Released 10 September 2026

Software Release & Compliance Statement

Every published version of the portier Vision 5 software is built and tested in a defined development and release process and formally approved before delivery. Functional and regression tests are completed before every release.

portier Global Pty Ltd operates an information security management system certified to ISO/IEC 27001:2022. The development, delivery and support of Vision 5 fall within its scope.

The current ISO/IEC 27001:2022 certificate and further compliance documentation are available in our Trust Center: https://trust.portierglobal.com

If you need further information or specific evidence, we are happy to provide it. Write to us at [email protected].

Highlights

Vision 5.8.1 moves the connection to SQL Server and Azure SQL onto the current Microsoft ODBC driver, which the setup now installs itself. It also brings noticeably faster workflows on cloud-hosted databases, fixes to CAD plans and cylinder management, and an audit trail that tidies itself up.

New features

Current database driver for SQL Server and Azure SQL: Vision now connects through the Microsoft ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server. Microsoft has discontinued the previous SQL Server Native Client, and it is no longer included in Windows Server 2025, where connecting could fail. If the driver is missing, Vision now says so clearly and in your language, instead of showing a generic connection error. Installations on Firebird are not affected. Connections over long network distances and to Azure are also more robust, and administrators can see on the database server which session belongs to Vision.

One setup for Vision and the driver: Installation and updates now run through a single setup program with a portier dialog in German and English. It installs the database driver first and then Vision, so a separate driver installation is no longer needed. If you use Firebird, untick the driver. The choice is remembered and also applies to later automatic updates. A driver that is already installed is skipped. Updates need Windows administrator rights. Without them, the installed version keeps running unchanged and the update dialog refers you to your IT.

Send status of reminder emails: The reminder overview under People can show two additional columns, "Earlier reminder" and "Final reminder". Once a reminder has actually been sent for a key, the column shows the send date with the note "Email sent". Until then it stays empty. Dry runs do not count as sent. Anyone who has already received a reminder always appears in the list, even if their leaving date lies outside the configured time window. Switch it on under Settings > Manage modules. With the switch off, the form stays unchanged.

Improvements

Keys and cylinders with many entries open instantly: A key with 1,675 copies took around 48 seconds to appear. The form now opens in under a second. The same applies to cylinders with a long installation history and to deleting such keys.

Detail forms without waiting: Users, buildings, locking systems, sets and cylinders now load their lists in a few queries instead of one query per row. How long a form takes to open no longer depends on the amount of data.

The locking plan opens and scrolls smoothly: The locking plan now reads its settings and the locking matrix once, instead of several times for every visible row. Most noticeable on cloud-hosted databases.

CAD plans with many cylinders: A plan with 100 cylinders used to spend 15 to 40 seconds on database access before it was drawn. It now loads all cylinders in a single query.

Reports and handover printing: Reports that show copy counts per key loaded these values row by row, so a report covering a few hundred keys could take a minute or longer. They now load in a single pass. Printing a key issue or return also starts straight away, instead of reading the whole settings table every time.

Extension orders: Building an extension order now reads the values it needs for the whole locking system up front, instead of key by key. Large locking systems are now ready almost as quickly as small ones.

Starting with a paused cloud database: Databases on a serverless plan pause after a longer period of inactivity and need a few seconds on the next access. Vision used to treat this as a connection error, so the start failed and only worked on the second attempt. Vision now shows a notice while it waits and gives the database up to a minute. Local installations are not affected.

Bug fixes

Cylinders without a manufacturer ID on Firebird: On Firebird, only the first cylinder without a manufacturer ID (Fremd-ID) could be saved, and every further one was rejected. Because the same check also ran when editing, sites whose cylinders were all entered by hand could eventually not save any cylinder change at all. Empty manufacturer IDs are now stored as "not set", so any number of cylinders without a manufacturer ID is possible. The protection against two cylinders with the same real manufacturer ID remains. SQL Server and Azure were never affected. The update also cleans up existing databases, so no manual follow-up is needed.

Placing and correcting cylinders on CAD plans: Some drawings open on a print sheet (paper space) instead of the model area, depending on how the architect last saved the file. A cylinder dropped there stored page coordinates as its building position, so the marker reappeared in empty space and could no longer be detached on the plan. CAD plans now always open in the model area, dropping a cylinder on a print sheet is refused with a message, and a cylinder that is already placed can be moved by dragging it.

CAD plans that cannot be displayed: A damaged or unsupported drawing used to pass the save check and then crashed every time it was opened. Only what the CAD engine can actually load is now saved, checked when the file is selected and again before saving. Plans that are already affected open with a clear message naming the plan and the cause, and can be replaced with "Replace CAD plan" or deleted.

Duplicate cylinders when changing status: Switching between "Installed" and "In stock" could cause the next save to create a second, identical cylinder instead of updating the existing one. The same fault occurred when changing the building, locking system, door number or room description. The existing record is now always saved. Duplicates that already exist are not changed by this and still need to be cleaned up.

Cylinder dimensions in the locking system import (XML): If your locking system manufacturer's software writes the dimensions in German notation with a decimal comma, that is 31,5 instead of 31.5, Vision did not read the value and assumed 0. A newly created cylinder was saved with this 0. For a cylinder recognised by its manufacturer ID (Fremd-ID) the value was discarded, so the old value remained. In both cases the import reported success. Both notations are now read. Importing the same file again fills in the dimensions, and your locking system manufacturer does not need to create it again. Only cylinders that the import recognises by their manufacturer ID are updated. Cylinders matched in any other way keep their previous value and still need to be corrected by hand.

Failed order was reported as saved: If one line of an order could not be saved, Vision still booked the order and reported success, leaving it half-saved or with old quantities. The whole save is now rolled back, header and lines together. The screen and the database match again.

Licence activation with an expired one-time code: If the code entry stayed open beyond its ten-minute validity, entering the code or requesting a new one could crash the application. A late code is now rejected as invalid, and a new one can be requested.

Security updates

The audit trail tidies itself up: Entries older than the retention period are removed daily in small steps, so the trail does not grow without limit. The retention period is two years by default and can be adjusted per installation by portier support, without reinstalling. A value of zero keeps everything. Users whose account was deleted more than 90 days ago are anonymised in the trail. Their name is replaced with "GELOESCHT" and their personal details are masked, while the record of what was changed, when and through which database account is kept. Beyond that, an audit entry still cannot be changed or deleted.

Upgrade instructions

From this version, installations on SQL Server and Azure SQL need the Microsoft ODBC Driver 18 for SQL Server on every computer that runs Vision. The new setup includes it. If your IT distributes Vision centrally, add the driver yourself as before. Firebird installations are not affected.

Vision 5.8.1 extends the database schema. The update runs automatically on first start, for Firebird and MSSQL installations alike. Updates through the setup need Windows administrator rights. As always, take a backup first.

CAD plans now always open in the model area, even if the drawing was last saved on a print sheet. You can still select a sheet from the layout list before printing.