The new Composer: Is it just me?

[lisanelson2]

I work at a university, which means we try to keep the same configuration throughout the academic year, which in turn means that I mostly don't use JAMF for about 9 months and then have a really crazy 3 months to prepare next year's configuration. Quite often, during those 9 fallow months, big changes happen. This time it's especially bad because we have also migrated to a cloud instance, which seems to have brought a number of changes along with it.

The thing I'm struggling with is that the Composer interface seems to have changed in such a way that it's completely useless now. But it must be just me, because I don't see anybody else posting about it.

Now, when I do a snapshot, instead of showing the files that it found in the main pane, in an expandable tree, I have to expand the snapshot itself in the left pane, and then Files – or at least I can find a list of what it found anywhere else but here. But that doesn't seem to be the right thing either; it's just a list of items that I can't expand. So if there's a folder, I'll get a line item for the folder, which means I can't see what files are in the folder. Basically, it seems like Composer no longer intends me to be able to edit what it finds in the snapshot.

It also appears to have lost the ability for me to change the permissions on files and folders that it finds.

I can't find any documentation about how to use the new Composer; all the documentation looks just like my old pal the old Composer.

Anybody know what I'm missing?

(NB we used to get Composer by downloading a DMG for JAMF Pro. Now on this cloud instance, we seem to be expected to get it via a JAMF App. That's where I'm getting this Composer.)

Thanks,
Lisa.

[sdagley · Accepted solution]

@lisanelson2 There have been several posts regarding Composer issues with recent releases. The last relatively stable version seems to be 11.3.0 which should still be available to download from your Jamf Account page under Products->Jamf Pro->Download

[chrisB]

11.4.0 is the latest working version:

https://community.jamf.com/t5/jamf-pro/can-t-see-files-in-composer-and-always-fails-converting-to-so...

[lisanelson2]

So it ISN'T just me! That's kind of a relief and kind of not, because it's exactly the kind of thing I was worried would happen with being on cloud and having no control over what version we get.

Amusingly, I have just now seen that having made this post, in the top right, it suggested a bunch of other posts it thinks are related, and one of them describes exactly what you are describing. But of course I couldn't find that before I did the post!

Thanks,
Lisa.

[AJPinto]

It's not under the Jamf Composer section, you need to go like you are trying to download Jamf Pro and there will be an option for Jamf tools. You can pick the version you want to download. 

[howie_isaacks]

I'm glad I found this post. This was driving me nuts! I don't often use the snapshot feature. Most of the time I'm dragging things into Composer. It was really annoying to not see what I just dragged in and see its path and adjust the permissions before building my packages. I guess someone at Jamf was sick the day they should have been trained on TESTING new software before releasing it.

[sdagley]

To paraphrase a classic line from The Treasure of the Sierra Madre as delivered in Blazing Saddles, "Testing? We don't need no stinkin' testing."

[howie_isaacks]

With all the product issues Jamf Pro has had over the past year, someone definitely needs to do more testing. My heart sinks and my blood boils every time I hear "product issue" from someone at Jamf when something isn't working right.

[sdagley]

Please vote for my "Let's have a Snow Leopard release cycle (or two) for Jamf Pro" Feature Request: https://ideas.jamf.com/ideas/JN-I-17398