IT request management

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Request Module

Request Creation

• How do I convert an Email into a Request?
  1. Create an email account, say "ServiceDesk" in your mail server. Configure a password for this account.
  2. Configure the settings in ServiceDesk Plus software using Admin -> Mail Server Settings -> Incoming. Specify the email address as "servicedesk@yourdomain.com" and the username as "ServiceDesk". Select the protocol through which you prefer to fetch the messages say, POP or IMAP.
  3. Ask your requesters to send their requests to "servicedesk@yourdomain.com".
  4. ServiceDesk Plus will fetch emails at regular intervals and automatically convert them into tickets.
• Is it possible to disable the Quick creating option of creating request?

  Yes, it is possible to disable the Quick create option. It is available as a configurable option under Admin -> Self Service Portal Settings.

• How do I populate technicians in the Requester list to create ticket on their behalf?

  This is configurable under Admin -> Self Service Portal Settings. [ Screenshot ]

• Another department in my organization uses a different helpdesk solution and I want all the tickets created in that application to be created in ServiceDesk Plus. Can this be possible?

  Yes, this can be possible with our API functionality under Admin -> General -> API where you can create a form similar to the one used in the other application, and design it in such a way that ticket will get automatically created in ServiceDesk Plus.

  You can also import the request from another helpdesk using Import from XLS option under Request tab

• How do we filter out automated replies and stop the system from creating new requests out of them?

  The first option is to configure a spam filter under Admin >> Mail Server Settings by setting the value for "subject of the email contains" criteria as undeliverable. This will prevent undelivered emails being created as tickets.

  The second option is to configure not to send email notifications for automated email addresses. This can be done from under Admin Notification Rules, by configuring a JunkFilter notification where you can specify a email address to which the email should not be sent to. This will stop the email being sent out.

Request Handling

• I am a Technician and every morning I log into ServiceDesk Plus, I can see many tasks assigned to me. But I do not know to which request the tasks belong. How do I figure it out?

  Click Open Tasks button (present above Request list view, to the right of Settings drop-down) to view all Tasks in Open Status.
  Request associated to Tasks get displayed under Link Column in the form of Request ID, which when clicked will open that particular Request.
  [ Screenshot ]

• How do I merge requests?

  ServiceDesk Plus helps you to merge 2 or more requests and combine them into a single request. Requests can be merged from the request list view page and from a request details page. The following two examples will help you in understanding the merging technique and after the merging process which request will be the parent request.

  • I'm in the Request List view screen where I'm able to view all the requests in the helpdesk. I'm going to merge 2 requests say, Request id 10 and 7. So I select the check box beside these requests and click on the Merge button. Which request id will be the parent request?
    • 7
    • 10
    • none
      Answer -> a
      If you merge two requests from the request list view, then the older request will be the parent request and the new request will be the child request. In other words, the newly added request is merged with the old request.
  • I'm in the request details page of Request id 7. I choose 'Merge Request' option under the Actions button to merge this request with Request id 10. Which request id will be the parent request?
    • 7
    • 10
    • none
      Answer -> b
• If a request is split from the parent request, will the child request contain all the notes, resolution and worklog that was added to the parent request?

  No. All the notes, resolution and worklog added in the parent request will not be associated to the child request.

• How do I change the overdue time of a request?

  This is a Service Level Agreement configuration which can be configured according to your convenience.
  Go to Admin -> Service Level Agreement -> edit the given SLA and change the resolution time accordingly so that you can have the desired time frame before a request becomes overdue.

• Technician go around places and resolves the issues, due to which the exact time taken to resolve cannot be calculated. What option can be suggested for this scenario?

  Technicians can start using the Add Work Log functionality of ServiceDesk Plus which helps in calculate the exact time spent by a technician on an Incident.

• While using the ServiceDesk to send requests for approval, I would like to customize the contents of the message sent to the client. Where is the template available?

  The template is available under Admin -> Notification rules -> Notifying for Approval Template where you can customize the content of the message.

Request Customization

• I want all requests in my application to start from Request Id 19001 instead of default request Ids assigned by ServiceDesk. How do I change the Request id number?

  You can change the request ID sequence by following the steps given below:

  1. Connect to the database using the following pointers:
  • For MSSQL database, connect to the query analyzer of the SQL server.
  • For PGSQL database,
  • Open Command Prompt.
  • Connect to the folder <ManageEngine\ServiceDesk\pgsql\bin> and use the command psql.exe -Upostgres -p 65432 -d servicedesk
  2. Upon successful connection, execute the following query:
  • For IT help desk (Replace ID with preferred value):

  update SeqGenState set currentbatchend = ID where
  seqname='WorkOrder.WORKORDERID';

  • For all other help desks:

  update SDSeqGenState set currentbatchend = ID where
  seqname='WorkOrder.WORKORDERID' and helpdeskid = HELPDESKID ;

  ID - The preferred value for request ID

  HELPDESKID - The help desk ID of the required instance

  You can also get the HELPDESKID by executing the following query:

  select * from helpdeskdetails;

  3. Restart ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus service.
  NOTE: While updating the ID with a preferred value, ensure that value falls in the allocated range of that help desk. You can find the allocated range using the below query.

  select * from ESMSequenceConfig ;

• I need to create some filters for viewing tickets say, tickets of only high priority. How can this be enabled in ServiceDesk Plus?

  You can use the custom filter icon in the request list view page to create custom views in such a way that tickets based on the filter is listed. The filters can also be made private. [ Screenshot ]

• Can certain fields, such as Adding Work Log, be made mandatory before closing a request?

  Yes it is possible under Admin -> Helpdesk Customizer -> Request closing rules. Request closing rules can be used to select the mandatory fields to be filled in by the technicians while closing the requests.

• Is it possible to create a custom view in the requests list view screen that will display all of the tickets requiring approvals?

  In our latest version (v 7.5) we have 'Approval Status' as one of the fields in the request column customizer to be displayed in the request list view. On choosing 'Approval Status' column from request column chooser, the requests that require approval and the requests that are approved is displayed.

• I want to delete all the requests from my application and reset the Request ID counter to 0. How do I do it?

  Step 1: Delete all the requests in your ServiceDesk Plus application.
  Step 2: Connect to the database and execute the query,
  delete from seqgenstate where seqname like 'workorder%';

  • For MSSQL database,connect to the query analyzer of the SQL server and execute the query.
  • For PGSQL database,connect to the database following the below steps and then execute the query.
  • Open command prompt on the application server,connect to the folder ManageEngine\ServiceDesk\pgsql\bin> and use the command psql.exe -U postgres -p 65432 -d servicedesk

  Step 3: Restart ManageEngine ServiceDesk Plus service.

Request Configurations

• Is it possible for the system to automatically assign priority for requests?

  The Priority Matrix (Admin -> Helpdesk Customizer) helps you to determine the Priority automatically based on Impact and Urgency of a request. Impact is listed in the y-axis and Urgency in the x-axis of the matrix. Priority Matrix is a one-time configuration by the Administrator for the given Impact and Urgency values.

  Based on ITSM best practices, it is recommended to define and follow priority matrix as it reflects the business need. However it is designed flexible enough for technicians and requesters to override the matrix according to their needs.

• How do I set the default currency in the work logs say, ? instead of $?

  Go to Admin-> Self Service Portal Settings and change the default currency from $ to ?.

Request Closure

• What is Automated Close ? How it is related to resolved status ?

  According to ITSM best practices an incident must be closed only when the user confirms that the solution provided is beneficial in resolving the incident. Helpdesk technicians are the Single Point of Contact to keep the users informed by tracking the status and making sure that all incidents are responded and closed. It is a tedious process to make sure that all users have confirmed on their incident closure.

  i) Create and Educate users about your closure policies

  You can define that helpdesk will resolve issues and get back to you. Users must confirm if the Incident has been resolved and if users do not respond within 2 days, we will assume that the users have agreed on the incident closure.

  ii) ServiceDesk Plus helps you with Incident Closure

  Your Helpdesk Technicians can resolve incidents and change the status of the request to resolved state. ServiceDesk Plus will send an email to the requester asking if the resolution helped. If the users does not respond within 2 days the request will be automatically closed.

  Note: Technicians should not close the ticket; instead they should move the ticket to 'Resolved' status.

  To configure Automated Close, select Admin -> Helpdesk customizer -> Request closing rules. [ Screenshot ]

• How do I disable the 'Close Request' (yes/no) popup while closing a request in the latest version ?

  According to ITSM best practices an incident must be closed only when the user confirms that the solution provided is beneficial in resolving the incident. This is the reason for displaying the pop up when you close an incident. But for your convenience we are providing an option to disable it in our latest version (v 7.5).

  You can disable this option under Admin -> Helpdesk Customizer -> Request Closing Rules -> Confirm User Acknowledgment section.

• How can a requester re-open a resolved request if the resolution provided is unsatisfactory ?

  Enable the notification rule 'Email User when a Request is Resolved' under Admin -> Notification Rule, to send an email to the requester when the technician changes the request Status to 'Resolved'. The user can look into the resolution provided by the technician in the email. A Close Request link will be available with which, the requester can close the request raised by him. If the resolution provided by the technician is unsatisfying, then the requester can reply back to the notification mail to reopen the request.

  You can also enable Allow requesters to reopen their own requests from Admin-->Self Service portal settings.

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Check the other FAQ modules or you can contact our support team at servicedeskplus-support@manageengine.com