Now that the beta of ORF 5.2 has arrived, we thought you’d appreciate a few words on what the new version covers. In this three-part series, we’ll look into some of the new features.
- Part 1: The Attachment Quarantine
- Part 2: Log Event Explanations from Email Notifications
- Part 3: Configuration Snapshots (this article)
Configuration Snapshots
One amazing thing I’ve learned as a parent is that two-years olds have this truly endless curiosity. They thrive on exploring things and learn a lot this way. Are Daddy’s ears detachable? What happens if I evenly distribute LEGO bricks on the floor? Muffled screams noted (Subjects occasionally engage in one-legged tribal dance. Repeat testing until statistical significance is determined.).
Anyway, despite having better means of learning, adults still love the same trial-and-error method of exploration. When was the last time you started with the manual when you unboxed your new gadget? That’s right, never, and I’m with you. Whenever I get my hands on new software, I get a clicking frenzy and pretty soon I head to the Settings menu to see what can I mess up. Sometimes I change things to the better. Sometimes I end up frantically searching for the “OMG RESTORE THE DEFAULTS RIGHT NOW BEFORE THE REACTOR MELTS DOWN” button, because the results look just one explosion short of a Michael Bay movie.
So if you’re feeling adventurous, I have great news for you: ORF 5.2 will have your back. One of the goodies you receive with the new version is called Configuration Snapshots and you’re going to love it, because now you can revert to a previous configuration state when your experiment runs just a tiny bit off the trail (as in, Michael Bay. Explosions). Every time you save your configuration, ORF automatically creates a snapshot of the previous configuration state and keeps a long history of snapshots for you, which comes super-handy when you did not quite plan ahead, but you know things started going downhill two days ago.
For carefully planned experiments, you can also establish baselines by marking an earlier automatically created snapshot as “baseline”. Unlike automatically created snapshots, these are kept indefinitely and you can give them meaningful names and add comments to remind your future self or fellow ORF administrator why they were created at the first place. If LEGO bricks turn out to be a less-than-spectacular idea, just make them magically reappear in the box by reverting to the “Last known good LEGO box configuration”, without launching Operation Collect a Hundred Bricks in With a Satisfyingly Ashamed Look on My Face.
Ready to make some changes to ORF? Start with our Best Practices Guide and get the most out of your ORF.
