1.7. New features and changes in IDERI note Version 3.5

IDERI note Version 3.5 is the first version of IDERI note that supports push messages to be sent to mobile devices running the IDERI note mobile client app. The IDERI note mobile app version that has been released with IDERI note 3.3 only supports the pull model, where the mobile app pulls new messages via the IDERI note gateway component from the IDERI note server. However, a pull solution does not really work in the way users expect it, because it relies on good network conditions and frequent scheduling of background processes on the mobile platform, which is both oftentimes not guaranteed. The solution for this dilemma are push services, which come in different flavors for the two major mobile platforms, Android and iOS/iPadOS. Using push services, notifications can be sent (“pushed”) to mobile devices via servers run on the internet that are operated by Google (Firebase Cloud Messaging - FCM) and Apple (Apple Push Notification Services - APNS). However, sending sensitive information such as the content of an IDERI note message over servers operated by third-parties in different jurisdictions is most probably a delicate issue for every IDERI note customer. For this reason, IDERI note push notification messages are sent as end-to-end-encrypted messages from the on-premise installation of IDERI note 3.5 via the IDERI note mobile push infrastructure, consisting of servers run by IDERI on the internet, to both APNS and FCM. After reception of an end-to-end encrypted message from either APNS or FCM, only the individual adressed mobile device itself is capable of decrypting the push message and to prove its authenticity. Neither IDERI nor FCM or APNS ever see any readable or decryptable message content that passes their server infrastructures. For any additional technical information please contact support@ideri.com for a technical whitepaper.

Using the mobile push services with IDERI note requires some additional setup within the IDERI note service installation because an authenticated outgoing connection from the IDERI note service to the IDERI note mobile push infrastructure has to be created. This procedure is outlined in section 3.14.

In order to control which mobile devices are allowed to receive push messages, several possibilities exist in IDERI note 3.5, all of which are outlined in section 7.3.

In order to be able to test and troubleshoot push message operation and connection to the IDERI note mobile push infrastructure, IDERI note 3.5 comes with exhaustive monitoring facilities that can help pinpoint connection problems from the customer site to the IDERI note mobile push infrastructure. These facilities are documented in section 7.4.

Apart from the mobile push functionality, IDERI note 3.5 comes with the following new features that are more relevant on desktop platforms:

  • Introduction of the new IDERI note PowerShell module. For an introduction into this topic, read section 2.11. For details on how to install the IDERI note PowerShell module, please read section 3.11. Chapter 5 is dedicated entirely to the utilization of this module.
  • The IDERI note server support wizard has been rewritten entirely in order to support the additional services included with the IDERI note service package. It now allows to restrict data sent to IDERI support and allows for optional encryption (AES256) of the zip file to be created during the course of the wizard.
  • The IDERI note server support wizard from the IDERI note administrative tools package has been localized into French.
  • The IDERI note certificates MMC snap-in now supports deletion of multiple certificates in one fell swoop.