As many of you know, when Strategy 10 was released in June 2015, we moved to a quarterly release cadence, which has enabled us to provide innovative improvements, feature enhancements and quick-fixes in a more rapid and agile fashion. While this shortened cycle has made it easier to address customer needs more quickly, we understand that it can be challenging for customers to keep up with this pace of change and to decide when to upgrade to a newer version of Strategy.
To help you consider and succeed in the upgrade process, we’re announcing two support updatestoday. First, I’ve started releasing quarterly support guidance that will include FAQs about our product releases and use cases not supported in the latest release. This guidance will help inform you on what you should consider prior to upgrading. The Q3 2016 support guidance is attached to this email. Second, we’re also rolling out the following updates to our support practice at this time:
- 9.4.1 Update: We will be extending support for 9.4.1 through 2018. This is one of our most widely adopted versions and we’re committed to your continued success with this version.
- Platform Releases: I’m particularly excited about version 10.4 because we’ve designated it to be a Platform Release. What does that mean? In light of our change to a quarterly release cadence, we are introducing two new designations for product versions beginning with version 10.4 — “Platform Release” and “Feature Release”. If a version is designated a Platform Release, it means that we’ve determined it to be well-suited for broad based adoption. We expect Platform Releases to be delivered approximately every 18 months and to be supported for 36 months. Regular stability patches and hotfixes will be made to a Platform Release, but no new features or functionality will be added to this specific version.
- Feature Releases: A release version that is not designated to be a Platform Release will be designated as a “Feature Release”. We expect Feature Releases to be delivered every 3 months and to be supported for 6 months. Feature Releases will include new features and functionalities and also include patches and hotfixes from the most recent Platform Release. This type of release is designed for those customers who want to gain access to the latest features, and are willing to take on the added commitment of frequent upgrades. As an example, since version 10.4 is a Platform Release, you can expect versions 10.5, 10.6, etc. to be Feature Releases until our next Platform Release is delivered. Hotfixes won’t be made to a feature release and only stability or security patches will be considered.
- Upgrade Support Process: We’re enhancing our current upgrade process. If and when you experience an issue while upgrading, you’ll be assigned an individual Technical Support rep who will send a daily update for all related upgrade cases pertaining to you. This is an enhancement over the standard support process at no additional charge.
Please also see the accompanying documents, which provides important details on the updates described above.
Thank you for being a Strategy customer. Your success and satisfaction with Strategy is our number one goal. The new quarterly support guidance and other updates represent our continuing efforts to bring you greater transparency about Strategy products, help ensure success in upgrading, and give you greater visibility into our support model.
Best,
Kevin Mease
SVP, Worldwide Technical Support
Strategy, Inc.
