Was someone able to successfully use the Companion App 1.0.0 with Confluence >= 7.3.1 in a Citrix environment?

Marjin see the note at the top of the ticket referencing the ticket for JIRA Cloud

i see no mention of a Jira Cloud fix, Does that mean its still in development for cloud?

A fix for this issue is available to Server and Data Center customers in Confluence 7.3.1
Upgrade now or check out the Release Notes to see what other issues are resolved.

Hi everyone, thanks for your patience. I recently posted an update on Community regarding Companion and a resolution to this issue: File editing in Confluence Server: Atlassian Companion updates are almost here!. Updates for Companion will be available with 7.3.

we have been waiting long time for a solution. Unfortunately, there has not been any. In the meantime, “GoEdit“ by “KontextWork“ was recommended to us. - A really good recommendation. The installation and handling are absolutely uncomplicated. The app works very fast. With GoEdit for example, files can be opened directly from the thumbnail or a link with a mouse click and be edited immediately with the original application. It does what it should.Just awesome!

Here is the link to the Atlassian Marketplace:

https://marketplace.atlassian.com/apps/1211160/goedit-simply-edit-attachments?hosting=cloud&tab=overview

We are affected by this issue:

I'm afraid the Atlassian Companion app is currently incompatible with session-based/virtual environments, and so it may not work correctly on Citrix. Atlassian is currently investigating a solution for this design flaw, and this is tracked as a bug on this page: CONFSERVER-56302; Atlassian is also inviting user feedback regarding the Atlassian Companion app, in the form of short call sessions, and the details are posted on the most recent comment under the bug's comment section if you're interested.

Please assist.

We are on 6.15.9

We have a huge Citrix desktop userbase. And we upgraded confluence last weekend only just to find out how no one is able to edit excel docs anymore ??????? 

We cannot go ahead and undergo another upgrade just like that.. there has to be a fix for this in the current version only . We have 6.14.3 now.

We have this problem and I am following this issue AND this one: https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/CONFSERVER-56360

Atlassian will offer an alternative for a little while

Since we don't feel that this bug will be fixed in the near future, and we have over 400 employees working through Citrix, we decided to buy GoEdit. This has significantly more advantages than the Atlassian version.

https://goedit.io/goedit-vs-edit-with-companion-app-comparison/

We are also greatly affected by this issue. We have a lot of Citrix users who can no longer edit their documents directly from Confluence.

The priority on this is Highest and the severity is Major ... why is the status on this still only "Gathering Impact"?

@ITSO AS:

wget https://www.atlassian.com/software/confluence/downloads/binary/atlassian-confluence-6.10.2.tar.gz
tar xfvz atlassian-confluence-6.10.2.tar.gz
cp ./atlassian-confluence-6.10.2/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-plugins/OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar .

@Craig Booth

Where can I download the OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar?

Thanks and kind regards,

This simply removes a central function for many users, even though wer pay 50% off license fees for support and enhancements. Pretty sad. This will make more and more companies think of alternatives 

At our organisation we have come across this post below and this brings back the "Edit in Office functionality" to the latest version of Confluence.  Basically its rolling back the Office connector plugin.

Full link here: - https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/CONFSERVER-56316

 
Steps below: -
 
roger.oberg added a comment - 11/Dec/2018 8:42 AM
Hi @TomC you can downgrade the officeconnector to get the edit in office fucntion back as Sarathi mentioned before:

Replace the OfficeConnector-*.jar in 6.11 with OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar from confluence 6.10

copy the file OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar to {Install Location}/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-plugins/ and rename the existing OfficeConnector-7.0.3.jar to something non .jar and restart the service.

clear the Confluence plugin cache as well, after replacing the OfficeConnector file, as this will remove any partial data from the newer add-on, and prevent any possible issues from occurring.
https://confluence.atlassian.com/confkb/how-to-clear-confluence-plugins-cache-297664846.html

This works very well for us!

We today upgraded to the latest Confluence version, because we don't wanted and also couldn't wait longer for a resolution of this issue (also due to the security threat information that was sent out these days by Atlassian).

As a workaround concerning this Companion app issue, we disabled the option to edit files completely. So our users can't edit attachments anymore at all within Confluence; they have to download, edit and upload them again.

This of course is an ugly workaround, but we don't think there will be a solution in the near future.

Quite embarassing - for Atlassian, sorry.

Here's how to disable the edit option:

Disable Companion Plugin:

1. Go to Manage apps
2. From the drop-down menu, select System.
3. Click Confluence Previews from the displayed list.
4. Click the enabled modules link.
5. Hover on the Edit With plugin for the Media Viewer (companion-plugin) module, and click Disable.

Disable the edit option from the Attachments page, Attachments macro and View File macros:

1. Go to Manage apps
2. From the drop-down menu, select System.
3. Click Confluence Previews from the displayed list.
4. Click the enabled modules link.
5. Hover on the Embedded 'Edit With' button (embedded-edit) module and click Disable.

This is a serious problem for us. We are waiting for a speedy correction

We have the same Problem with our RDS environment and a lot of lists in the system with also secret information. It ist not acceptable, that documents open on another desktop, only because this person opened the Companion first. 

+10.000 Users - of which many are only using Citrix - we cannot do a planned update now. Costs us a lot of time of research, planning etc. 

We are also using Citrix and are not able to upgrade Confluence, because companion app ist not compatible with our citrix environment (session based virtual desktops). We need to update as soon as possible to get set for working with a better office functionality and also to keep our system secure (see confluence sececurity advisory).

Thanks for caring about tis issue,

Manfred

We are also using Citrix and therefore cannot update. And even if we could use the companion app, it's a real hassle to get something new into the windows setup. There are several service providers involved and release schedules to be taken into account, so I would really like to have the old office-connector back.

Best Regards,

Thomas

I feel like the urgency for this should be uppped ... especially with regards to the Confluence Security Advisory that was recently posted. We rely on the edit in office functionality and cannot upgrade because we use Citrix. This is really a huge issue for larger organizations.

In Confluence 6.14+ after swapping in the old 6.10 OfficeConnector you also have to do this after you restart or you will still get the Edit With companion link in document previews:

To disable the edit files option when previewing a file:

1. Go to  > Manage apps

1. From the drop-down menu, select System.
2. Click Confluence Previews from the displayed list.
3. Click the enabled modules link.
4. Hover on the Edit With plugin for the Media Viewer (companion-plugin) module, and click Disable.

Source: https://confluence.atlassian.com/doc/administering-the-atlassian-companion-app-958456281.html#AdministeringtheAtlassianCompanionApp-Disablefileediting

At our organisation we have come across this post below and this brings back the "Edit in Office functionality" to the latest version of Confluence.  Basically its rolling back the Office connector plugin.

Full link here: - https://jira.atlassian.com/browse/CONFSERVER-56316

 
Steps below: -
 
roger.oberg added a comment - 11/Dec/2018 8:42 AM
Hi @TomC you can downgrade the officeconnector to get the edit in office fucntion back as Sarathi mentioned before:

Replace the OfficeConnector-*.jar in 6.11 with OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar from confluence 6.10

copy the file OfficeConnector-6.0.0.jar to {Install Location}/confluence/WEB-INF/atlassian-bundled-plugins/ and rename the existing OfficeConnector-7.0.3.jar to something non .jar and restart the service.

clear the Confluence plugin cache as well, after replacing the OfficeConnector file, as this will remove any partial data from the newer add-on, and prevent any possible issues from occurring.
https://confluence.atlassian.com/confkb/how-to-clear-confluence-plugins-cache-297664846.html

This works very well for us!

It blocks our update too because we are working with a terminalserver.

Since you removed the previous Edit in Office functionality we cannot upgrade because of this issue. This would be a huge disruption. Please fix this issue. It is the only thing keeping from being able to upgrade.

We keep it simple: No update. That's what we do since two years. I wonder why we pay maintenance.

Are there any news about how to make it works with session based virtual desktops. In our organization the missing option edit in office has a big impact of our daily work. Are there any recommendations?

Thanks Makisa for the clarification. Even though it does work in VDI I think it is still important to find a way to get this to work with shared desktops and app streaming as that is the biggest use of terminal services. Honestly, VDI, since it requires such a larger amount of infrastructure, is probably the least used out there. Thus, the companion app still only works for the minority of terminal services environments.

Hi everyone

Thank you for your comments and votes on this bug. We would like to provide some clarification on this issue.

The Atlassian Companion app only works in some virtual desktop environments. If a user's environment isn't compatible with the Companion app, they won't be able to edit files in Confluence.

Virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)
In this set up, each user gets their own VM (virtual machine), with a centralized service managing deployments.
Compatible

Session-based virtual desktops
Also referred to as Remote Desktop Service (RDS) or Remote Desktop Session Host (RDSH). In this set up, each user shares the same operating system (server).
Not compatible

Virtual app streaming
Also referred to as Remote app publishing. This is where a single app runs on a remote server, but appears on the user's computer as if it were a local app.
Not compatible

This information has been added to Administering the Atlassian Companion App 

Kind regards
Makisa | Confluence Server, Senior Product Manager

Just adding to the chorus of voices wanting this fix, many users affected in Win terminal server environment.

Thanks.

Given this is at the gathering impact stage I can share the our team can no longer edit office attachments as we did before.  They have to be downloaded, edited and re-attached.  We cannot deploy Office 2016 until this issue is fixed.  I have approx. 7500 users on Confluence daily (it's our corporate Intranet).  Please address this issue quickly.

This should be fixed ASAP. Many large organizations cannot upgrade till this is fixed because they use Citrix. We can't lose the Edit in Office functionality thus we cannot upgrade. Your products are made to support large teams. Well, large teams use Citrix.

We are in Citrix and security hell because of this change. I like the idea of opening up the file types, but this is breaking our workflow and requirements trace.

Same here, please...fix this issue as soon as possible!

+1 This needs to be solved as most of our users only have Citrix available.

Hello, 

we are having some serious issues with page history AND editmode doesn´t match viewmode , both because of stale drafts, so we need this issue to be done really soon!!

For Atlassian team: see our page history incident https://getsupport.atlassian.com/servicedesk/customer/portal/14/CSP-242409

@ThomasKreft: I am not arguing in any direction, so you have all rights to either expect the fix to happen or to not to. I was just informing and trying to be transparent.

If your time-window is sharp and you have to get it fixed now, you might be interested in knowing this alternative GoEdit option. It's an option / alternative which might fit some cases and might not fit in others ( as i understand yours ).

I think GoEdit and Edit in have their differences ( and thats a good thing, isn't it ) so you as a Confluence user have alternative choices. For example, GoEdit has Linux support, has a lot more integration points, has terminal support and maybe most importantly, also has a build in checkout/locking functionality to ensure, nobody can edit the file while your are doing so already. GoEdit is 7 years old and is offered for about 4 years for Confluence - it might be a little more mature in some specific points too i guess.

Depending on what you need, the choices can be different and the extra cost can be worth it, i suppose.

As always, what ever works for you

With all due respect: Will will NOT buy another add-on for $1900 just because Atlassian chooses to break standard functionality.

Upfront disclaimer: I am biased

We offer GoEdit for Confluence and Jira as an upgrade of Edit in, which has a terminal server integration since 3 years. ** 
We have a demo online http://goedit.io so you can test it without any extras.

If you rely on a terminal integration, maybe this is a solution for an upgrade/enrichment to the build in Edit in if Confluence functionality.

+2000 users, and an absolut no go to upgrade till this is fixed. Using Citrix.

+ 4000 users

I agree with Carmen.

Is it possible to have an option in the administration panel to select which way we want to use?

+800 users

We want to upgrade but this may be a no go because of this 

You must offer us the possibility to use it the old way.

We have the same situation as Marco Sabato

Does it affect Windows Server 2016, too?

+500 Users for this

Does it affect verions 6.11.2 and 6.12.0 and 6.12.2, too?

That bug is "in progress" for over 14 months now, while we're stuck on a very outdated Confluence version. Am starting to wonder why we pay for ever-increasing maintenance rates.

+1 for this!