folder and Workspace Nesting Issue

Because of database restrictions, the maximum number of nested folders and workspaces that Vibe allows is 45. For example, you can create a folder within a folder, then create a folder within that folder, and so forth, until the folder structure is 45 levels deep. You cannot exceed 45 levels in the folder structure.

7.15 License Report Issues

You can view current Novell Vibe license usage by clicking the Administration icon, then under Reports, clicking License Report. The License Report currently counts Administrator, Guest, and three internal users (_emailPostingAgent, _jobProcessingAgent, and _synchronizationAgent) as local users. The Administrator counts as an active user, but the other four local users do not count against your Vibe license usage.

7.16 Date Attribute in Custom Entries and Views

If you use the Date attribute in a custom entry or view, users in different time zones might see a different date than you see.

Novell Vibe stores the date as midnight on the selected date in the Vibe user’s time zone in GMT. For example, January 13, 2010 in the Mountain time zone is stored as GMT-7:00 (20100113T0700). No problem appears for people in the same time zone. However, for people in a different time zone, Mountain time zone midnight could be a different day in their time zone. This discrepancy will be resolved in an upcoming release.

7.17 GroupWise Integration Issues

7.18 Cannot Communicate with an External Outbound Mail System

If you cannot get your Vibe site to communicate with an external outbound mail system (such as Novell GroupWise), you might need to configure the Vibe outbound e-mail server with TLS over SMTP. If your e-mail application requires this type of configuration, you can configure Vibe with TLS over SMTP by using STARTTLS, as described in Configuring Outbound E-Mail with TLS over SMTP in Managing E-Mail Configuration in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Administration Guide.

7.19 Vibe Tasks Are Displayed in Outlook as Calendar Events

When Vibe sends tasks to Outlook via an iCal attachment, the tasks appear as calendar events rather than as task items.

This is because of an issue with the way Outlook handles iCal events.

For more information about how Vibe uses iCal attachments to send calendar events and task items, see Synchronizing Tasks and Calendars to a Desktop Application in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Advanced User Guide.

7.20 Firefox Limitation When Sending E-Mail

If you send an e-mail message from the Novell Vibe site, and you have a typographical error or invalid recipient in the Add E-Mail Addresses field, an error displays, along with a Return to Previous Page button. In Firefox, you return to the Send E-Mail page, but the message content is lost. In Internet Explorer, the message content is retained.

When you use Firefox to send e-mail from the Vibe site, select Vibe users as recipients whenever possible, or copy recipient e-mail addresses to avoid typographical errors in the Add E-Mail Addresses field.

7.21 WebDAV Issues

7.22 Viewing a Vibe Folder through Windows Explorer Displays an Additional Folder on Windows XP

On Windows XP, when you view a Vibe folder through Windows Explorer, an additional sub-folder with the same name as the parent folder might be displayed.

To resolve this problem:

7.23 Data Quota Issue with OpenOffice.org

OpenOffice.org creates a new document version each time you click Save, instead of creating one new version when you exit the edited document. This behavior can cause you to quickly meet your data quota. You can avoid creating unnecessary versions of the same document, and if you do create them, you can delete them.

7.24 HTML Conversion Error on a Linux Server

If you see an HTML Conversion Error when you try to view a file, your Vibe Linux server might be missing necessary libraries.

To install the missing libraries:

7.25 The User Profile Does Not Support Custom JSP Files

When you create or modify attributes for the User Profile form and view in the Form and View Designers tool, you cannot reference custom JSP files.

This ability still exists for modifying attributes for workspaces, folders, and entries, as described in Enabling Vibe Forms and Views to Reference JSP Files in the Novell Vibe 3.3 Advanced User Guide.

9.1 Multi-Reference Values in SOAP Payloads

By default, Novell Vibe SOAP payloads do not generate multi-reference values. You can change the server-config.wsdd files so that multi-reference values are generated.

10.1 Extended Characters Are Not Allowed in Simple URLs

On the Configure Default Settings page of your workspace, the Define URL field does not accept extended characters. Use only alphabetic characters and numbers in simple URLs.

10.2 Extended and Double-Byte Characters in Attachment Filenames

If Outlook users send postings to the Novell Vibe site and if the messages have attachments with extended or double-byte characters in the filenames, the attachment does not arrive on the Vibe site unless the Exchange server is properly configured. To configure the Exchange server to pass the filenames correctly, follow the instructions in Foreign Characters Appear as Question Marks When Sent from OWA.

10.3 Chinese Characters in Activity Logs

When a report.csv file for an activity report is opened in Microsoft Excel, Chinese characters do not display correctly, even though the report.csv file has been created correctly, because Excel always reads the file using the ISO Latin character set.

One workaround is to use the OpenOffice.org Calc spreadsheet program instead of Excel. It displays Chinese characters correctly.

Excel should now display the Chinese characters correctly.

10.4 Internet Explorer 6 Limitation with International Characters in Filenames

In Internet Explorer 6, if you upload a file whose filename includes international characters into a File folder, and if you edit that file and create a new version, the link to the original version of the file no longer works, because Internet Explorer 6 double-encoded the filename. To resolve this issue, update to Internet Explorer 7 or later.