LDD Today

Enhancements to Notes/Domino 6.0.1and 6.0.2
Level: All
Works with: Notes/Domino
Updated: 04-Aug-2003

Lotus Notes/Domino 6 introduced significant new features and functionality, and the Lotus Notes/Domino 6.0 maintenance releases bring you further improvements. This article describes the new enhancements in the maintenance releases (MRs) and maintenance updates (MUs) beginning with the first two maintenance releases in the Domino 6 code stream: Notes/Domino 6.0.1 and 6.0.2.

Please note that as a general rule, we try to avoid including new features in our maintenance releases and updates. Each time the decision is made to include new functionality in a maintenance release or update, it is an exception to our rule, done to keep Notes/Domino competitive in the marketplace and to meet customer needs and wants.

You can find this list in the set of release notes that comes with each new release. You can find all the Notes/Domino Release Notes in Lotus Documentation on Lotus.com. You can also check on the status of the next Notes/Domino MR/MU.

For information about enhancements to Notes/Domino R5, see the LDD Today article, "Enhancements to 5.0.1 to 5.0.12."

Notes/Domino 6.0.1

Domino server and Administrator client
Among other features, roaming user and the Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool are new to Domino.

Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool
The Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool lets you automatically collect crash diagnostic data on Notes clients and Domino servers and send that information to a specified mail-in database, so you no longer have to worry about unreported crashes or incomplete or inappropriate data from a client or server crash. The Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool not only associates the diagnostic file with the correct server or client, but also locates the diagnostic file on the server. The Domino 6.0.1 server uses a diagnostic directory to store all diagnostic files, including console.log.

Domino creates an index file (diagindex.nbf) to track the diagnostic files created on the server or client since you started it. When you restart a client or server after a crash, a new process searches the index file to find specific information that it forwards in an email to the mail-in database.

To configure the Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool for your Domino server, use the new Diagnostics tab on the Configurations Settings document. To configure the tool for your Notes clients, use the Diagnostics tab on the Desktop Settings policy document. For information on how to configure the Automatic Diagnostic Collection Tool, see the Notes/Domino 6.0.1 Release Notes.

Roaming user
Users who access Notes from more than one Notes client can access their customized settings and personal information automatically from any Notes client in the domain. Data for these users, known as roaming users, replicates between the user's machine and a roaming user server, where these files are stored. When a roaming user logs on from a different Notes client, the client automatically retrieves the user's Personal Address Book, bookmarks database, and personal journal from the roaming user server.

In addition, the user's ID file is attached to the Personal Address Book, so he doesn't need carry his ID file with him, and parts of the user's Notes.ini are copied to the Personal Address Book also. You can enable roaming users to access other databases from any client in the domain by replicating the databases to the roaming server. Any changes that the user makes in these files replicate to the roaming user server to enable the roaming user to have a consistent experience from any Notes client.

The roaming user feature is available only for Notes 6.0.1 clients and Domino 6.0.1 servers. For instructions on how to designate a Notes user a roaming user, see the Domino Administrator 6 help.

Domino Directory outline view enhancement
To match the outline view in the Domino Administrator client, the Domino Directory outline view now uses the same icons in both the Domino Directory and Domino Administrator client. The following screen shows the new Domino Directory outline view:

Domino Directory outline view

Lotus Notes Smart Upgrade support for multilingual installations
If users have more than one language version of the Lotus Notes client installed on a machine, Lotus Notes Smart Upgrade can detect those languages and upgrade all of them to the specified version.

Solaris 9 support
In addition to Solaris 8, Domino 6.0.1 also supports Solaris 9. For more platform support information, see the Notes/Domino 6.0.1 Release Notes.

$CacheValid field reintroduced
The $CacheValid field, which was removed from Domino 6, is reintroduced in Domino 6.0.1 for backward-compatibility. However, if you enable User Preferences or if a response contains either a localizable field (such as time or date) or any server resource strings from which more than one language can be chosen, the response is cached even if the form contains the $CacheValid field.

You can disable User Preferences or locale preferences through the Server document or Web Site documents. See the Notes/Domino 6.0.1 Release Notes for additional information.

Browser-side caching enhancements
Domino browser-side caching enhancements include the use of HTTP/1.1 Entity Tags (ETags) and the @SetHTTPHeader function. With the @SetHTTPHeader function, applications can set HTTP response headers to control browser caching behavior. You can use Entity Tags for cache validation. For more information about these features, see the LDD Today article, "A preview of browser-side caching enhancements."

Transaction logging Notes.ini setting
The new Notes.ini setting RM_SMALL_NBNSRO_LOG_RECORD, when set to 1, divides a transaction log into smaller logs to save memory. After configuring this setting, you cannot use a Domino 6.0 server to read the transaction logs.

Notes client
Notes/Domino 6.0.1 introduces new Macintosh platform support and significant enhancements to the iNotes Web Access client.

Support for Macintosh OS 10.2
The Notes client now supports the Macintosh OS 10.2 platform. In addition to this support, you can install the Notes client on a Macintosh that has only OS X installed. To install Notes 6 previously, you were required to have OS 9 or OS X with the Classic OS 9 environment installed. Note that the Notes 6.0.1 client supports OS 9.x.

iNotes Web Access client enhancements
The iNotes Web Access client enhancements include:
Domino Designer
Single Copy Template and template version information are just two of the new features available in Domino Designer 6.0.1.

Launch WebSphere Studio Application Developer from the bookmark bar
A button has been provided in the Domino Designer bookmark bar to launch the WebSphere Studio Application Developer, if you have that application installed.

Template version information is available
You can use a single shared field on the Design tab of the Database Properties box to find template version information. The following screen shows the version string in the properties box:

Database Properties box - Design tab

Single Copy Template
Single Copy Template saves disk space by letting you store design information in a single template rather than in each database that uses that template. For example, if users in your organization use the same Notes mail template, you can designate a Single Copy Template and let the mail databases derive design information from the template. The design task ensures that all reference notes in the databases match those in the template.

To create a Single Copy Template, copy an existing template, rename it the template copy, and select the Single Copy Template database property.

The next time the design task runs it replaces all design elements from the databases using the Single Copy Template with reference notes.

For more information about Single Copy Template, see the Domino Designer 6 help.

Notes/Domino 6.0.2

Domino server and Administrator client
New in Domino 6.0.2 is Express installation, Webmail enhancements, and the SMTPVerifyAuthenticatedSender Notes.ini setting.

Express installation
Express installation is intended to help small and medium businesses get started with Notes/Domino 6 quickly. Express installation includes the following enhancements to the existing Notes/Domino installation program:
Webmail enhancements
The following enhancements were made to Webmail in Notes/Domino 6.0.2:
SMTPVerfiyAuthenticatedSender Notes.ini setting
The new Notes.ini setting SMTPVerifyAuthenticatedSender determines if mail sent during an authenticated SMTP session is issued from a user's Internet address. This setting validates the entry in the From field and prevents authenticated users from sending mail from an address other than their Internet addresses.

Domino Designer
The Lotus Domino Toolkit for WebSphere Studio is included with Notes/Domino 6.0.2.

Lotus Domino Toolkit 1.0 for WebSphere Studio
The Lotus Domino Toolkit 1.0 for WebSphere Studio lets you create J2EE applications in WebSphere Studio using the Domino custom JSP tag libraries. The toolkit provides easy access to data stored in Domino. You can find the toolkit in the Domino Designer Apps directory.

Notes client
Changes in the Notes 6.0.2 client include iNotes Web Access enhancements and a name change, new platform support, and a calendar and scheduling improvement.

iNotes Web Access (now called Domino Web Access)
iNotes Web Access (which in 6.0.2 has been renamed Domino Web Access) introduces a new user interface and the following new features:
Support for Domino Directory lookups from Microsoft Outlook 2000/2002 clients
Notes/Domino 6.0.2 provides Microsoft Outlook 2000/2002 client users with a Domino Internet address that lets them perform Domino Directory lookups.

Citrix MetaFrame XPe FR2 platform support
Citrix Metaframe Xpe FR2 supports the Notes client on Windows 2000 server using NT and MAC ICA (Indepentent Computing Architecture) clients. Citrix ICA Client separates an application's logic so that the server processes tasks, but the client shows only screen updates.

Looking ahead
We will update this article as new maintenance releases of Notes/Domino 6 become available, so check back with us later this year to find out what's new in Notes/Domino 6.0.3.