Welcome to the 17.0 QA Testing Guide, please check with your developer to make sure 17.0 Migration is successfully completed (if any) before testing.
Recording of the Webinar 🎦
We have conducted our testing guide webinar not long ago. If you have missed it, feel free to watch the recording below:
Bug fixes and improvements🪲
As with any other releases, we're trying to improve by ruling out as much bugs as possible in order to maintain that awesome CET user experience. Hence, these relevant bugs and changes were handpicked for your information, divided into different CET component areas.
User Interface Related
Implementation of DibImage to render icons
With the ongoing plan to encourage migration to use DibImage from GDI for general performance improvement in CET, it is important to ensure in your manufacturer extension toolbox, there should not be any missing icons or freezes when navigating within toolboxes.
FIKA extension toolbox with the buttons and icons circled in RED
*What to look out for?
- Using your manufacturer extension toolbox, ensure that icons are still present, not clipped and buttons are functional. There should not be any freezes or crash when interacted with.
- If there are special behaviors where there are multiple states (e.g. enabled/disabled states, transparent backgrounds, colors, position, not blank), it should work the same before.
Fixed dialogs with scrollbars to update correctly after resizing
Resizable dialogs have been inconsistent as it tend to generate an empty space temporarily after resizing larger when scrollbar is maxed out at the bottom. This affects all CET dialogs or listings with scrollbars in general.
An example of the empty space generated when attempting in Model Lab
*What to look out for?
- Using your manufacturer extension dialogs (if any), Resizing vertical dialogs with scrollbars should resize accurately and shouldn’t cause any clipping.
- Max out the scrollbar to the bottom, expanding it further should immediately update the dialog accurately without any presence of empty spaces.
CET Core Related
Relocation of CET preferences files location
With the increased usage of cloud storage, it can pose an issue loading files, specifically .cmpref files in CET. For optimization, the existing location in 'CET Documents' will be relocated to 'LocalAppData'. Hence, it is important to ensure that all existing configurations are still retained after CET is updated to a newer version.
*What to look out for?
- After CET is updated to a newer version, ensure that all options, configurations are remembered when the updated CET is launched. If your manufacturer has a specific configurations which uses its own preference file, it is encouraged to test along as well. *Preferences stores hundreds of different options
- Make changes to any the options (easiest would be on control panel), restarting CET will remember the changes and work as usual.
Calculation Related
This section comprises of all changes related to calculation / bill of material (BOM).
Pre-condition: 17.0 migration testing only applies to manufacturers who migrated to core query changes from the 16.5 Major release. Those who haven't migrated don't need test the steps below, but encouraged to test their custom query implementations.
Specials in query dialog
Specials in query dialog allow manufacturers to create unique products with customized information when needed.
Changing a special from FIKA Bookcase product in Query dialog
*What to look out for?
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Click a Product or Option row and press Make Special.
- Users can update the parent product or selected option with custom specification details.
- Editing one option does not update other options with the same code.
- Leaving required fields blank shows a validation message, and no changes are saved.
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Click a Product or Option row and press Change Special.
- Users can update custom specification details on the parent product or selected option.
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Click an Option row and press Add Option.
- Inserts a new option row below the immediate selected row.
- User can add custom specification details in the option row.
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Click a Product or Option row and press Remove Special.
- Custom specification details are removed from the Product or Option row and goes back to the default part data. Remove Special will also remove Add Option rows (purple cell highlight).
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Manufacturers need to check cell highlighting in their own implementations of their Query dialogs
- Highlighting works properly and shows the same in Calculations.
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Verify pricing fields appear in the Query dialog. Test changing the pricing for part numbers and options
- Base, Upcharge, and Total updates correctly and removing the special restores default pricing.
- Verify special pricing displays correctly for Base, Upcharge, and List in Calculations for standard and registered article views.
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Verify special pricing converts correctly when changing currency in Calculations with different exchange rates.
- Users' special prices should auto-convert to CET's currency and prices should change based on the exchange rate.
- Ensure older drawings with specials from manufacturers still work and load correctly.
- Ensure all special details and pricing for part numbers and options export correctly in SIF, PMX and OFDA XML exports.
Reset behavior of Ind. Tags
Ind. Tags have been resetting unexpectedly due to several contributing factors. These include customizations with aggressive Ind. Tag logic, as well as scenarios involving part tags, blocks, or other workflows that split or merge individually tagged parts in ways that are not covered by CET’s standard part-merge behavior. To improve control and predictability, this migration introduces a new setting in the Calculations Control Panel that governs Ind. Tag Reset behavior.
The additional dropdown in Control Panel to control the reset behavior
Legacy reset behavior
Retains the historical Ind. Tag reset behavior in CET. Typically, the Ind. Tag resets when a Part Number or Option is modified, but this behavior is entirely dependent on the manufacturer's extension code.
Part Number changes
A more restrictive reset approach for extensions, where the Ind. Tag resets only when a Part Number is modified. It will not reset when an option changes that does not affect the Part Number.
Part Number and Options changes
The Ind. Tag resets only when a combination of the Part Number or its options changes on the part.
Side effects
These new Ind. Tag reset approaches restrict the reset points as much as possible. However, manufacturers may still influence how these behaviors function. Along with these changes, the Split By for the Ind. Tag column in Calculations is set to on by default instead of off for new View Settings.
Article view settings
Alongside, a bug fix was also made with applying custom Ind. Tags to Split By rows in Calculations as a group. When items in the Calculation view are grouped together (green arrows), Ind. Tag changes will now apply the entered custom tag to all products in the group when entering in the header cell. Individual custom tags can still be applied when expanding the list view.
A number of FIKA seating with different Ind. Tags applied
With these, manufacturers will need to verify their legacy behavior still works correctly with the new migration changes works. Use the following test cases to verify basic functionality of Ind. Tags.
*What to look out for?
Pre-condition(s): Set the Ind. Tag Reset behavior drop-down to the "Legacy reset behavior" in the Calculation Control Panel.
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In Calculations, edit an Ind. Tag value (including clearing it) on rows with and without an existing tag.
- The updated tag is applied (or removed when cleared) and the cell reflects a manual edit state (e.g., turns green) with no input restrictions.
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In Calculations with Split By enabled, apply and remove custom Ind. Tags at individual (expanded row) levels.
- Individual edits apply only to the selected split item, and removing tags works.
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Remove a custom Ind. Tag from a manually edited (green) cell using the red X.
- The tag resets to the default (or blank if none existed) and the cell returns to its normal (non-edited) state/color.
- In Calculations, multi-select rows and apply, then remove a custom Ind. Tag and verify that the tag change (add/remove) is applied to all selected rows.
- Create an Article View and add/edit/remove item tags and ensure that tag changes are synchronized and are reflected across Article Views.
- Ensure lock and unlocking ind. tags still work, lock prevents moving/rotating where as unlock restores it, tag edits in calculation should work regardless of lock state.
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On a multi-part product, apply custom item tags to its parts, then use Reset Item Tags from the right-click menu.
- All custom tags for the selected product’s parts are cleared, and both Calculations and 2D reflect the reset.
- Ensure when working with part tags, alternatives, favorites and blocks, it should follow the intended behavior set by the manufacturer (if any).
- Verify that old drawings that has part adjustments like pricing and quantity changes with or without custom item tags.
- Part adjustments may still be applied after loading, but migration changes could cause them to be lost. In that case the parts with adjustments should appear as a red line with the missing adjustments instead of missing completely.
CAD Related
Some polylines missing in CAD
Developers fixed an issue with missing polylines which AutoCAD supports but not in CET. This is a special kind of polylines and is not commonly found in typical CAD files out there. It is good to ensure your existing CAD files still work fine as before.
In 2D space, the polyline is missing but is present in 3D
*What to look out for?
- By using your desired dwg(s), import and insert into CET, ensure:
- It retains the same loading performance when completed, the insert process should not be slower than before or in any chance freezes CET.
- It still looks correct and has no missing entities. (Compare with a CAD viewer if applicable)
2D / 3D Graphics Related
Removal of camera events from undo stack
The undo stack has been very limited and inefficient when camera events such as zooming, panning, etc. are involved along with the different actions in CET, the causes the limited space in the stack to be filled with camera events instead of CET actions when undoing. This is now improved where camera events will not be added to the undo stack.
In the undo history stack, camera events are always recorded and be part of 'undo actions'
*What to look out for?
- Using your manufacturer extension products, apply several actions from material changes, stretching to quick property changes. Change camera position such as dragging, zooming in between the process. Verify that applying undo steps will exclude camera events.
- Verify that the sequence of undo steps are still accurate excluding the camera events.
Elevation inaccurate showing objects with orientation roll
When there are objects with roll orientation, for example, an office panel that has been rolled to use it as ceiling panel, the elevation view tool tend to misidentify its position hence causing inaccuracies. It is important with this fix, to smoke test the elevation tool that is present in your manufacturer extension (if any).
The sleeping doll gets to play hide and seek with this bug present
*What to look out for?
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In your manufacturer extension component tab, try out 'Elevation View' for different layouts of your manufacturer products. Verify that:
- The elevation render is accurate as expected, if there are any objects rotated, rolled in any orientation, it should still be accurate.
- Accuracy by using dimension tools to ensure the measurements of the rendering is correct, in correspondence to the actual product snapper dimensions.
Visibility / Categorization / Tags Related
Inaccurate graphics when object is in selection and hidden
Developers fixed a problem where certain parts and categories tend to show in full colored graphics though it was supposed to be in transparent graphics when selected in a hidden view mode, which was a part of the feature of option 'Show hidden components in selection' when enabled in control panel. Manufacturers will have to make sure that in their customized view modes, it should only show the correct parts and categories in the right graphics states (Transparent when selected but hidden, Normal colored when selected and not hidden).
Previously, the base in selection was shown in a hidden view mode in green and not transparent
*What to look out for?
Prerequisite: Enable option 'Show hidden components in selection' when enabled in control panel.
- Using your manufacturer extension, have a few of the products in selection, then switch to a hidden view mode (use manufacturer view modes if applicable), ensure that the correct parts and categories are:
- Transparent when selected but hidden.
- Normal colored when selected and not hidden.
- Test rendering in these specific view modes and ensure the correct parts and categories are accurately rendered and not affected by this fix, in both drawing space and paper view.
New features🆕
We're continuously improving in each releases to provide more features that brings more value into CET. Here's what you need to know, divided into different CET component areas.
Drawing Tools Related
Addition of Z axis measure in 3D ruler and font, line color change
In efforts to improve measuring in 3D, a hypotenuse which is represented by the 'Z axis measure' will be displayed when using ruler in 3D space. The Z measure can be toggled off or on with the new feature in the quick properties during the animation. Font and line color can also be conveniently switched between black and white depending on the contrast of the background or object.
The Z axis measure is shown in a purple dotted line
*What to look out for?
- Using your manufacturer extension products, measure by using the ruler tool in 3D space. Identify the start and end points of your measure at an angle to invoke the Z axis measure during the animation. With the Z axis measure present, ensure it can update immediately when your end measuring point is changed.
- Manually verify that the Z axis measure value is accurate by remeasuring the object with a dimension tool, ensuring its precision.
- Ensure changing to different font/line color, and toggling Z axis measure on/off works as intended.
Sketch & Build extension
Support of custom profiles
There is an added support of custom profiles, where users are now able to create a freeform shape, then convert them into a profile which can be applied onto extrusions in the layout to be built.
A new section of 'Create custom profile' is now added into the Sketch and Build extension toolbox. Users may choose to begin with a Rectangle or a Circle, then apply editing tools if necessary.
New section of 'Create custom profile'
A demonstration of how a custom profile is created, then applied onto an extrusion
*What to look out for?
- In 'Sketch & build' extension, create a custom profile by drawing a desired shape. Ensure it can be converted into a custom profile successfully. In the profile chooser, verify that it can be applied onto an extrusion.
- Ensure the custom profile can be applied to an existing extrusion from older drawings (if any).
2D / 3D Graphics Related
New 3D mesh snapping faces
The snapping system has been improved for better edits when drawing in 3D space, this helps tremendously when used in Orthographic view which relies heavily on good snapping for edits and measuring. This feature will be enabled by default in CET 17.0, and it allows the possibility to snap to every mesh of the object in 3D space.
By default, all objects in CET will support the additional mesh faces, unless the specific code is overridden by manufacturers for customization. Otherwise, manufacturers are encouraged to ensure the additional mesh faces can snap well to their products. Take a look at the comparison with and without below:
Without it, it does not have additional mesh faces to snap to most catalogue objects
With it, the additional mesh faces provides better convenience in editing and measuring in 3D
*What to look out for?
- Using your manufacturer extension, test snapping to and from with a 'Ruler' in 3D (if your manufacturer has any specific measuring tools, feel free) to the additional mesh faces, ensure it can snap and it is graphically accurate in terms of the bounds of the object. For example, a mesh point which is further than the chair's base or in the air, are incorrect, this may point to the modelling issue of the object.
- Verify that with the additional mesh faces created, it shall not introduce any performance issues during the snapping animation of the objects.
Material Handling 🏗️
With the emerging number of users in the material handling industry, this section focuses on changes, improvements and features by components, that are separated from the CET core. Users that are not from this industry may skip this section if needed.
The components affected below are based on the material handling framework that manufacturers are based on, if your manufacturer does not inherit, use or extend the components below, it will be deemed not applicable.
Unit Load
Unit loads cannot be reselected in 2D view
Previously, unit loads on the floor will not be selectable at all in 2D view after deselecting it when first placed. With the fix, unit loads placed on the floor can be fully selectable in 2D view even after being deselected. With that, users can move or edit the unit load from 2D without relying on 3D selection.
*What to look out for?
- This mainly affects manufacturers that are on Pallet Racking and Deep Racking, place a single unit load on the floor. Deselect and reselect again in 2D should work now, allowing move/modify operations.
- Verify behavior remains correct for multiple unit loads and after saving/loading the drawing.
Bay Editor / Frame Editor
Frame elevation graphics become inconsistent after undo and dimensioning
The frame elevation graphics could become inconsistent in bay editor 2D preview after changing configuration properties (e.g. number of levels) and performing an undo or when using the Dimension tool and hovering near the invisible dotted line frame, the frame overlay could randomly gain color / become solid after the dimension animation. With the fix, undo correctly updates the 2D frame elevation so that the frame remains visible and in sync with configuration changes. The invisible dotted line overlay for the frame in 2D elevation also stays consistent before, during and after dimension animations; it no longer randomly becomes solid.
*What to look out for?
- In Bay Editor, create a new configuration. Switch to 2D preview and change a property (e.g. number of levels). Undo the change and verify that 2D elevation frame remains visible and correctly updated; it does not disappear.
- In Bay Editor, create a new configuration. Switch to 2D preview and select the dimension tool in the toolbar and hover around the top part of the invinsible dotted line frame until it snaps/highlights. When the dimension animation is dismissed, verify that the frame retains the invisible dotted line overlay style and does not randomly switch to a solid-colored frame.
Usability improvements for dimensions and visibility controls
There were feedbacks in Bay Editor where user-facing texts cannot be customized and some graphics cannot be made hidden for certain visibility choices. It has been improved now that the user-facing texts in Bay Editor supports customization via text styles and dimension visibility can now be adjusted via toggle buttons (e.g. “Toggle Dimension Visibility”, “Toggle Arrow Visibility”) in the 2D/3D preview.
*What to look out for?
- In Bay Editor, ensure that dimensions that are placed can be customized using text styles.
- In the 2D/3D preview, use the ‘Toggle Dimension Visibility’ and ‘Toggle Arrow Visibility’ buttons and verify that dimensions and arrows can show/hide correctly in the preview.
Handling of invalid characters when saving configurations
This change affects save dialogs in (Preconfigurator, Bay Editor, Frame Editor, Unit Load Editor). When the save name contains invalid characters (<, >, :, /, \, \\, |, ?, *, "), the Save button appeared clickable but does not feedback, because the OS/file dialog silently rejected the invalid filename. It now handles these invalid characters by replacing it with 'underscore _'.
*What to look out for?
- In the affected areas, test the save dialog by attempting to save a new or existing configuration containing one or more invalid characters
<,>,:,/,\,\\,|,?,*,". Clicking on 'Save / Save as template' buttons will feedback by replacing all characters with an underscore.
Performance Testing 📊
Performance is a very important aspect that drives CET's usability experience. As we strive to provide more enhancements and new features in the later CET versions, performance is taken into strict consideration to ensure its consistency and does not introduce an unintended ripple effect throughout. With that said, we would like our manufacturers to run some basic performance tests, to make sure they are not affected.
Basic checklists
- To ensure the best performance possible, please switch off unused extensions, which will contribute to faster CET loading and startup.
- Test for possible memory leak issue using Window's Task Manager (Open using shortcut CTRL + SHIFT + ESC). Look for 'CETDesigner.exe' under 'Processes' tab and make sure overall memory consumption is not maxed out, with CET eating up most of it. Check that CET's memory consumption makes negligible difference between old and new, report if you experience abnormally high memory consumption by 'CETDesigner.exe'.
Measure memory usage
A new tool to inspect memory allocation for packages installed in CET. This tool can be used to determine memory leak of certain packages if memory is growing overtime and not being release.
What you can do:
- To be used whenever there is a memory spike or memory maxing out in Windows Task Manager. Or unusual sluggishness or slowdown were felt while using CET.
- Open up Release Debug menu using Ctrl+Alt+Shift+F12. Click on "Measure memory usage". Some users might have clashes with Intel HD Graphics shortcut.
- The traces will be written to CET log file. Send the log file together with relevant information to devsupport@configura.com for investigation.
Response Monitor tests
We highly recommend using 'Response Monitor' under 'QA Tools' to trace the time taken for different actions done in CET. Compare the time taken for the same actions done between the old and new versions of CET. If time taken difference is of a huge margin, you may report to 'devsupport@configura.com' for assistance.
By using your manufacturer extension, we suggest checking time differences for these actions:
- System startup time
- First snapper placement, and subsequent continuous placement
- Stretching (check if its smooth and not jerky)
- Copy and Paste
- Creating Alternatives
- Save and Load drawing
- Material application in [Animation, Quick Properties, Customer Own Material, Scheme Dialog]
That's all we have for you!
The QA Support team would like to wish you all the best in your 16.5 Migration journey. 👍
Have additional questions?
Links that may come handy to you
Release and Migration Best Practices
As always, reach out to us at qasupport@configura.com if you have questions
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