All Co-Existent County SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
As requested, here is the list of additional critical patches that IBM tested and applied to the Dedicated County Windows 10 Workstations for April 2024:
5002050: Update for Microsoft Office 2016 - Office 2016 - KB5002050 Critical Updates
5002340: Update for Microsoft Office 2016 - Office 2016 - KB5002340 Critical Updates
5002388: Update for Microsoft Office 2016 - Office 2016 - KB5002388 Critical Updates
5002452: Update for Microsoft Office 2016 - Office 2016 - KB5002452 Critical Updates
5002525: Update for Microsoft Access 2016 - Access 2016 - KB5002525 Critical Updates
5002545: Update for Microsoft OneNote 2016 - OneNote 2016 - KB5002545 Critical Updates
5002568: Update for Microsoft PowerPoint 2016 - PowerPoint 2016 - KB5002568 Critical Updates
5002571: Update for Microsoft Word 2016 - Word 2016 - KB5002571 Critical Updates
5002572: Update for Microsoft Office 2016 - Office 2016 - KB5002572 Critical Updates
5002574: Update for Microsoft Outlook 2016 - Outlook 2016 - KB5002574 Critical Updates
5002577: Update for Microsoft Excel 2016 - Excel 2016 - KB5002577 Critical Updates
Action Required
No action is required. Informational only.
Update
Production CWS-CARES Performance Slowness - RESOLVED
CARES RFA Pilot Counties:
May 21, 2024 UPDATE: Salesforce identified the cause of the performance degradation and implemented a fix that resolved the issue. Salesforce has noticed a positive impact to the performance of its services.
The CARES-RFA application should now be returned to normal performance.
______________________________________________________________________________
Salesforce is experiencing a service degradation. This degradation may impact CARES-RFA. Users should be able to access the CWS-CARES application; however, some functionality may be unavailable or running at less than optimal performance. General and intermittent slow performance, timeouts, and connectivity issues are possible.
Salesforce is investigating the issue. Additional information will be shared as new updates are received.
Action Required
No action is required at this time.
If users experience any issues with the CWS-CARES, please follow your county process for reporting issues. CWS-CARES County Administrators may contact the CARES Service Desk through the CWDS ServiceNow Customer Support Management (CSM) Portal. Alternate methods are phoning 1-855-292-3444 or via email at Servicedesk@cwds.ca.gov during normal business hours. You may also email after hours, and a Service Desk representative will contact you the next business day.
May 21, 2024 UPDATE: Salesforce identified the cause of the performance degradation and implemented a fix that resolved the issue. Salesforce has noticed a positive impact to the performance of its services.
The CARES-RFA application should now be returned to normal performance.
______________________________________________________________________________
Salesforce is experiencing a service degradation. This degradation may impact CARES-RFA. Users should be able to access the CWS-CARES application; however, some functionality may be unavailable or running at less than optimal performance. General and intermittent slow performance, timeouts, and connectivity issues are possible.
Salesforce is investigating the issue. Additional information will be shared as new updates are received.
Action Required
No action is required at this time.
If users experience any issues with the CWS-CARES, please follow your county process for reporting issues. CWS-CARES County Administrators may contact the CARES Service Desk through the CWDS ServiceNow Customer Support Management (CSM) Portal. Alternate methods are phoning 1-855-292-3444 or via email at Servicedesk@cwds.ca.gov during normal business hours. You may also email after hours, and a Service Desk representative will contact you the next business day.
CWS/CMS: CDT Service Desk Bulletin – SBCS Infrastructure Servers Security Patching - May 25, 2024 | 6 AM - 10 AM
All SPOCs and Data Quality Analysts:
The latest versions of data quality fuzzy reports for clients & placement homes are now available. Note that the Substitute Care Provider (SCP) Fuzzy reports have been replaced by SCR 8912 SCP Deduplication. The Client & Placement Home Fuzzy reports assist with data cleanup by providing a greater number of potential duplication matches, using “fuzzy” matching criteria, than would be possible on the more restricted results on the Semi-annual merge reports. Additional information on CWS/CMS data cleansing activities and benefits, including fuzzy reports, is found on the Data Quality Portal.
To help the Data Quality team to keep track of requests for fuzzy reports, a simple online request form has been developed. A new request must be submitted each time to receive the updated fuzzy reports. The Data Quality Fuzzy reports request online form is located at 2024 May DQ Fuzzy Reports Request.
Action Required
If a county wants to request a Data Quality Fuzzy Report (for Client or Placement Home), please complete and submit the online request form located at 2024 May DQ Fuzzy Reports Request.
The latest versions of data quality fuzzy reports for clients & placement homes are now available. Note that the Substitute Care Provider (SCP) Fuzzy reports have been replaced by SCR 8912 SCP Deduplication. The Client & Placement Home Fuzzy reports assist with data cleanup by providing a greater number of potential duplication matches, using “fuzzy” matching criteria, than would be possible on the more restricted results on the Semi-annual merge reports. Additional information on CWS/CMS data cleansing activities and benefits, including fuzzy reports, is found on the Data Quality Portal.
To help the Data Quality team to keep track of requests for fuzzy reports, a simple online request form has been developed. A new request must be submitted each time to receive the updated fuzzy reports. The Data Quality Fuzzy reports request online form is located at 2024 May DQ Fuzzy Reports Request.
Action Required
If a county wants to request a Data Quality Fuzzy Report (for Client or Placement Home), please complete and submit the online request form located at 2024 May DQ Fuzzy Reports Request.
CWS/CMS: CDT Service Desk Bulletin – New Citrix Environment Migration - June 8, 2024 | 6 AM - 2 PM
All SPOCs, Technical Contacts, and SBC Administrators:
The California Department of Technology (CDT) has scheduled the migration of Server Based Computing Services (SBCS) users to a new Citrix environment. The migration window is scheduled for Saturday, June 8, 2024, beginning at 6:00 AM, and concluding at 2:00 PM.
During the migration window, users connected to the CWS/CMS application via SBCS, either through physical tokens, through ‘soft’ tokens, or through the ‘token-less’ environment used by Probation staff may be kicked out of the application or unable to log in to the SBCS environment. If users are kicked out the SBCS environment, they will need to wait until the maintenance window is completed to sign back in.
Action Required
If users experience any issues with CWS/CMS, please follow your county process for reporting issues or you may contact the IBM Boulder Help Desk at 1-800-428-8268.
The California Department of Technology (CDT) has scheduled the migration of Server Based Computing Services (SBCS) users to a new Citrix environment. The migration window is scheduled for Saturday, June 8, 2024, beginning at 6:00 AM, and concluding at 2:00 PM.
During the migration window, users connected to the CWS/CMS application via SBCS, either through physical tokens, through ‘soft’ tokens, or through the ‘token-less’ environment used by Probation staff may be kicked out of the application or unable to log in to the SBCS environment. If users are kicked out the SBCS environment, they will need to wait until the maintenance window is completed to sign back in.
Action Required
If users experience any issues with CWS/CMS, please follow your county process for reporting issues or you may contact the IBM Boulder Help Desk at 1-800-428-8268.
CARES Compass – Issue 2 – May 2024
To: CARES SPOCs, Implementation Coordinators, County, Tribe, Probation, State Leadership, OCM Coordinators and Specific CWDA Staff Related to Child Welfare
We are pleased to present the second issue of the CARES Compass, the two-page executive summary with upcoming project communications and brief informational highlights.
In this issue, you will find:
We appreciate your continued commitment to staying informed.
Action Required
If you have any questions, need clarification, or have any accessibility issues, please do not hesitate to contact Customer Relations.
We are pleased to present the second issue of the CARES Compass, the two-page executive summary with upcoming project communications and brief informational highlights.
In this issue, you will find:
- Testing Highlights: A concise overview of the completion of the first Extended User Scenario Testing (EUST) activity, and a summary of the feedback.
- Survey Results: The Communication Baseline Survey results wrap-up, response rates, and a link to the results report.
- Resources: Brief descriptions and links to two self-service resources and the Why CARES? A Case for Change video.
- Upcoming Events and Communications: An announcement of the June 26th CWS-CARES Stakeholder Briefing webinar and registration link, and a list of CWS-CARES communications that will be released in the next three months.
We appreciate your continued commitment to staying informed.
Action Required
If you have any questions, need clarification, or have any accessibility issues, please do not hesitate to contact Customer Relations.
CWS/CMS: April 2024 Microsoft Patches
All Co-Existent County SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
As requested, here is the list of patches that IBM tested and applied to the Dedicated County Windows 10 Workstations for April 2024:
Windows 10 22H2
MS24-APR: Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 22H2 - Windows 10 Version 22H2 - KB5036892 (x64) Critical
Windows 10 21H2
MS24-APR: Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H2 - Windows 10 Version 21H2 - KB5036892 (x64) Critical
Google Chrome
Google Chrome 123.0.6312.123 Available
Action Required
No action is required. Informational only.
As requested, here is the list of patches that IBM tested and applied to the Dedicated County Windows 10 Workstations for April 2024:
Windows 10 22H2
MS24-APR: Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 22H2 - Windows 10 Version 22H2 - KB5036892 (x64) Critical
Windows 10 21H2
MS24-APR: Cumulative Update for Windows 10 Version 21H2 - Windows 10 Version 21H2 - KB5036892 (x64) Critical
Google Chrome
Google Chrome 123.0.6312.123 Available
Action Required
No action is required. Informational only.
CWS/CMS LIS Placement Facility Type – Foster Family Agency Certified Resource Family Home
All CWS/CMS SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
It has come to the attention of the CWDS Project that Facility Type 'Resource Family Home,' received from LIS, is displaying as 'Foster Family Agency Certified Resource Family Home' in CWS/CMS.
The CWDS Project is now working with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) partners that manage LIS to research and understand the impact.
We will provide additional updates in the future as more information becomes available.
Action Required
No action is required. Informational only.
It has come to the attention of the CWDS Project that Facility Type 'Resource Family Home,' received from LIS, is displaying as 'Foster Family Agency Certified Resource Family Home' in CWS/CMS.
The CWDS Project is now working with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) partners that manage LIS to research and understand the impact.
We will provide additional updates in the future as more information becomes available.
Action Required
No action is required. Informational only.
CARES-Live Facility Search Result – License Status
All SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
The CWDS project identified and corrected an issue in Facility Search within the CARES-Live Application. The Facility License status on the search results page displayed an outdated License Status. This issue was reported to the Project Office on April 8, 2024. After investigating the issue it was discovered it started on April 3, 2024.
On April 8, 2024, the CARES-Live team completed their investigation and took the necessary measures to resolve this discrepancy.
Action Required
At this time we request counties recheck Facility License Statuses that may have been reviewed between April 3rd and April 8th, using Facility Search in the CARES-Live Application.
If users experience any issues with CARES-Live, please follow your county process for reporting issues. CARES-Live County Administrators may contact the CARES Service Desk through the CWDS ServiceNow Customer Support Management (CSM) Portal. Alternate methods are phoning 1-855-292-3444 or via email at Servicedesk@cwds.ca.gov during normal business hours. You may also email after hours and a Service Desk representative will contact you the next business day.
The CWDS project identified and corrected an issue in Facility Search within the CARES-Live Application. The Facility License status on the search results page displayed an outdated License Status. This issue was reported to the Project Office on April 8, 2024. After investigating the issue it was discovered it started on April 3, 2024.
On April 8, 2024, the CARES-Live team completed their investigation and took the necessary measures to resolve this discrepancy.
Action Required
At this time we request counties recheck Facility License Statuses that may have been reviewed between April 3rd and April 8th, using Facility Search in the CARES-Live Application.
If users experience any issues with CARES-Live, please follow your county process for reporting issues. CARES-Live County Administrators may contact the CARES Service Desk through the CWDS ServiceNow Customer Support Management (CSM) Portal. Alternate methods are phoning 1-855-292-3444 or via email at Servicedesk@cwds.ca.gov during normal business hours. You may also email after hours and a Service Desk representative will contact you the next business day.
CWS/CMS Microsoft Teams Channels Set Up – REMINDER
All CWS/CMS SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
April 2, 2024 UPDATE: This is a reminder that beginning today, April 2, 2024, CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts will begin to see county/organization MS Teams channels in their MS Teams application. The naming convention selected for the channels is: MO_Reports_Countyname.
We have also linked the MS Teams M&O Reports – Quick Guide which provides a general overview of the MS Teams application and its use in sharing the CWS/CMS User ID, Windows Workstation and the CANS Duplicates reports.
If you have any questions regarding this process, please reach out to Customer Relations at CWS_CustRel@osi.ca.gov .
__________________________________________________________________________
March 20, 2024 UPDATE: At this time, we would like to provide CWS SPOCS and CWS Technical Contacts with an update on MS Teams use in sharing specific CWS/CMS Reports as well as the CANS Duplicate Reports. After reviewing the feedback from our testing counties, we have determined that use of MS Teams can move forward.
We plan on going live with all county CWS SPOCS, SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts starting April 2, 2024. The rollout of MS Teams will be completed on a phased approach. Beginning on the morning of April 2, 2024, we will add users to the MS Teams county/organizations channels following this schedule:
We are confident that the use of MS Teams will be a mutual benefit to our counties/organizations as well as to CWDS in sharing specific reports and eliminating the need to email these sensitive reports, which has been problematic.
Beginning on April 2, 2024, CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts will begin to see county/organization MS Teams channels in their MS Teams application. The naming convention selected for the channels is: MO_Reports_Countyname. This name will be used since these reports fall under Maintenance & Operations. We hope this prevents any confusion with the other existing CARES Workgroup MS Team channels that some county/organization staff may have access to now.
This is a sample screenshot of how it would look in MS Teams.
Once the user clicks on the County/Organization MS Teams Channel, this will be the folder structure under the Files tab in MS Teams:
Channel / Folder Access
CWS SPOCS and CWS SPOC Backups will be granted access to all the folders shown above. However, CWS Technical Contacts will only be granted access to the CWS CMS User ID Reports and Windows Workstation Reports folders and not the CANS Duplicates folder.
For additional security, all documents contained in these folders will be password protected. Your Customer Relations team member will provide you with those passwords in a separate encrypted communication.
Thank you in advance for your patience as we begin rolling out MS Teams to the CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts.
If you have any questions regarding this process, please reach out to Customer Relations at CWS_CustRel@osi.ca.gov .
__________________________________________________________________________
The CWDS Project is excited to announce that Microsoft Teams (MS Teams) will soon be used by CWS/CMS as method to share reports previously sent via encrypted emails. MS Teams will support sharing various reports, including the following:
A major difference in the use of MS Teams for CWS/CMS, as opposed to its use in CARES, is that each individual county/organization will have a siloed/isolated County MS Teams channel. Due to the nature and security of the reports to be shared, only the Single Points Of Contacts (SPOCs) and Technical Contacts will have access to these county MS Teams channels. Additionally, channel members from one County will not be able to access or view another County’s MS Team channel.
Starting on March 11, 2024, a small subset of counties will assist CWDS in testing access to MS Teams for the use mentioned above. Those test counties are:
Please send Customer Relations an email if your county does not plan to use MS Teams for collaboration with the CWDS Project at this time. Customer Relations will document your county’s decision and/or identify a future timeframe to explore setting up an MS Teams channel with your county.
Action Required
Please reply by March 15, 2024 if your county does not plan to use MS Teams at this time or in the near future.
April 2, 2024 UPDATE: This is a reminder that beginning today, April 2, 2024, CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts will begin to see county/organization MS Teams channels in their MS Teams application. The naming convention selected for the channels is: MO_Reports_Countyname.
We have also linked the MS Teams M&O Reports – Quick Guide which provides a general overview of the MS Teams application and its use in sharing the CWS/CMS User ID, Windows Workstation and the CANS Duplicates reports.
If you have any questions regarding this process, please reach out to Customer Relations at CWS_CustRel@osi.ca.gov .
__________________________________________________________________________
March 20, 2024 UPDATE: At this time, we would like to provide CWS SPOCS and CWS Technical Contacts with an update on MS Teams use in sharing specific CWS/CMS Reports as well as the CANS Duplicate Reports. After reviewing the feedback from our testing counties, we have determined that use of MS Teams can move forward.
We plan on going live with all county CWS SPOCS, SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts starting April 2, 2024. The rollout of MS Teams will be completed on a phased approach. Beginning on the morning of April 2, 2024, we will add users to the MS Teams county/organizations channels following this schedule:
| Date – Onboarding of users | Region |
| 4/2/24 | Bay Area region counties |
| 4/2/24 | Mountain Valley region counties |
| 4/2/24 | Southern region counties |
| 4/3/24 | Central Valley region counties |
| 4/3/24 | Northern region counties Yurok and Karuk Tribes |
We are confident that the use of MS Teams will be a mutual benefit to our counties/organizations as well as to CWDS in sharing specific reports and eliminating the need to email these sensitive reports, which has been problematic.
Beginning on April 2, 2024, CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts will begin to see county/organization MS Teams channels in their MS Teams application. The naming convention selected for the channels is: MO_Reports_Countyname. This name will be used since these reports fall under Maintenance & Operations. We hope this prevents any confusion with the other existing CARES Workgroup MS Team channels that some county/organization staff may have access to now.
This is a sample screenshot of how it would look in MS Teams.
Once the user clicks on the County/Organization MS Teams Channel, this will be the folder structure under the Files tab in MS Teams:
Channel / Folder Access
CWS SPOCS and CWS SPOC Backups will be granted access to all the folders shown above. However, CWS Technical Contacts will only be granted access to the CWS CMS User ID Reports and Windows Workstation Reports folders and not the CANS Duplicates folder.
For additional security, all documents contained in these folders will be password protected. Your Customer Relations team member will provide you with those passwords in a separate encrypted communication.
Thank you in advance for your patience as we begin rolling out MS Teams to the CWS SPOCS, CWS SPOC Backups, and CWS Technical Contacts.
If you have any questions regarding this process, please reach out to Customer Relations at CWS_CustRel@osi.ca.gov .
__________________________________________________________________________
The CWDS Project is excited to announce that Microsoft Teams (MS Teams) will soon be used by CWS/CMS as method to share reports previously sent via encrypted emails. MS Teams will support sharing various reports, including the following:
- CANS Duplicate Reports
- Windows Workstation Reports
- CWS/CMS User ID Clean Up Reports
A major difference in the use of MS Teams for CWS/CMS, as opposed to its use in CARES, is that each individual county/organization will have a siloed/isolated County MS Teams channel. Due to the nature and security of the reports to be shared, only the Single Points Of Contacts (SPOCs) and Technical Contacts will have access to these county MS Teams channels. Additionally, channel members from one County will not be able to access or view another County’s MS Team channel.
Starting on March 11, 2024, a small subset of counties will assist CWDS in testing access to MS Teams for the use mentioned above. Those test counties are:
- Fresno
- Placer
- Sacramento
- San Diego
- Shasta
- Solano
Please send Customer Relations an email if your county does not plan to use MS Teams for collaboration with the CWDS Project at this time. Customer Relations will document your county’s decision and/or identify a future timeframe to explore setting up an MS Teams channel with your county.
Action Required
Please reply by March 15, 2024 if your county does not plan to use MS Teams at this time or in the near future.
CAD / Business Objects Server Maintenance Scheduled - UPDATE
All SPOCs, Technical Contacts, and CAD Contacts:
March 28, 2024 UPDATE: The CAD/Business Objects (BO) server maintenance has been rescheduled to the following week. The maintenance window is now scheduled for Sunday, April 14, 2024, beginning at 8:00 AM and concluding at 1:00 PM. CAD Business Objects (BO) / Business Intelligence (BI) will not be accessible during the maintenance window.
Any BO reports scheduled to run during this timeframe will be affected.
_____________________________________________________________________
The California Department of Technology (CDT), working with the CWDS Team, have scheduled maintenance for the CAD/Business Objects (BO) server. The maintenance window is scheduled for Sunday,April 7, 2024, beginning at 8:00 AM and concluding at 1:00 PM. CAD Business Objects (BO) / Business Intelligence (BI) will not be accessible during the maintenance window.
Any BO reports scheduled to run during this timeframe will be affected.
Action Required
Review scheduled BO reports and rerun the report jobs, as necessary.
Contact the IBM Help Desk (800-428-8268) to report any issues with your Business Objects content.
March 28, 2024 UPDATE: The CAD/Business Objects (BO) server maintenance has been rescheduled to the following week. The maintenance window is now scheduled for Sunday, April 14, 2024, beginning at 8:00 AM and concluding at 1:00 PM. CAD Business Objects (BO) / Business Intelligence (BI) will not be accessible during the maintenance window.
Any BO reports scheduled to run during this timeframe will be affected.
_____________________________________________________________________
The California Department of Technology (CDT), working with the CWDS Team, have scheduled maintenance for the CAD/Business Objects (BO) server. The maintenance window is scheduled for Sunday,
Any BO reports scheduled to run during this timeframe will be affected.
Action Required
Review scheduled BO reports and rerun the report jobs, as necessary.
Contact the IBM Help Desk (800-428-8268) to report any issues with your Business Objects content.
If unable to find a specific Bulletin, please contact Communications.