Synchronization overview

Synchronize your Agile Manager workspaces with your ALM projects in order to view and/or update your releases, requirements, and defects in both endpoints. Agile Manager user stories, features, and themes, are all synchronized as requirements in ALM. Workflow procedures are ignored while creating and updating synchronized data.

Unless otherwise specified, references to ALM in this Help Center apply to all currently supported versions of ALM and Quality Center. Note that some features and options may not be supported in the specific edition of ALM or Quality Center that you are using.

NextGen Synchronizer replacing ALM Synchronizer

NextGen Synchronizer is a new robust solution for synchronizing Agile Manager with ALM. NextGen Synchronizer is embedded in Agile Manager's configuration area.

If you are still using ALM Synchronizer, we recommend that you migrate your synchronization links to NextGen Synchronizer.

Existing ALM Synchronizer deployments will continue to be supported, but:

  • ALM Synchronizer is no longer offered for installation
  • Fields introduced or modified in Agile Manager 2.43 and later may not be synchronized. This includes the feature status field, workspace custom fields, theme story points, theme owner, and more.

The table below describes the differences between the synchronization methods:

NextGen Synchronizer ALM Synchronizer for Agile Manager

  • Supports synchronizing requirements, defects, and releases.

  • Supports synchronizing releases whose end date is in the past, but later than a specified date.

  • Supports connecting to ALM 12.01 and later using LDAP or SiteMinder single sign-on (SSO).

  • Supports synchronization links from a single Agile Manager workspace to ALM projects stored in different ALM versions.

  • Embedded directly into Agile Manager's configuration area.

  • The Integration Bridge installed to support synchronization can be installed on a Windows or Linux computer.

  • When a new Agile Manager release requires an Integration Bridge update, the upgrade process will take place automatically.

    Existing integration bridges will be disabled for a short period of time, and appropriate notification will be provided.

For details, see NextGen Synchronizer.

  • Supports synchronizing requirements, defects, and releases.

  • Does not support synchronizing releases whose end date is in the past.

  • Supports external authentication when working with ALM 12.20 (without synchronizing entity links).

  • Supports synchronization links from a single Agile Manager workspace to multiple ALM projects only if they are stored in ALM servers of the same version.

  • Requires administrators to install a separate client and server and manually upgrade for updates.

  • The Synchronizer server and client must be installed on a Windows computer.

  • Upgrading to the newest version of the Synchronizer is required to access new functionality, but existing functionality remains available regardless.

For details, see ALM Synchronizer for Agile Manager.

Supported ALM versions

The following versions of ALM are supported for ALM Synchronizer for Agile Manager and NextGen Synchronizer.

Release # NextGen Synchronizer ALM Synchronizer for Agile Manager
ALM/Quality Center 11.52 √ patch 5 and higher √; all patches
ALM/Quality Center 12.01 √ patch 1 and higher √; all patches
ALM/Quality Center 12.20 √ √; all patches
ALM/Quality Center 12.21 √ √
ALM/Quality Center 12.50 √ x
ALM/Quality Center 12.53 √ x
ALM/Quality Center 12.55 √ x
ALM/Quality Center 14.00 (SaaS version) √ x

When working in ALM Synchronizer for Agile Manager:

  • You cannot configure multiple links on the same Synchronizer server that connect to ALM endpoints of different versions or patch levels.

  • Connecting to ALM using external authentication is supported by ALM Synchronizer when working with ALM 12.20 (without synchronizing entity links).