The highlights include

• Totara Connect - a single sign-on and user identity solution that makes it possible to connect multiple Totara LMS or Totara Social sites to a single Totara LMS identity server. This opens up exciting possibilities for fully integrated formal and informal learning solutions.
• global report restrictions - Totara LMS administrators can control access to report data across the site based on selected audiences, positions, hierarchies, or even individual users.
• new report builder export plugin types - All existing export types have been converted to this new plugin type, and performance of exports has been improved.
• clone report builder reports - Admins can quickly make different versions of a report suitable for different purposes or people without needing to start from scratch.
• new program completion block - Users can see their progress in a program on any screen (with thanks to partner Catalyst IT).
• dynamic audiences - This function offers finer control over adding/removing of users from dynamic audiences.
• new "fixed date" custom field type - This feature enables better management of timezones.

Other improvements in Totara LMS 2.9 include the ability to customise graph colours in graphical reports, support for anonymous 360-performance-management feedback and user-editable personal-goal custom fields. There are also general accessibility and performance improvements designed to enhance the Totara LMS experience for both administrators and users.

This update lays the foundations for the next major release, Totara LMS 9 in 2016.

Chief Commercial Officer, Lars Hyland said, "Totara Learning aims to set the pace of innovation and access to high-quality learning-and-performance-management software. With this release we lay the foundations for some major upgrades to the Totara LMS user experience in 2016. We are very excited by the accelerating adoption of our open-source products worldwide and, with the support of our expert partner network, the positive impact we have on millions of workplace learners globally."