Overview What's New Evaluate | | | | | |  | Our flagship product, K2 blackpearl® is our most extensive and feature-rich software for building process-driven applications across the enterprise.
K2 blackpearl design surfaces — browser-based, or hosted in SharePoint, Visio and Visual Studio — are appropriate for a broad range of users and technical-skill sets. And because the process definition is not tied to the designer, users can collaborate regardless of their technical skill or preference.
With K2 blackpearl, everything is visual. Everything is declarative. Everything is reusable. Everything is intuitive. | |
| | | Visually design processes and applications. | |  | | | > | Design surfaces - hosted in SharePoint, Visual Studio and our Office-like designer - are appropriate for different types of users. | | > | Designs can be shared between technical and non-technical users. | | > | Prebuilt wizards and templates allow rapid configuration. |
| | | Leverage existing assets for faster process assembly. | |  | | | > | Eliminate code by using Inline Functions for common tasks. | | > | Leverage existing Microsoft investments, like SharePoint, Forms Server and Biztalk. | | > | Leverage existing information and systems through wizard-driven, third-party integration and an extensible framework. | | > | Create composite business entities (customers, invoices, etc.) that aggregate information stored across systems. |
| | | Use K2 blackpearl for endless options and application capabilities. | |  | | | > | Applications can be surfaced through Web browsers, custom thick-client applications, SharePoint or through Office tools, like Outlook and Word. | | > | A users' tasks can be aggregated across processes into a single work list. | | > | Intuitive tools give business and technical users the ability to start with simple solutions and extend and adapt as business needs dictate. | | > | Temporarily assign or reassign tasks, as needed, for any given process. | | > | Provide business users the ability to modify processes, forms and reports |
| | | Get the information you need, when you need it. | |  | | | > | Build reports quickly through intuitive, wizard-driven, browser-based report designers. | | > | Pull together all information, including data stored within line-of-business systems. | | > | SQL Reporting Services-based reports allow for integration with third-party reporting engines. | | > | Keep informed in real-time by registering business events and desired outcomes. | | > | View key process information through K2 Process Portals |
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| | K2 Designer for SharePoint | | K2's web-based workflow designer allows users to build SharePoint workflow solutions right from
the browser. | | Workflows integrated across SharePoint lists, documents, libraries, InfoPath forms and site collections
Build workflows that span the organization's entire SharePoint infrastructure. Use information in list items and InfoPath forms to drive workflows, according to rules and policies you build. Rich workflow steps based on HTML e-mail templates
HTML templates are available from SharePoint lists and allow users to include workflow information, information from other lists or results of calculations in an e-mail event. This empowers end users to make the right decision fast. | | Auto-generation of workflow forms
The K2 Designer for SharePoint automatically generates user-friendly forms for steps in a workflow process, saving time and a layer of complexity. The form fields can be easily customized for each step. Powerful business logic with K2 Inline Functions
The K2 Designer for SharePoint supports the new K2 Inline Functions, allowing users to build complex logic and calculations with simple drag-and-drop tools. Use Inline Functions to route task items and manipulate line-of-business information. | | Save workflows as templates
Save entire workflows or pieces of workflows in your template library so you can reuse them later - or share with others - and speed up solution building. Cut, copy, add, remove, move, change
The K2 Designer for SharePoint allows extensive workflow editing, so you can let your process evolve throughout its life in the organization. With easy-to-use drag-and-drop tools, you can add and remove steps anywhere in the workflow process, copy or move steps to other locations, and more. Extensibility
Developers can extend K2 Designer for SharePoint by adding their own Inline Functions or adding custom workflow wizard templates. Evolve, don't restart
Workflows designed in K2 Designer for SharePoint can be opened in K2 Studio or K2 for Visual Studio. This allows solution developers to mature workflow solutions as needs become more complex, without having to rebuild the entire workflow process. | | | Back to the top | |
| | | K2 Studio | | | K2's standalone designer allows users to build both SharePoint and non-SharePoint-based workflow applications, without code. | | Workflows that provide lifecycle management across SharePoint sites, lists and libraries
Build workflows that standardize the creation of new Share-
Point sites, lists or libraries across the entire SharePoint infrastructure, freeing up SharePoint admin resources and providing an audit trail of all requests. | | Enterprise process-driven applications
Use K2 Studio to build process-driven applications that span line-of-business systems - whether or not SharePoint is involved - throughout the organization. Powerful business logic with K2 Inline Functions
K2 Studio supports the new K2 Inline Functions, allowing users to build complex logic and calculations with simple drag-and-drop tools. Use Inline Functions to route task items and manipulate line-of-business information. | | Rich business entity creation
K2 Studio includes the K2 SmartObject designer, allowing users to assemble business entities that span multiple line-of-business applications. These SmartObjects can be used and reused in processes, forms, reports and .NET applications. Build workflows that support MOSS-specific features
K2 wizards guide users through process building and can incorporate Records Management, content publishing and search capabilities into the workflows. Quick access to common workflow tasks and properties
The K2 Process Helper toolbar surfaces common workflow tasks and relevant form data to help designers build workflows faster. | | Auto-generation of workflow forms
K2 Studio automatically generates user-friendly forms for steps in a workflow process, saving time and a layer of complexity. The form fields can be easily customized for each step. Rich workflow steps based on HTML e-mail templates
HTML templates can be used to include workflow information, information from line-of-business systems (including SharePoint) or results of calculations in an
e-mail event. This empowers end users to make the
right decision fast. | | | Back to the top | |
| | | Improved design and developer experience | | | New design and development enhancements make it easier than ever to build processes that meet the most complex business requirements. | | Support for the latest version of Visual Studio 2008
With support for Visual Studio 2008 SP1, the K2 Designer for Visual Studio allows developers to work in a familiar environment with access to all the latest development and deployment capabilities. K2 ADO.NET Data Provider enhancements
With support for additional query and paging options, the K2 ADO.NET Data Provider enables developers to build complex .NET applications that make use of K2 workflow and SmartObject data. Performance improvements ensure that data is accessed quickly and efficiently. | | More extensibility options
The new Instance Management API makes it possible for developers to build .NET applications that interact with and manage K2 processes, based on actions that occur in other line-of-business systems or applications. | | Powerful business logic with K2 Inline Functions
K2 Inline Functions allow users to build complex logic and calculations with simple drag-and-drop tools. Use Inline Functions to route task items, manipulate line-of-business information and appropriately display workflow and line-of-business information in forms and reports. Developers can build custom Inline Functions to surface organization-specific information into process designers in any of the K2 design canvases. | | | Back to the top | |
| | | Enhanced end-user experience | | | Users will work faster and make fewer mistakes with K2's new and improved tools and reports. | | Increased visibility with K2 Process Portals
The K2 Process Portal is a SharePoint site that provides a one-stop location for access to information and management of processes. Reports included on the site provide deep visibility into process performance and can help uncover bottlenecs and inefficiencies. K2 View Flow
The new K2 View Flow gives users a graphical, real-time view into the status of any step in the process. For every action taken along the path of the workflow, audit information is available so users know what decisions were made and who made them. | | Improved K2 Worklist
The K2 Worklist performance has been enhanced, so users can access and action their tasks quickly - no matter how many items are in their queue. Enhanced workflow task forms
K2 now provides better access to important process data - including SharePoint list data, K2 process data and SmartObject data - empowering end users to make the right decisions fast. | | | Back to the top | |
| | | Updated administration tools | | | With new and improved K2 administration tools, keeping your K2 environment at maximum efficiency is a snap. | | SharePoint component administration
The K2 components for SharePoint are now packaged as SharePoint solutions, deployed and managed through SharePoint Central Administration. This simplifies the K2 installation across your entire SharePoint farm. K2 Server administration from SharePoint Central Administration
The K2 Server management tools have been added directly to the SharePoint Central Administration site, allowing administrators to manage the K2 Server without having to navigate to a separate set of tools. | Enhanced SharePoint SmartObject administration
Improved SharePoint SmartObject administrative tools make it easier to create, update and delete K2 SmartObjects that are based on list and library information in your SharePoint environment. | | K2 Process Portals
The K2 Process Portal provides a central SharePoint administration site with tools for managing all aspects of a process, including security, versioning and instance management. | | | Back to the top | |
| | | Optimized infrastructure | | | From top to bottom, we've improved nearly every aspect of our infrastructure and support. This translates to simpler installation, greater extensibility and better integration. | | Windows 2008 R2 and SQL Server 2008 SP1 support
Support for installation on Windows 2008 R2 and SQL Server 2008 SP1 allows your organization to run on the most updated server and database software. | | Scalability and performance improvements
Design-time and runtime scalability and performance improvements ensure that the K2 environment is performing at its peak, whether it's one of our design canvases responding to process designer actions quickly or the K2 worklist displaying user's assigned tasks more efficiently. | | Internationalization
The entire K2 codebase has been updated to allow for installation in non-English environments. SQL Server Service
The new SQL Server Service allows users to create K2 SmartObjects based on any SQL database. It also supports stored procedures, views and tables, making it easy to access line-of-business data stored in SQL Server without writing code. | | K2 SmartObject performance enhancements
Performance improvements, like caching, buffering and paging make K2 SmartObjects a lightning-fast way to access line-of-business data. SSL support for SharePoint components
K2 fully supports SharePoint environments protected by Secure Socket Layer (SSL), so users can rest assured that their data is safe. | | | | | Back to the top | |
| | | Simplified installation experience | | | The updated installation wizard in K2 4.5 provides added flexibility and streamlines the entire process, so users can get started on workflows and process-driven applications quickly. | | Installation and configuration wizards combined
The K2 installation and configuration wizards have been combined to speed the process of setting up your K2 environment. New installation options
Options allowing for simple, custom and unattended installations give server administrators flexibility when installing K2. | | Improved SharePoint component installation
The K2 components for SharePoint can now be activated on the default SharePoint site collection automatically, making the K2 tools immediately available within the SharePoint environment. Configuration Analysis Tool
The K2 Configuration Analysis tool verifies that the K2 environment and associated components are configured for optimum performance. | | | Back to the top |
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| | Take a closer look | | You know the basics, now use the tools below for more in-depth information and experiences with K2 blackpearl | |  | Watch a video - We have videos covering a wide range of topics from spotlighting individual features like Inline Functions, to creating a process using the K2 Designer for SharePoint. Access our full list of videos in the Media Library. |  | Download additional information - If you need more information, take a look at our K2 blackpearl Overview or technical whitepapers. |  | Request a Demo - Contact us to request a comprehensive demo of our K2 blackpearl software |  | Learn about SharePoint 2010 support - Take a look at our SharePoint 2010 information to learn more. |
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