Siebel Alerts   Alert 1222: Microsoft ActiveX Update Adversely Affects Siebel Applications  
 
 
Last Modified:  
01 May 2006  
Area(s):  
Client Functionality, Installation, Siebel Analytics, System Administration  
Release(s):  
V7 (Enterprise), V7 (Professional), V7 (MidMarket), V7 (Analytics)  
Database(s):  
All Supported Databases  
App Server OS(s):  
All Supported Platforms  
Latest release tested against:  
V7 (Enterprise)  
Keywords:  
Internet Explorer, IE 6.0, Windows XP SP2, Active X, Siebel Controls, KB912945
 
 
 
Description  
NOTE: This Alert has been recently updated with information on the Internet Explorer Cumulative Update (KB912812) and the Compatibility patch (KB917425) released by Microsoft. Please review this Alert for the latest information.  
   
Microsoft Corporation is changing the way Internet Explorer interacts with certain ActiveX controls. This change was originally released as optional patch, KB912945. This change to ActiveX impacts the User Interface (UI) controls in the Siebel High Interactive (HI) Web Client. The controls affected include:  
   
Editable Field  
Drilling Down Field  
Popup  
PDQ  
View Pulldown  
   
Siebel Business Analytics (Standalone and Integrated) uses ActiveX for the embedding of Flash-based charts in Internet Explorer.  
   
This update affects the following Siebel products:  
   
Siebel Business Applications 7.x, High Interactive Web Clients  
   
Siebel Industry Applications 7.x, High Interactive Web Clients  
   
Siebel Business Analytics 7.x  
   
Change Request 12-1BJHOCC has been logged to address this product change required in Siebel, to support this significant IE6 behavior change, so that the Siebel ActiveX controls are interactive when loaded after applying the Internet Explorer 6.0 ActiveX update.  
   
Microsoft has released an Internet Explorer Cumulative Update for April 2006 (KB912812) containing these Internet Explorer 6 (IE6) changes. This has been pushed out by Microsoft on April 11 as an Automatic Update. Due to the large scale impact, Microsoft has released an optional ActiveX Compatibility patch (KB917425). As soon as it is manually downloaded and deployed, the Compatibility patch will temporarily return Internet Explorer to the previous functionality for handling ActiveX controls.  
   
The IE Cumulative Update is available on the Windows Update site. The Compatibility Patch is available for download at:  
   
            http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917425  
   
This Compatibility patch will function until the next Internet Explorer security update is released, at which time the changes to the way Internet Explorer handles ActiveX controls will be permanent. This subsequent Internet Explorer security update is currently scheduled to be pushed out as an Automatic Update on June 13.  
   
Without the installation of the Compatibility patch, and until the required Siebel Fix Packs are released and deployed in customers’ production environments, it is believed that most Siebel 7 HI customers will experience a significant usability impact. In order to provide our customers adequate time to test and deploy the Siebel Fix Packs that are scheduled for release in May, Microsoft has received a formal request to extend the availability of a Compatibility patch for use by Siebel customers.  
   
Customers are instructed to contact their Microsoft Technical Account Manager or account team and submit a request for an extension to the ActiveX compatibility update.  
   
Customers that do not have a Premier Support or managed account relationship with Microsoft may also submit feedback and requests to:  
   
seblax@microsoft.com  
   
Microsoft’s announcement can be reviewed at:  
   
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/s [...] 12945.mspx  
 
Likelihood of Occurrence  
This Microsoft update affects Siebel clients using Internet Explorer 6 on Windows XP Service Pack 2. The ActiveX update will also affect other Microsoft operating systems; for details view the Microsoft article 912945 linked above.  
   
The ActiveX update does not currently apply to Windows 2000 or NT, or Internet Explorer 5.  
   
Technical Note 541 details the versions of Siebel Applications that are supported with Windows XP SP2.  
 
Possible Symptoms  
These symptoms appear on all Siebel product releases utilizing ActiveX controls (for example Siebel Enterprise 7.x, Siebel Business Analytics).  
   
By installing this ActiveX update, the Siebel controls listed above will be affected and will cause the user to perform an extra click to activate them. For users who utilize the TAB key to navigate to a control, the user must click the ENTER or SPACEBAR to activate the control. The impact on Siebel Business Analytics is an extra click when engaging in any chart interactivity like drilldown. For example, users will need to click twice to drill - first to "activate" the Flash-based chart object, second for the actual drill.  
   
In addition to the symptoms above, the IE Cumulative Patch (KB912812) may cause browser hangs in the High Interactive Web Client. The Compatibility Patch (KB917425) eliminates these symptoms.  
Workaround or Resolution  
To address this behavior, Siebel will provide the necessary Siebel product modifications required to support this significantly modified IE6 behavior through the following Siebel Fix Pack versions:  
   
7.0.5.6  
7.5.3.15  
7.7.2.6  
7.8.2.3  
   
Siebel will issue Quick Fixes for Siebel Business Analytics versions 7.7.1.10 and 7.8.4.1. This Alert will be updated once the Quick Fixes are made available for download.  
   
Customers on Siebel Analytics version 7.5.x should upgrade to Siebel Business Analytics Platform version 7.8.4.1 and apply the Quick Fix. Refer to FAQ 2230 for information on the Siebel Business Analytics Platform.  
   
If a user has installed the KB912945 update, the only workaround is to uninstall KB912945 by Add/Remove Programs, found in the Windows Control Panel. NOTE: To display the list of updates that are installed, check the Show update box.  
   
If a user has installed the KB912812 update, they should install the KB917425 ActiveX Compatibility Patch. The compatibility patch is available at:  
   
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/917425  
   
Customers may also disable Windows Update using Group Policy. The Microsoft web site has information that discusses how “To Turn Off Access to Windows Update Commands by Using Group Policy”  
 
Maintenance Release Number  
Please click on the link below to view the current status of the Change Request and associated Fix Requests and estimated delivery dates:  
   
Change Request 12-1BJHOCC  
   
Due to the scope of the changes, the delivery is only available as a Fix Pack. Customers who are not using the latest Fix Pack for their Siebel 7 implementations are strongly encouraged to download the latest Fix Pack at http://edelivery.oracle.com to begin planning and regression testing their customizations.