November 21, 2024
Communications
Specific CWDA Staff Related to Child Welfare, County Directors and Alternates, Organization Leadership, CARES Implementation Coordinators, and CARES SPOCs, ELT, PMO, State Communications, Strategic Communications, Implementation Management, Implementation Leads, and Evident Change:
There have been many questions regarding the future of SafeMeasures® and Structured Decision Making® (SDM) assessments with the implementation of CWS-CARES. You may have heard previously that SafeMeasures will exist as a separate function. To address this, we are providing more information and guidance on the integration approach.
To enhance efficiency and data-driven decision making with CWS-CARES Version 1, SDM® assessments will be seamlessly integrated into the CWS-CARES platform via single sign-on. The CWS-CARES Project is currently planning the SafeMeasures integration. Ultimately, SafeMeasures and SDM tools will be embedded into CWS-CARES, and 25 years of historical data collected through these tools will be accessible.
This integration provides a unified user experience and reduces the need for switching between multiple systems. Further, it will ensure continuity for counties, with CWS-CARES handling more direct operational reports and SafeMeasures continuing to provide more complex reporting. SafeMeasures in CWS-CARES will retain its critical and most-used features and reports, as well as the collaborative service relationship between CDSS, counties, and Evident Change.
SafeMeasures and SDM will be part of CWS-CARES and should not be treated as separate, external systems. Therefore, they will not require the same level of effort or planning as external systems, particularly for tasks like data conversion, ongoing operations, or decommissioning.
Here is the impact on county budgets and the transition of SafeMeasures costs:
CWS-CARES Project Coverage: The CWS-CARES project will cover the costs associated with integrating SafeMeasures into the system and ongoing maintenance. This means there will be no additional costs to county budgets for these specific activities.
State Assumption of Costs: Based on the planned CWS-CARES Version 2 implementation date, the State expects to take over county costs associated with SafeMeasures starting on July 1, 2028. As such, counties will continue to be responsible for their existing SafeMeasures contracts and access until June 30, 2028. This includes any associated costs during this period. Counties must continue to submit an Advance Planning Document (APD) to the California Department of Social Services prior to executing, renewing, or amending the agreement or paying for associated services. Please see County Fiscal Letter 23/24-12 for APD submission requirements and details. This means counties shall plan to end their contracts on June 30, 2028, and will no longer be responsible for these costs after this date.
In summary:
- SafeMeasures and SDM tools will be embedded into CWS-CARES via a single sign-on with access to historical data and reports already in use.
- Counties will not incur additional costs for the integration and maintenance of SafeMeasures and SDM into CWS-CARES.
- Counties will continue to be responsible for their contracts until June 30, 2028.
- The state will assume the costs of SafeMeasures starting July 1, 2028.
Counties will receive additional communications about this transition once details are finalized, including the impact on APD submission for current county SafeMeasures costs and determining county budgets.
Sincerely,
The CWS-CARES Project – Executive Leadership Team
California Department of Social Services (CDSS)
Action Required
No action needed.
November 20, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs, Technical Contacts, and CAD Contacts:
November 20, 2024 FINAL UPDATE: The installation of the Business Objects patch upgrade has completed. Business Objects is now accessible; however, users may experience degraded performance while the Business Objects server catches up on the scheduled jobs from this morning. The CWDS Infrastructure team and IBM are monitoring for potential issues.
NOTE: Web Intelligence Rich Client users may need to update their workstation installation of the client.
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November 20, 2024 UPDATE: This is a reminder that the Business Objects production environment is not available this morning, to install a patch update. A follow-up communication will be sent out once the environment has become available, estimated to occur at around 12:00 Noon.
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UPDATE: We are applying a patch to address this Business Objects issue, which will be implemented in both the Training and Production Environments. These environments will be unavailable during the following patch periods:
- Training Environment - November 19th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
- Production Environment - November 20th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Action Required
If users experience any issues please follow your county process for reporting issues or you may contact the IBM Boulder Help Desk at 1-800-428-8268.
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An issue has been discovered with the current version of Business Objects used with the CWS/CMS application.
Issue Description:
Whenever a numeric field, such as government entity code, is used as a condition in a data provider (query), the query will run correctly the first time. Whenever the data provider is edited, the system will return a type mismatch error and require the user to remove and re-add the condition. The query will then run, as long as it is not edited again.
This only appears to be an issue with numeric fields; character fields, such as Client Name, do not experience this issue. Once the query is run, it operates normally as long as the user does not go back and edit the data provider. The user can refresh the data and save, as well as edit the report formatting, without issue.
Issue Resolution:
A patch level update will be required to resolve the issue. The CWDS Office and IBM are evaluating the next Business Objects patch to determine if it will resolve the issue, without generating any new issues. There is currently no estimated time of when the patch will be implemented. Additional updates will be sent out as new information is received.
Workaround:
When Business Objects informs the user of a type mismatch error after a numeric field is used as a condition in a data provider, and the data provider is edited, then the user must remove and re-enter the condition. The query will run, without issue, as long as the data provider is not edited again.
Action Required
Until the issue is corrected with the appropriate patch update, users will need to perform the workaround listed above, by removing and re-entering the condition when they receive a type mismatch error message.
November 20, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs:
November 20, 2024 UPDATE: Resending this reminder to include the CARES-Live Profile – Create Account document that was missing with the previous reminder communication sent on November 19, 2024.
_________________________________________________________________________
As discussed at the last CARES-Live Meeting in September, we will now be using a newly added ‘Role’ on the CWDS website (cwds.ca.gov) as our foundation for the CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting attendees list. This new ‘Role’ allows a user to self-select it to be added to the new CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting series, beginning in January 2025.
In an effort to form this list and perform some distribution list cleanup, we kindly ask that you follow the steps detailed in the ‘CARES-Live Profile – Create Account’ document, to add the role to your CWDS website profile.
Please complete this by 5:00 PM on November 27, 2024, so that we have sufficient time to create the new CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting series and send out the invite to everyone who wants to participate in the meeting.
Action Required
Please share this information with any relevant individuals in your organization who may be interested in attending this meeting series.
If you have any questions or issues on the process to add this role to your profile, please reach out to Customer Relations.
November 20, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs, Technical Contacts, and CAD Contacts:
November 20, 2024 UPDATE: This is a reminder that the Business Objects production environment is not available this morning, to install a patch update. A follow-up communication will be sent out once the environment has become available, estimated to occur at around 12:00 Noon.
_____________________________________________________________________________
UPDATE: We are applying a patch to address this Business Objects issue, which will be implemented in both the Training and Production Environments. These environments will be unavailable during the following patch periods:
- Training Environment - November 19th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
- Production Environment - November 20th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Action Required
If users experience any issues please follow your county process for reporting issues or you may contact the IBM Boulder Help Desk at 1-800-428-8268.
_____________________________________________________________________________
An issue has been discovered with the current version of Business Objects used with the CWS/CMS application.
Issue Description:
Whenever a numeric field, such as government entity code, is used as a condition in a data provider (query), the query will run correctly the first time. Whenever the data provider is edited, the system will return a type mismatch error and require the user to remove and re-add the condition. The query will then run, as long as it is not edited again.
This only appears to be an issue with numeric fields; character fields, such as Client Name, do not experience this issue. Once the query is run, it operates normally as long as the user does not go back and edit the data provider. The user can refresh the data and save, as well as edit the report formatting, without issue.
Issue Resolution:
A patch level update will be required to resolve the issue. The CWDS Office and IBM are evaluating the next Business Objects patch to determine if it will resolve the issue, without generating any new issues. There is currently no estimated time of when the patch will be implemented. Additional updates will be sent out as new information is received.
Workaround:
When Business Objects informs the user of a type mismatch error after a numeric field is used as a condition in a data provider, and the data provider is edited, then the user must remove and re-enter the condition. The query will run, without issue, as long as the data provider is not edited again.
Action Required
Until the issue is corrected with the appropriate patch update, users will need to perform the workaround listed above, by removing and re-entering the condition when they receive a type mismatch error message.
November 19, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs:
As discussed at the last CARES-Live Meeting in September, we will now be using a newly added ‘Role’ on the CWDS website (cwds.ca.gov) as our foundation for the CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting attendees list. This new ‘Role’ allows a user to self-select it to be added to the new CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting series, beginning in January 2025.
In an effort to form this list and perform some distribution list cleanup, we kindly ask that you follow the steps detailed in the attached ‘CARES-Live Profile – Create Account’ document, to add the role to your CWDS website profile.
Please complete this by 5:00 PM on November 27, 2024, so that we have sufficient time to create the new CARES-Live Quarterly Meeting series and send out the invite to everyone who wants to participate in the meeting.
Action Required
Please share this information with any relevant individuals in your organization who may be interested in attending this meeting series.
If you have any questions or issues on the process to add this role to your profile, please reach out to Customer Relations.
November 18, 2024
Communications
All Pilot County RFA Implementation Coordinators and SPOCs:
The CWS-CARES team has scheduled maintenance activity for the CWS-CARES production environment for Friday, November 22, 2024 , beginning at 5:00 PM and concluding at 6:00 PM. During the maintenance window, the CWS-CARES Resource Family Approval (RFA) Application Submission, Review, and Approval Process will be accessible for pilot counties Contra Costa, Fresno, Placer, and Santa Clara.
There is no anticipated impact for CWS-CARES users. We are sharing this information in the unlikely circumstance that there is an actual impact during the scheduled maintenance window and the CWS-CARES application becomes inaccessible.
Action Required
No action required from end-users during this maintenance window.
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.
November 18, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs and Technical Contacts:
Effective November 21, 2024, CARES-Live 2.8.31 Release is Scheduled to Move into Production
The CARES-Live team has scheduled release activity that will interrupt connectivity to the CARES-Live application. The release activity will begin at 6:00 PM on Thursday, November 21, 2024, and conclude at 11:00 PM. During this release, the CARES-Live team will focus on application changes, and users will not be able to access the CARES-Live application during this scheduled outage.
Users will not be able to access the CARES-Live application during this scheduled outage.
CARES-Live 2.8.31:
- This release addresses security findings and elastic search upgrades and other infrastructure updates and security patches not visible to CARES-Live users.
Action Required
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 at https://cwds.service-now.com/csm. 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.
November 14, 2024
Communications
ALL SPOCs, Technical Contacts and CAD Contacts:
The California Department of Technology (CDT) has scheduled maintenance of the SAFE Cloud service. The maintenance begins on Saturday, November 23, 2024, at 8:00 PM and concludes on Sunday, November 24, 2024, at 2:00 AM. The activity will cause interruptions in the SAFE Cloud service. Some Business Objects (BO) reports will fail to send, or automated scripts may fail to retrieve from SAFE during this scheduled maintenance.
Action Required
All users should logoff of the SAFE Cloud service prior to the start of the stated maintenance timeframe. Please check on your scheduled BO SAFE reports and automated FTP scripts. If needed, re-run the reports and scripts.
Contact the IBM Help Desk (800-428-8268) to report any issues with your Business Objects content in SAFE.
November 14, 2024
Communications
All SPOCs, Technical Contacts, and CAD Contacts:
UPDATE: We are applying a patch to address this Business Objects issue, which will be implemented in both the Training and Production Environments. These environments will be unavailable during the following patch periods:
- Training Environment - November 19th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
- Production Environment - November 20th, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM
Action Required
If users experience any issues please follow your county process for reporting issues or you may contact the IBM Boulder Help Desk at 1-800-428-8268.
_____________________________________________________________________________
An issue has been discovered with the current version of Business Objects used with the CWS/CMS application.
Issue Description:
Whenever a numeric field, such as government entity code, is used as a condition in a data provider (query), the query will run correctly the first time. Whenever the data provider is edited, the system will return a type mismatch error and require the user to remove and re-add the condition. The query will then run, as long as it is not edited again.
This only appears to be an issue with numeric fields; character fields, such as Client Name, do not experience this issue. Once the query is run, it operates normally as long as the user does not go back and edit the data provider. The user can refresh the data and save, as well as edit the report formatting, without issue.
Issue Resolution:
A patch level update will be required to resolve the issue. The CWDS Office and IBM are evaluating the next Business Objects patch to determine if it will resolve the issue, without generating any new issues. There is currently no estimated time of when the patch will be implemented. Additional updates will be sent out as new information is received.
Workaround:
When Business Objects informs the user of a type mismatch error after a numeric field is used as a condition in a data provider, and the data provider is edited, then the user must remove and re-enter the condition. The query will run, without issue, as long as the data provider is not edited again.
Action Required
Until the issue is corrected with the appropriate patch update, users will need to perform the workaround listed above, by removing and re-entering the condition when they receive a type mismatch error message.
November 13, 2024
Customer Relations
The mandatory VB6 version of Release 9.5 will be implemented on Saturday, December 14, 2024.
Coexistent county CWSCMS.MSI file availability:
The CWSCMS.MSI file will be available by Friday, December 6, 2024, for technical staff to begin testing the installation of the release. The code will be located on the CWSDFSr share in the following location:
Perform any necessary testing, but do not install countywide before December 14, 2024. The new release will not work with the database until then.
Dedicated County CWSCMS.MSI file delivery:
By Friday, December 6, 2024, dedicated county users should start seeing the CWSCMS.MSI file copied to their workstations during Windows logon. Technical staff can verify that they have received the file by checking for its presence in the C:\CACW\R95. folder. This file must exist on the workstation for the installation of Release R9.5 to take place on or after December 14, 2024.
Release 9.5 documents are located on the CWDS website. More documents will be added as the release go-live date approaches.
