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Updated Pimcore X Release and What it Includes

How many releases has Pimcore had?

Pimcore X was released in August 2021, the year in which Pimcore celebrated its tenth birthday. Pimcore X follows Pimcore 6, providing major performance enhancements for product, customer and data management modules and has more than 700 improvements within its code.

What is Pimcore?

Pimcore is an open source product information management and master data management system that empowers enterprise businesses to take control of their messy files, disorganised data and wide-ranging marketing channels. More than 100,000 companies worldwide use Pimcore to improve their data and information systems and provide exceptional customer experiences.

What’s new in the Pimcore X release?

Pimcore team members have worked with developers around the globe to create an advanced and exciting new version of Pimcore. Most importantly, Pimcore X has been refactored and ported to the latest technology and Pimcore is now the first data and experience management tool that can integrate with Symfony 5, along with ExtJS 7, and PHP 8.

What are the greatest features of the latest release of Pimcore?

An updated technology base means a vast improvement to the performance of each of Pimcore’s data and customer management modules. You will find improved performance in:

Other improvements include:

Adobe Microsoft integrations – which work through CI Hub and pull through your content into Pimcore X.
Amazon and eBay integrations – with Pimcore X there is product syndication to more than 2,500 online trading stores, marketplaces and shop fronts. This is made possible through technology partner Productsup.
Enhanced experience portals – users love the new interface which enables enhanced productivity through a fast and intelligent search function that has type prediction, auto suggest and saved searches.
Data change management tools to enable your digitalisation process – meaning system support for data innovation.
Cloud deployment – Pimcore X is also much easier to install in any cloud environment than its predecessors because the configurations related to storage are much simpler.

Improvements to user experience in Pimcore X

The latest release of Pimcore enables each user to customise their view and access the individual data and information they need. No programming is required to carry out these preferences and set up options; adjustments can be made in the easy-to-use interface. It is now also easier for users to edit documents. Other performance improvements include improvements to attributions and inheritance on assets and faster back-end functionality for asset previews. It is much easier in Pimcore X for users to access their most important data, customise it to their requirements and share it in a way that suits them.

How easy is it to upgrade Pimcore to the latest version?

The creators of Pimcore have worked hard to ensure that upgrading to Pimcore X from earlier versions is an easy and painless exercise. Users of any Pimcore 6 version should first upgrade to Pimcore 6.9 (one of the very latest releases prior to X), which has full compatibility with Pimcore X.

Upgrade from Pimcore 6.9 to Pimcore X simply requires you follow a few steps to run the update, check database configuration, move your assets, fix all messages and finalise the upgrade. Full notes on how to upgrade from Pimcore 6 to X are available online.

Do you need to pay for the updates?

Pimcore X still offers its free, community version, but with the release of Pimcore X comes the option of the paid Enterprise Subscription. This service has extra features, enhancements and functionality to make it easier to syndicate extensive product data, and has other elements like automatic language translation. As founder and CEO of Pimcore Dietmar Rietsch explains, the Enterprise solution offers an “extended range of benefits.”

Pimcore Enterprise subscription

There are lots of benefits from using the commercial edition of Pimcore X, called the Pimcore Enterprise Subscription. With this advanced service, you will have a cohesive commercial license, with assistance available for troubleshooting, customer support and consulting. You can access more extensions and connectors to enable:

product data syndication
marketplace connection
automated translation
direct edit of assets and files
scalable metadata management for videos, files, images and other assets

How often does Pimcore release and update?

Pimcore was launched in a beta version on 21 January 2010. In 2015, the company launched its global partnership program. Pimcore 4 was released in 2016, Pimcore 5 was released in 2017 and Pimcore 6 in 2019. The most recent update, which was to Pimcore X, occurred on 31 March 2021. There have been improvements and enhancements for each release, but the most significant update has occurred between Pimcore 6 and Pimcore X.

What are the options for older versions of Pimcore?

With the major update to Pimcore X, the Pimcore 6 (final version 6.9.6) Community edition will not be receiving any more patches or fixed. If you are working with Pimcore 6, you can continue to do so but Pimcore cannot handle any issue or bug reports and code contributions can no longer be accepted.

A long-term support version of Pimcore 6 is available, which will provide you with support if you wish to keep running this version. However, if you wish to continue running Pimcore 6, you may be exposing your organisation to some data risk.

Do you need to be a programmer to use Pimcore?

Pimcore has an easy-to-learn and easy-to-use interface, meaning that you do not need to be experienced in web development to manage the system’s day-to-day operations. Non-technical and non-IT users can manage product information with only a fundamental level of induction and training in the system.

Pimcore X enables everyday users to access data, create albums, folders and portals and share information right through the organisation. Its Pimcore Data Importer is a simplified data import tool that has no coding requirements. Bringing data from existing sources into Pimcore is now much easier.

Developers working in Pimcore can extend the system to make it complexly tailored to individual business needs. Pimcore is fully configurable and enables development to associated rights and role management to suit the individual job role and requirements of each team member.

Do you need a programmer to upgrade Pimcore?

Pimcore is essentially a system that has been made with both developers and end-users in mind. But Pimcore is not an out-of-the-box system; if you don’t have development experience, you will most likely need a developer to help you get started.

What do users think of Pimcore?

People who have left a review on system review website Capterra have said the following about Pimcore

“Without whom we would not have the success we have. I recommend VERY HIGHLY.”
“They are responsive and friendly. We are developing a set of bundles that allow the management of Print publications and Active WebToPrint solution is a great success.”
“I have been working on a wide range of projects with Pimcore….. Pimcore could handle all of those without issues and was joy to use! It also made the development much faster than building everything from scratch.”
“Pimcore has helped us set up very flexible and scalable PIM and CMS set up for our customers with less cost. We are able to extend the features based on the customer’s specific requirements without too much effort. “
“Very powerful system with almost unlimited possibilities of integration and implementation of extensions.”

What recognition has Pimcore received during 2021?

Since its launch, Pimcore has consistently received recognition from the industry and through positive reviews by users, customers and developers. This goes back to when Pimcore was awarded Most Promising Open Source Project 2010 and the Winner of the Austrian Multimedia and E-Business State Award in 2013. The success continues as Pimcore has been recognised in multiple recognition categories during 2021.

Pimcore is 2021 Gartner Customer’s Choice

Gartner must be one of the world’s most trusted and highly regarded software research and review firms, providing ongoing feedback about products and software vendors and providers. These reviews are assessed by analysts from Gartner each year, to demine overall product performance. Pimcore has been listed in a total of 13 Gartner reports since 2014, including being described as one of the “Cool Vendors In Digital Commerce” in 2018.

In 2021, Pimcore was awarded a Customer’s Choice in the category of Master Data Management Solutions. Data gathered by Gartner about Pimcore indicated that 98% of users were likely to recommended Pimcore as a Master Data Management solution.

From a total of 84 reviews over the last 18 months, Pimcore received an average overall rating of 4.7 out of a maximum five stars. These reviews came from businesses across many industries, including service provision, manufacturing and health care.

Pimcore included in top Digital Experience Platform report

Mid 2021, Pimcore was one of the eleven digital experience platforms (DXP’s) that was assessed by IT Research firm Everest Group. While there are many hundreds of DXP’s on the market today, Everest reported on what they considered to be the top-performing systems in this category. Ratings were generated on market adoption, portfolio mix and delivery of values. Each product's ease of development and use, flexibility and capability were also assessed, along with sub-dimensions on:

Vision and strategy
Technology capability
Flexibility and ease of deployment
Engagement and commercial model
Support

Following the cohesive assessment, Pimcore was rated as an “aspirant” in this category.

Pimcore recognised as leading Product Information Management System

For the second time, Pimcore was during 2021 recognised in a global study to compare Product Information Management Systems. The MarketScape Worldwide Product Information Management Applications for Commerce 2021 Vendor Assessment considered Pimcore’s capability in end-to-end commerce, and API integration. Customers that were interviewed for the assessment gave Pimcore an above-average score on data functionality and API integration.

IDC are a global provider of market assessment and review in the IT telecommunications and consumer tech markets. Their analysts work from more than 110 countries and are releasing their findings to the public to enable businesses to make their best technological decisions for their growth. Following on from being considered a contender in 2019, Pimcore has been deemed to be a “Major Player” in 2021

Exemplary Vendor in PIM 2021

During May 221, Pimcore was recogonised as being one of the value index leaders amongst all Product Information Management Systems (PIM’s). For this reason, Pimcore was named an exemplary vendor. Ventana, an international market research firm most interested in data management, analytics, and integration, carried out this research. Pimcore was amongst the 16 products included in the assessment. Each program was considered in line with seven categories :

Usability
Manageability
Reliability
Capability
Adaptability
Vendor validation
Total cost of ownership and return on investment

Following all this assessment, Pimcore was chosen as one of the top three PIM vendors overall, and leader in the categories of validation, capability, reliability and usability. It was also reported that the strength of the community that contribute to Pimcore have significantly lead to the growth and innovation of the platform.

Pimcore in the top ten P2C solutions

This year, Pimcore was shortlisted out of twenty products as one of the top P2C management solutions. The Constellation Report identified the top ten P2C technological solutions. A P2C solution is a new term for a system that issued to take control over extremely spread out data eco- systems. This messy network of information has recently been coined “commerce anarchy”.

P2C are being increasingly used to control data used by online retailers and global brands. A P2C system can give an organisation a coordinated way of controlling and handling a commerce ecosystem to the best benefit of the business.

Pimcore can be considered an example of a P2C system because of the functionality that allows it to manage many thousands of products with a huge variety of attributes and across many channels. To be recognised in the Constellation Report, reviewers found that Pimcore demonstrated exceptional:

Product information and master data management
Search and discovery capabilities
Real-time product and catalogue feed integration
Metrics, dashboards and reporting
Workflow processes
Partner and supplier ecosystem management
High usability across desktop and mobile environments
Licensing options
Content enrichment features
Image creation and optimisation features
Video functionality to support social commerce
Campaign tools
Integration with other commerce tools/platforms
Order control with marketplaces and commerce sites
Security processes and rights
Compliance and governance features and certifications

Pimcore can resolve commerce anarchy

Like the Constellation report identified, so many enterprise organisations have data out of control in the ecommerce environment. It is now almost essential for businesses of a certain size to have a technological system that can manage all the steps and phases of digital commerce from end-to-end.

An optimal P2C solution manages aspects such as content management, marketing and communications, customer engagements, advertising, campaigns and seasonal messaging, sales and handling. This emergent service solution enables businesses to ensure effectiveness and control all through the sales chain in a primarily ecommerce situation. This brings cohesion to the process and creates continuity for the customer.

Pimcore X is advanced in bringing together so many, often separate business processes. Within Pimcore X you can manage stores and stock, products, attributes, customisation, variables, transactions and customer records.

P2C solutions like Pimcore X best suit businesses are that are ready to take that next step in the ecommerce environment, within the complex and diverse commerce operating environments we see around the world today. With Pimcore X you can expect:

Faster growth
Customer loyalty and brand recognition
Higher conversion
Increased return on investment
Greater profit margins
Established customer relationships

What are the benefits of Pimcore?

Pimcore is a sophisticated system that combines several technical tools in one. With Pimcore, you will have a cohesive system that can carry out multiple business services. There is great benefit in using a system that has multiple functionally, because you do not need to have separate systems running to carry out different tasks from across the organisation. Pimcore delivers:

Outstanding stock, product and inventory management – enabling you to stay ahead of the game when it comes to stock control, ordering and delivery.
Outstanding customer experiences – in which the customer is in control and connect and engage with you across multiple platforms, with a consistent and enjoyable experience.
More marketing opportunities, with tools to help you promote products of interest to your customers and enhance engagement and brand.
Internal collaboration – better access to information and data and the opportunity to share files with external agents if required.

When is the best time to get Pimcore?

With Pimcore X released in 2021, there is no better time than now to see how Pimcore could be for you in your enterprise business. You can choose between the Pimcore Enterprise subscription or begin with the always free open source community edition. Pimcore has continued to receive outstanding customer comments and reviews during 2021, and is increasingly being included in global recognition programs and awards.

If you know you can do data better in your organisation and are looking for a tool to help you take control of commerce anarchy, try Pimcore.