itsm application configuration guide - ivanti

ITSM Application Configuration Guide

Enterprise

Copyright © 2007-2011 FrontRange Solutions USA Inc. All Rights Reserved.

Use of this software and its related user documentation IS subject to the terms and conditions of the applicable End-User License Agreement (EULA), a copy of which is included WITH the software. You must agree to the terms and conditions of the EULA in order to use this software. If you do not agree to the terms and conditions of the EULA, DO NOT INSTALL THE SOFTWARE AND return IT within thirty (30) days of purchase to the place from which you obtained it for a refund (minus any restocking fee).

WARNING: The software described in this manual and its related user documentation are protected by copyright law. In no event, shall any part of the related user documentation be copied, reproduced, distributed, transmitted, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any language, without the express written permission of FrontRange Solutions USA Inc.

Portion Copyright © 2010 Telerik Corp. All Rights Reserved.

ITSM may include the following third party components:

• Log4Net, developed by The Apache Software Foundation and licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0, available at http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0.

• Saxon, developed by Michael Kay and licensed under the Mozilla Public License 1.0, available at www.mozilla.org/MPL/MPL-1.0.html

FrontRange Trademark Information

The following are trademarks of FrontRange Solutions USA Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries: FrontRange Solutions®, FrontRange™, SaaSIT™, ModernizeIT™, SaaS2™, GoldMine®, GoldSync®, GoldMine® Answer Wizard™, GoldMine® Management Intelligence™, GoldMine® Manager’s Console™, iGoldMine™, HEAT®, HEAT® Service & Support™, HEAT® PowerDesk™, iHEAT™, HEAT® Self Service™, HEAT® Manager’s Console™, HEAT® Answer Wizard™, HEAT® Quick Start Wizard™, InfoCenter®, Automated Processes™, First Level Support®, enteo®, DeviceWall®, Centennial Discovery®, Discovery Dashboard®, MicroAudit®, SAM™, and other FrontRange products and brands.

Other Trademark Information

Microsoft products, brands and trademarks, including Microsoft, Windows, Windows Server, Windows Vista, SQL Server, and Internet Explorer, are the property of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

Other products and brands are the trademarks of their respective owners or companies.

(Sept. 2010)

ITSM Application Configuration Guide

Release 7.0.2April 2011

Table of Contents

About This Book 9Intended Audience . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10Notation Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Contact Us. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11

Contact Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11Support Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12

Chapter 1: ITSM Core Configuration 13ITSM System Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13Create Organizational Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14Create Locations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16Create Teams and Employee Profiles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17

Team Setup. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17Import User Data from Active Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19Employee Profile Setup . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19

Modify Validation Fields. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22Modify Approval Team Members . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23Create Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25Configure Hours of Operation Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Using Calendars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26Define Hours of Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

Set Global Values . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29Service Desk Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29Service Desk Manager Login ID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30Configure Incident Email Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30

Chapter 2: Incident Configuration 33Classification. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Incident Categories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34Incident Prioritization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38

Lifecycle Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39Default Notification Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39Edit and Create Notification Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41Configure the Email Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42

Workspace Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42Incident Forms and Grids . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42Incident Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44Incident Matching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46

Escalation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47Default Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48

Chapter 3: Enable Service Requests through the Incident Module 51Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51

Smart Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52Self Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52

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Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54Configuration Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55

Smart Client Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55Self Service Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .59

Chapter 4: Service Catalog Configuration 67Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67View Services and Service Level Packages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68

Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69Service Level Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

Create Services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72Create Request Offerings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73

Define Request Offerings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .74Design Request Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76Define Request Fulfillment Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92Define Publishing Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94Hide or Delete a Request Offering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96Configure Default Request Offering Approver Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .97

Create and Link Service Level Packages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99Define Service Level Package Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .99Define Service Level Targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .101Link Service Level Packages to a Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102Link Request Offerings to a Service Level Package . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .102

Create and Modify Service Level Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103Use the SLA Subscription Workspace . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103Create a New Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105

Chapter 5: Change Configuration 109Change Approval Workflow Process. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109

Configure Change Approval Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 111Workspace Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113

Dashboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .113Forms and Grids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .116Change Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .118

Change Risk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122Create Risk Questions with Multiple Answers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .122

Change Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129Configure Change Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129

Chapter 6: Task Configuration 139Configure Task Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139Configure Task Toolbar. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140Dashboard Configuration for Task List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .142Escalation Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143

Default Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143Customize the Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .145

Chapter 7: Service Level Management Configuration 147Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147Terminology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .147Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

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Business Unit Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150Service Level Manager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150Service Owner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150

Concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151Example: Service 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153Example: Service 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .154

SLM Dashboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .155Configure Service Level Management . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156

Create Services. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156Create and Configure Service Level Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157Configure Request Offering Links and Targets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163Publish Service Level Packages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163Subscription and Service Level Agreements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .164

Hierarchical Expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168Incident - Select SLA Expression. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .168Service Request - Select SLA Expression . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .169

Use Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .171Assumptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .172Use Case 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173Use Case 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173Use Case 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .173Use Case 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .174

Chapter 8: Web Administration Interface 175Self Service and Web Administration Login . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .175Access the Web Administration Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .176Defining User Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179

Role-Based User Interface Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .179Business Object Layouts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .182

Defining Pick Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .184Viewing Pick Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .184Creating and Editing Pick Lists . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .185

Defining Business Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .186Viewing Business Objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .187Configure Audit Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .204

Defining Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .204Using the Workflow Designer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .205Configure URLs in Workflow Email . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .214Example: Notification Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .216

Using Automation Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .219Defining QuickActions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .219Defining Escalations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .226Working with Saved Searches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .232Object Matching. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236

Defining Dashboards. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236Viewing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .238Editing Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .238Creating Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .240Viewing Announcements and FAQs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .244Deleting Dashboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .245


Contents

Working with the License Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246Defining Default Branding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .246Defining Hours of Operation (HOP) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247

Using Calendars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247Defining Organization Charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .247

Viewing Organization Charts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .248Adding an Organizational Unit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .248Supporting Tabs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .249

Working with Audit History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .249Defining Global Constants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .250Defining Localization Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252Defining Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .252

Browsing Available Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .253Creating and Editing Roles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .253

Managing Users . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .259Adding Employees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .260Adding Roles to Employee Accounts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .264Linking Users to Contact Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265Working with Activity History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .265Working with Attachments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266

Creating Contact Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266Creating Standard User Teams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .266Set up Surveys. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .267

Process Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .267Create a Survey . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .268Work with Surveys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .270View Survey Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .272

Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273Metadata Transfer Between Web Admin and Smart Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .273

Chapter 9: Knowledge Management Configuration 275Configure Approvers and Approval Workflows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .275

Approvers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .276Approval Sequence and Criteria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .280Notification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .281Voting Deadlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283

Configure Collections and Approval Routing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .283

Chapter 10: Release Configuration 285Configure Milestone Workflow for Task and Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .286

Add a Task . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .287Add a Checklist Item . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .288

Configure Milestone Approval Workflow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .290Workspace Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293

Dashboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .293Forms and Grids. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .295Release Templates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .298

Release Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .301Configure Release Calendar . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .301


Contents

Appendix A: Configure Localization 309Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .309

Localizing the Smart Client vs. Self Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .310Unsupported Features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .310

Select the Displayed Locale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .310Smart Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311Self Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311

Manage Language and Localization Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .311Available Languages and Locales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .312Currency Symbol . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .314Translation Strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .314


Contents


About This Book

This document contains the following chapters:

Chapter 1, “ITSM Core Configuration.” Describes the basic configuration steps to perform to get your ITSM system up and running after the ITSM system has been installed.

Chapter 2, “Incident Configuration.” Describes how to configure the Incident module, including:

Classification

Lifecycle Notification

Workspace Components

Escalation

Chapter 3, “Enable Service Requests through the Incident Module.” Describes how to configure the Incident module to support Service Requests through both the Smart Client and Self Service.

Chapter 4, “Service Catalog Configuration.” Describes how to use the Self Service interface to configure the Service Catalog, including:

Creating Services

Creating Request Offerings

Creating Service Level Packages and Targets

Creating Service Level Agreements.

Chapter 5, “Change Configuration.” Describes how to configure the Change module, including.

Change Approval Workflow


Change Risk

Change Calendar

Chapter 6, “Task Configuration.” Describes how to configure Tasks, including.

Task Templates

Task Toolbar

Task List (Dashboard Configuration)

Escalation


About This Book

Chapter 7, “Service Level Management Configuration.” Describes Self Service and Service Catalog concepts and procedures for using the Smart Client to configure Self Service and the Service Catalog.

Chapter 8, “Web Administration Interface.” Describes how to use the Web administration interface to configure the Self Service interface and other, more general ITSM features such as user accounts and workflows.

Chapter 9, “Knowledge Management Configuration.” Describes how to configure the Knowledge Management module, including:

Approvers

Approval Sequence and Criteria

Notification

Approval Voting Deadlines

Collections and Approval Routing

Chapter 10, “Release Configuration.” Describes how to configure the Release module, including:

Milestone Task and Checklist Configuration

Milestone Approval Configuration


Release Calendar

Appendix A, “Configure Localization.” Describes how to use the translation and other localization tools provided with ITSM.

Intended Audience

This is intended for:

ITSM Application administrators who configure ITSM, Self Service, and the Service Catalog for use by end users.

Service Owners who create services and request offerings.


About This Book

Notation Conventions

This manual uses the following notation conventions:

Contact Us

The following sections provide contact information for FrontRange Solutions.

Contact Information

FrontRange Solutions Corporate Headquarters:5675 Gibraltar DrivePleasanton, CA 94588 USATEL: 800.776.7889 and +1.925.398.1800If calling from Canada, please dial: 1.888.603.3270

Table 1 Notation Conventions

Convention Definition and Usage

Bold Text that appears in a GUI element such as, a menu item, button, or element of a dialog box, and command names are shown in bold. For example:

Click Edit File in the Button Bar.

Italic Book titles appear in italics.

Terms are italicized the first time they are introduced.

Important information may be italicized for emphasis.

Monospace Commands, command-line output, and file names are in monospace type. For example:

Execute setup.exe to install the ITSM release.

Monospaced italic

Monospaced italics are used for command-line variables.For example:ping server_name

Monospaced bold Monospaced bold represents information you enter in response to system prompts. The character that appears before a line of user input represents the command prompt, and should not be typed.

Monospaced bold italic

Monospaced bold italic text is used to indicate a variable in user input.


About This Book

Support Site

FrontRange Solutions can answer your technical support questions about its various products. Visit:http://support.frontrange.com


Chapter 1

ITSM Core Configuration

This chapter describes the basic configuration steps needed to get your ITSM system up and running after the ITSM system has been installed and the FAD has been imported. See the ITSM Installation and Deployment Guide for installation and import procedures.

NOTE

Advanced user management tasks, such as creating teams, configuring the Service Provider team, certain role-to-team mappings, and other tasks are done through the ITSM Smart Client as described here and through the Application Administrator as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide. More common user management tasks such as adding and deleting users, creating and editing roles, and setting up default user profiles (including role membership) are performed through the Web administration interface. See Chapter 8, “Web Administration Interface,” for more information.

Topics in this chapter include a brief ITSM overview and descriptions of how to:

“Create Organizational Units”

“Create Locations”

“Create Teams and Employee Profiles”

“Import User Data from Active Directory”

“Modify Validation Fields”

“Modify Approval Team Members”

“Create Services”

“Configure Hours of Operation Settings”

“Set Global Values”

ITSM System Overview

The FrontRange IT Service Management (ITSM) process uses the Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) in its design for working with Business Objects and managing service support and delivery. ITSM includes some additional FrontRange service support processes and management not specified by ITIL.

ITSM Application Configuration Guide 13ITSM Application Configuration Guide 13

Chapter 1: ITSM Core Configuration

ITSM is designed to manage day-to-day activities in an IT organization with quality service, availability, and reliability. The ITSM

The support elements in ITSM help you ensure your employees and customers have access to the services required to maintain business functions. Service support components of the ITSM process are:

Incident Management

Problem Management

Change Management

Release Management

Configuration Management

Inventory Management

Service Level Management

Availability Management

The support elements in ITSM help you ensure your employees and customers have access to the services required to maintain business functions. Service support

Create Organizational Units

Organizations, such as companies, are divided up into separate groups, referred as Organizational Units. To create organizational units for your organization:

1. Select New from the main ITSM menu and choose Organizational Unit from the pull-down menu.



2. Click New Organizational Unit to open a blank Organizational Unit screen.

3. Type in the name of the Organizational Unit in the Name box.

4. In the Depth box type in the level of the Organizational Unit is in the whole company. The top level “0” is the whole company itself. The first level or depth of the organization are “1”, and those below “2”, etc.

5. Choose the Unit Manager from the choices provided in the pull-down menu.

6. In the Directory Full Path box, type in the directory file structure that contains the details of the Organizational Unit.

7. Type in the Parent Organizational Unit that the unit is a part of. If the unit is depth level “3” for example, the parent unit is the depth directly above the unit in level “2”. Click on the search icon to search for the correct unit.

8. Type in the Cost Center that the Organization Unit uses for all monetary transactions.

9. Check the Is Deleted? check box to delete the Organizational Unit.

10. Save the new Organizational Unit.

NOTE

Click on the Child Organizational Unit tab, and perform the all the steps above, to create other units that are part of the new Organizational Unit.



Create Locations

Many organizations have more than one operational location that may or may not perform the same type of operation, such as a sales location, manufacturing, service, etc. To add employee locations, do the following:

1. Select New from the main ITSM menu and choose More... > Location Group > Employee Location from the pull-down menu.

2. In the boxes provided type in the address information of the main and work location. If other items, such as fax, mobile, home numbers are necessary, choose those items from menus provided to the left of the blank text boxes.

3. To create a new mail address associated with that location, click New located at the bottom of the screen below the Address tab, then select Mail from the choices provided. Type in the address in the boxes provided with any additional comment, such as directions, etc. in the Comments box.

4. To add additional phone number, click New > Phone and choose the purpose, such as fax, mobile, etc. from the Purpose pull-down menu. Type in the number, any display text and any additional comments in the boxes provided.

5. Save the Employee Site information when you are done.



Create Teams and Employee Profiles

Employees are grouped together into Standard User Teams. Employees who will be receiving Incident, Change, or Problem assignments must belong to at least one Standard User Team because Assignments are given to teams and use team email rather than individual email. Individual employees, depending on their work load or function can be on one or more teams.

Perform the following activities to set up teams and employee profiles:

Create one or more Standard User Teams. This step includes assigning a team manager and team members (see “Team Setup” on page 17).

Assign employees to organizational units, roles, and contact groups (see “Employee Profile Setup” on page 19).

Team Setup

To create a Standard User Team in your organization:

1. Select New from the main ITSM menu and choose Standard User Team from the pull-down menu. An empty Standard User Team form displays (Figure 1)

Figure 1 New Standard User Team form

NOTE

To edit an existing Standard User Team, search for the team name (Search > Standard User Team). In the search results list, single click a team name to display summary information about it. To edit the team information, double click the summary information line. The team details page displays as shown in this procedure.



2. Type in the name of the Team in the Team field.

3. Type the group email address in the Team Email field.

4. In the Team Manager Email field, either:

Type the email address of the team manager, or

Leave the field blank for now; it will populate automatically when you select a team manager in step 10.

5. Type in the Organizational Unit that the team is a part of, or click the search icon to search for an organizational unit.

6. Specify the cost per minute that the Team charges in the Average Cost Per Minute box. This amount is used to determine the cost per minute multiplied by the amount of hours that the Team will take to perform a Task, Change, etc.

7. Click the Employee tab. The list of employees assigned to the team displays (Figure 2). The list is empty if you are creating a new team.

Figure 2 Standard User Team employee list

8. To add an employee to the team, click the link button. An employee list displays.

9. Highlight an employee in the list and click Select. The employee is added to the team. The email address of the most recently selected manager is inserted into the Team Manager Email field in the Standard User Team detail form (Figure 1).

10. Continue to add employees until the team is complete. Select at least one employee to manage the team and click Set as a Team Manager.

11. To remove an employee from a team, highlight the employee and click the unlink button.

12. To optionally add or edit information in an employee’s profile, switch from grid view to form view to display the employee profile form for the highlighted employee.



13. Save the Standard User Team when you are done. You can now assign employees to roles, organizational units, and contact groups as described in “Employee Profile Setup” on page 19.

Import User Data from Active Directory

To increase efficiency and ensure accuracy of user names, the Foundation lets you import user data contained in Active Directory. The data it imports and how that data is mapped to corresponding application fields is specified in the LDAPInfo2Fusion.xslt file, stored in the Service Management directory of your installation. By default, the User objects (specifically first and last name) in Active Directory map to the application User table, and imported user data is assigned to the Administrators Security Group.

NOTES

An advanced user can customize the XSLT file to change the default mappings. For details on configuring the Active Directory integration, see the Administrator Online Help.

See the Administrator Online Help for more information on the XML formats expected by the FRS Foundation and XSLT samples used for transforming to the expected XML formats.

After importation, users are available in the User Manager; they are prefixed with the domain name of the server on which they are stored in Active Directory (for example, [Domain Name]/John Doe). They are assigned to the Security Group specified in the LDAPInfo2Fusion.xslt file.

For example, use LDAP to communicate between Active Directory and Foundation to update users in Foundation from Active Directory.

For details about importing user data from Active Directory, see the Application Server Configuration chapter in the ITSM Installation and Deployment Guide.

Employee Profile Setup

This section describes how to manually add and configure users (in this context, the terms user and employee are interchangeable). Typical configuration tasks for a new user account are assigning the user to a role, department, and organizational unit. The following procedure describes how to create a new user account and perform those configuration tasks.

NOTE

You can also import users from Microsoft’s Active Directory or Novell’s eDirectory using LDAP. See “Import User Data from Active Directory” on page 19 for more information.



The procedure described in this section assumes that teams, departments, and locations have already been defined in your ITSM implementation. For further details about defining and managing these objects, see the FRS Administrator Online Help or the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Follow these steps to add a user:

1. Launch the Web administration interface:

a. Open your Web browser to the following URL:

http://your_server_name/SelfService/

The Self Service login dialog displays.

Figure 3 Self Service login dialog

b. Enter your login ID and password, select a platform, and then click Login. When the list of available roles displays, select Administrators and then click Continue. The the Self Service home page displays.

c. From the Self Service home page, select Settings > Configure Application:

Figure 4 Access the Web administration interface

The Web administration interface opens in the Application Configuration tab.

2. Click the User and Security Management tab.



3. Click the View All button at the bottom of the Users area on the Overview page. The list of current ITSM users displays in the Manage Users and Groups workspace (Figure 5).

Figure 5 ITSM user list

4. In the list of users:

To add a new user account, click the New Employee button.

To edit an existing user account, double click the user in the list.

Use the resulting employee profile forms to:

• Specify basic user information in the Details tab (see “Adding New Employees” on page 260).

• Assign the user to a department and an organizational unit (see step 5 of this procedure).

• Assign the user to a role (see step 6 of this procedure).

• Assign the user to a contact group (see step 7 of this procedure).

5. To assign a user to a department and an organizational unit:

a. In the user details screen, click the Detail tab.

b. To assign a department, select a department from the drop down list in the Department field.

c. To assign an organizational unit, click the search icon to the right of the Organizational Unit field. In the resulting dialog, select an organizational unit (such as Corporate) and click Select.

6. To assign a user to a role:

a. In the user details screen, click the Role tab. The list of roles currently linked to the user displays.

b. Click the Link button.

c. In the resulting dialog, highlight a role and click Select.

7. To assign a user to a contact group:



a. In the user details screen, click the Contact Group tab. The list of contact groups currently linked to the user displays.

b. Click the Link button. A list of existing contact groups displays.

c. Select a contact group from the list, or click the Add button to create a new contact group.

d. Click the Select button.

8. Click the Save button to save your changes.

NOTE

For more details about adding and configuring users through the Web administration interface, see “Managing Users” on page 259.

Modify Validation Fields

Validation fields, such as the Incident Category and SubCategory fields, contain example values you will most likely want to customize for your own environment. This section describes how to change these types of fields.

NOTE

What is described here, are the validation fields for Incident. The same should be done for all modules.

Some validation fields you may want to customize for your environment include:

The following steps describe how to add a new Incident Category and SubCategory; other validation fields can be changed by following these same steps:

1. From the ITSM Application Service Management, select an Incident.

Validation Field Location

Category Global

SubCategory Global

Incident Cause Code

Incident

Breach Responsibility

Incident ResolutionDetails (Panel)

Breach Reason Code

Incident ResolutionDetails (Panel)

Status Incident (Layout)

Source Incident (Layout)



2. Place your cursor in the Category field.

3. Click Validate or select F9. The Validating dialog box appears.

NOTE

You can also go through Tools>>Business Object Maintenance to make these changes. See the ITSM Application Online Help for details.

4. Click Add . The Add dialog box appears.

5. Select Failure as the Incident Type. Enter Hand Held Device for the Category.

6. Click Save & Use to use the new value and return to the Incident layout. An exclamation point appears next to the SubCategory field indicating the SubCategory field is empty.

7. Place your cursor in the SubCategory field.

8. Click Validate . The Validating SubCategory dialog box appears.

9. Click Add . The Add dialog box appears.

10. Select Hand Held Device from the Category drop down. Enter cell phone for the SubCategory.

11. Click Save & Use to use the new value and return to the Incident layout.

12. Click Apply.

Modify Approval Team Members

The Change Manager obtains approval from the Change Advisory Board (CAB), the people who approve the financial, technical, and operational impact of a Request for Change. The CAB members are specified by the Contact Group. The Contact Group is a Validation object. Modifications to Validation objects, are done from the ITSM Application.



NOTE

CABs are constrained by Category. There is only one CAB per Category for automation to occur. New Categories will require new Business Rules to be created in order for the CAB and Approvals to work properly with the Business Process Engine.

This section describes how to add a new CAB and specify the CAB Contact Group, also called CAB members.

See the ITSM Application Service Administrator Online Help for additional instructions on modifying, and deleting CABs and their members.

1. From the ITSM Application Service Administrator, select File>>New and click on Contact Group. An empty Contact Group appears as shown below.

2. Select a Category and Status.

3. Click on link in the New Employee toolbar. The list of Employees is displayed.



4. Select the Employee you want to add to this CAB. Continue this process until all members have been added.

5. Fill out other information for this CAB group.

6. Click File>>Save.

Create Services

Perform the following tasks to create and configure services.

NOTE

If the Service Level Management module is installed at your site, see Chapter 7, “Service Level Management Configuration” for additional information.

1. Access the Service screen.

a. Log in to the Smart Client using the Administrators or Service Owner role.

b. Select Search > Service to open the search screen.

c. In the search screen, click New Service to open a blank Service screen.

2. Define the service. In the Configuration tab, specify characteristics that define the service, including the name and type of service. These characteristics are inherited by service packages (if any) and request offerings that are linked to the service.

3. Define service packages. In the Service Package tab:

a. Click New Service Package to create a package that is associated with the current service.



b. Fill in the resulting form, specifying additional characteristics that define how the service is offered to subscribers. The service package inherits general characteristics such as owner, provider, and so on from the service.

c. Define service level targets, which specify the maximum time allowances for Service Request delivery, Incident response, and Incident resolution:

• Click the edit icon to open the Service Package workspace.

• Use the tabs for Service Request Delivery Target, Incident Response Target, and Incident Resolution Target to define targets.

4. Create and/or link request offerings. In the Service screen Request Offering tab, create and/or link a request offering to the service. A request offering must be linked to at least one service for it to be available to users. Request offerings can be created and saved without linking, but they are not available to users until linked.

To search for and link an existing request offering, click the link button and fill in the resulting search form. When results are returned, select a request offering to link to the service.

To create a new request offering, click New Request Offering and fill in the resulting Service Request Template form. After saving the form, you must link it as described above; it is not linked automatically when saved.

5. Publish service packages. In the Service screen Service Package tab, click Publish Package to make the service package available for subscription.

6. Subscribe to service packages and create service level agreements.

Configure Hours of Operation Settings

The Hours of Operation settings provide a calendar to define your company’s operational calendar including daily hours and schedules. For example, these settings can determine a technician’s response time to an incident or execute a business rule that escalates a call that has been open for a number of hours.

Add exceptions, such as holidays or days when the office is closed, to the calendar.

Using Calendars

The Hours of Operation page in the Web administration interface (see “Employee Profile Setup” on page 19 for details about access the Web administration interface) includes links for displaying these calendars:

24 x 7: Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for each week of the current year with 24-hour service.

Weekly HOP: Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for select weeks of the current year with defined hours less than 24 per day.



Weekly 8x4. Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for select weeks of the current year with defined hours of 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Exceptions to the schedule are displayed in a table at the bottom of the page.

In the Hours of Operation tab, click Edit to display a dialog box for managing business hours. Use the Forward and Back buttons to view the schedule for other years.

Define Hours of Operation1. Access the Web administration interface as described in “Employee Profile Setup”

on page 19.

2. Click the Settings tab.

3. On the Overview page, click the Hours of Operation link located in the Organization area. In the HOP page:

To define new HOP setting click Add New.

OR

To edit an existing HOP setting, click the setting name and then click Edit in the resulting calendar page.

The Add Hours of Operation or Edit Hours of Operation dialog opens.

4. Enter a unique name in the Name field.

5. Select one of the following:

a. Click Whole Day to add this service as a 24-hour service.

b. Click Overnight to add this service as an overnight service.

c. Add hours of operation:

• Select the start time from the Start drop-down list.

• Select the end time from the End drop-down list.

6. Select a time zone from the Time Zone drop-down list.

7. Select a recurrence pattern for these hours of operation:

a. Select an interval radio button (Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Yearly). The Recurrence pattern area changes to display fields reflecting the interval choice.

b. Enter a recurrence cycle for this recurrence pattern in the fields provided.

8. Enter a range of recurrence:

a. Select a start date from the Start Date drop-down list.

b. Select an end date:

• No end date: This radio button is enabled by default for permanent hours.



• End after N occurrences: Click this radio button and enter a value in the field provided to coordinate a temporary recurrence pattern.

• End by: Select an end date from the calendar drop-down list.

9. Click Save.

Adding Exceptions

After an HOP setting is defined, you can add exceptions to the hours of operation as a recurring pattern, or by entering individual dates.

Adding Recurring Exceptions

1. In the HOP page, click the HOP setting (for example, 24x7) that you will add an exception to.

2. Click the Recurrent button at the bottom of the page to add a recurrence pattern. The Add Exception dialog displays.

3. In the Name field, type a name for the exception.

4. Select an exception type radio button:

working time

non-working time


a. Click Whole Day to add this service as a 24-hour service.

b. Click Overnight to add this service as an overnight service.

c. Add hours of operation:

• Select the start time from the Start drop-down list.

• Select the end time from the End drop-down list.

6. Select a recurrence pattern for these hours of operation:

a. Select an interval radio button (Daily, Weekly, Monthly, Yearly). The Recurrence pattern area changes to reflect the interval choice.

b. Enter a recurrence cycle for this recurrence pattern in the fields provided.

7. Enter a range of recurrence:

a. Select a start date from the Start Date drop-down list.

b. Select an end date:

• No end date: This radio button is enabled by default for permanent hours.

• End after N occurrences: Click this radio button and enter a value in the field provided to coordinate a temporary recurrence pattern.

• End by: Select an end date from the calendar drop-down list.

8. Click Save to save your changes.



Adding Manual Exceptions

1. In the HOP page, click the HOP setting (for example, 24x7) that you will add an exception to.

2. Click the Manual dates button to add a manual exception, such as a half-day. The Add Exception dialog displays.

3. In the Name field, type a name for the exception.

4. Select an exception type radio button:

working time

non-working time

5. Click the plus sign to add a row to the exception table.

6. Select the date of the exception from the drop-down list in the Date column.

7. Specify the duration of the exception:

In the Whole Day column, click the Whole Day check box to add this exception as 24-hour exception

OR

Specify hours of operation for the exception:

• Select the start time from the Start time drop-down list.

• Select the end time from the End time drop-down list.


On the calendar, hours of operation settings are displayed with an orange background, and exception settings are displayed with a pink background.

Set Global Values

This section describes how to:

Specify the Service Desk email address.

Specify the Service Desk Manager login ID.

Configure all notification email settings.

Service Desk Email1. Access the Self Service administration interface as described in“Employee Profile

Setup” on page 19.


3. In the resulting Settings page, click Global Constants in the System Settings area.



4. Double click the string located in the Value column of the ServiceDeskMgrEmailAddress row.

5. Replace the string with the email address of the service desk sender. This is now the address used to send email to and from the service desk.

Service Desk Manager Login ID1. Access the Self Service administration interface as described in “Employee Profile

Setup” on page 19.


3. In the resulting Settings page, click Global Constants in the System Settings area.

4. Double click the string located in the Value column of the ServiceLevelManagerLoginID row.

5. Replace the string with the actual login ID of the Service Desk Manager.

Configure Incident Email Notification

Many ITSM workflows include event-triggered email notification. Notifications are email messages sent by the Foundation server to an SMTP server (such as when an update to an Incident record occurs).

Perform the following steps to configure email sender, recipient, and server details for all notifications.

1. On the ITSM server system, open the FRS Application Administrator (Start > FrontRange Solutions > ITSM > Service Management Administrator) and connect to the ITSM database.

2. Select Settings > Notification Settings. The Notification Server Settings dialog displays.

3. Make the following selections:

Server Type: SMTP

Server Name or IP: The name or IP address of your email server (specify localhost if the email server resides on the same system as the ITSM server).

Authentication type: None.

Server port: Your email server port number.

User name and Password: Credentials providing access to an email account on the email server.

Default From address: The sender (From:) address of your choice displayed in email headers (for example, [email protected]).

4. Close the FRS Application Administrator.



5. Edit the Smtp.config file as follows:

a. Go to the following directory and open Smtp.config using a text editor such as Notepad:C:\Program Files (x86)\FrontRange Solutions\Service Managment\selfservice

b. Edit the following line so that it contains the same email server name and port information that you specified in step 3:<server host="email_server_name" port="email_server_port" useSsl="false">

c. Save and close Smtp.config.

For information on configuring Incident email notifications, see “Lifecycle Notification” on page 39.


Chapter 2

Incident Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the Incident module for your company or organization. Unless otherwise noted, only those configuration tasks that are specific to the Incident module are described here. Configuration tasks for other modules or for the ITSM application in general are described elsewhere in this document or in other documents. Cross references to those topics are included throughout this chapter.

The following topics are described in this chapter:

Classification. Define Incident categories so that Incidents can be assigned, prioritized, and escalated appropriately.

Lifecycle Notification. Define the notifications that occur at each stage of the Incident life cycle.

Workspace Components. Define the appearance and behavior of Incident workspace components such as dashboards, forms, grids, templates, and Incident matching searches.

Escalation. Define target response and resolution times, and the escalation actions that occur if those times are exceeded.

Within each topic area, separate sections describe concepts, the default configuration provided with ITSM, and procedures for changing the default configuration.

NOTE

For information about configuring the Incident module to process Service Requests, see Chapter 3, “Enable Service Requests through the Incident Module.”

Classification

This section describes how to add, edit, and delete Incident categories that are available for a Service Desk Analyst to choose from when an Incident is first classified. The categories remain available throughout the resolution process should a Service Desk Analyst decide to reclassify an Incident.


Chapter 2: Incident Configuration

Incident Categories

The drop-down list in the Category field in an Incident form is populated with categories defined in the Service module. In an Incident form, categories display in the Category field drop-down list after a service is selected in the Service field (Figure 6).

Figure 6 Category drop-down list in Incident form

Some default categories also have a category-specific form that becomes available in a tab when the category is selected. For example, if you select the Account Lockout category, a new Account Lockout Detail tab is added next to the Details tab. This tab contains a default form that a Service Desk Analyst can fill in (Figure 7).

Figure 7 Category-specific tab and form for the Account Lockout category

The following sections describe how to:

View a service or a category to see the current set of service/category links.

Specify which categories display in the Category drop-down list by creating or deleting links between a category and a service.

Create a new category.

Edit or delete an existing category.



Create a category-specific form that opens in a new tab when the category is selected in the Incident form.

View Service/Category Links

Perform the following steps to:

View a service and see which categories are linked to it.

View a category and see which services it is linked to.

1. From the Admin home page, select a service in one of these ways:

If you know at least the first word of the name of the service:

• Select Search > Service from the main ITSM menu.

• Type the name (or first word of the name) of the service in the Name field of the search form and press Enter.

• In the resulting list of services, double click the service to open it in the Service workspace.

If you do not know at least the first word of the name of the service:

• Select Saved Searches from the main ITSM menu.

• In the Saved Searches tab, click All Services. A master list of all services displays.

• Double click a service to open it in the Service workspace.

2. In the Service workspace, click the Service Desk Category tab to display the list of categories linked to the service (Figure 8). These are the category choices that display in the drop-down list in the Category field in an Incident form.

NOTE

If the Service Desk Category tab opens in Form view mode, use the view mode button in the Service Desk Category toolbar to change to Grid view mode so that the list of categories displays.



Figure 8 Categories linked to a service

3. To view a category and see which services it is linked to:

Highlight the category in the list shown in Figure 8 and click edit . or

If you know at least the first word of the name of a category, you can use the Search feature to locate the category:

• Select Search > More > Category.

• In the resulting Category Search screen, select Add Field > Category.

• Type the name (or first word of the name) of the category in the Category field of the search form and press Enter.

• Double click a category to open it in the Category workspace.

4. The Category workspace opens. The Service tab in the Category workspace contains a list of the services that the category is linked to (Figure 9).



Figure 9 Services linked to a category

Link or Unlink an Existing Category

Perform the following steps to create or delete links between a category and a service. When a link is created, the category displays in the Incident form Category field drop-down list based on the service that was selected in the Incident form Service field. When a link is deleted, the category is removed from the Category field drop-down list.

1. Access the Service Desk Category tab as described in step 2 of the preceding section, selecting the service whose category list you will change by linking or unlinking a category.

2. Link or unlink a category as follows:

To unlink a category, highlight the category and click the unlink category button located in the category toolbar.

To link a category, click the link category button located in the category toolbar. Select a category from the resulting dialog and click Select.

3. Click the Save icon in the Service workspace.

Create or Delete a Category

Perform the following steps to create a new category or delete an existing category. When you create a category it is automatically linked to the service from which it was created, and it is also available for linking to other services.



CAUTION

When you delete a category, all links that it had to other services are deleted.

1. Access the Service Desk Category tab as described in step 2 on page 35. If you are creating a category, select the service that will be initially linked to the new category. If you are deleting a category, select a service that the category is currently linked to.

2. Create or delete a category as follows:

To create a category, click New Category. Type a category name in the resulting form and select whether to make the category available in the Problem module.

To delete a category, highlight it in the category list and click the delete icon.

NOTE

Only roles with the necessary privileges (such as the Admin role) can delete categories.

3. Click the Save icon in the Service workspace.

Incident Prioritization

ITSM uses three metrics for determining the order in which Incidents are processed. By default, the Incident form has the following fields to facilitate Incident processing:

Impact. The impact of the Incident is the extent to which the loss of service will impact the business organization. For example, if a single system is down, it will have less business impact than a server being down.

Urgency. The affected user’s tolerance for delaying the resolution of the Incident. Urgency is usually time-related. For example, the loss of the Sales department’s network printer before the end of the fiscal quarter might be assigned a greater urgency than at another time.

Priority. The order in which an Incident needs to be resolved, based on impact and urgency.

Incident priority values are in the range of 1-5, calculated automatically from the combination of Urgency and Impact values.

Urgency

Impact

High Medium Low

High 1 2 3

Medium 2 3 4

Low 3 4 5



Lifecycle Notification

Incident lifecycle consists of the following general stages:

Discovery/Classification

Investigation and Diagnosis

Resolution

Closure

Email notification is automatically sent to customers, Service Desk personnel, and others at various stages in the lifecycle. These notifications are controlled through workflows and QuickActions, and are configurable in the following ways:

Events that trigger email notification. For example, you can specify that email is sent when an Incident is created, updated, or both. You can also specify Incident field values that trigger notification.

Specify which users receive email notification.

Compose email subject and body content.

Log notification message content in Activity History.

Default Notification Workflows

The following sections describe the default Incident notification workflows that are provided with ITSM.

New Incident Notification

This workflow sends email to the person who reported an Incident when the Incident is created. If the Incident is categorized as P1, email notification is also sent to the Service Desk Manager (Figure 10).

Trigger conditions:

Incident record is created and:

• Status does not equal Closed.

• Status does not equal Resolved.

QuickActions used:

New Incident Notification

Notification to Service Desk Manager of P1 Incident



Figure 10 New Incident Notification workflow

Incident Resolution Notification

This workflow sends email to the person who reported an Incident when the Incident is resolved (Figure 11).

Trigger conditions:

Incident record is updated and:

• Status equals Resolved.

QuickActions used:

Incident Resolved Customer Notification

Figure 11 Incident Resolved Notification workflow



Incident Survey

This workflow sends two email messages to the person who reported an Incident when the Incident is closed. One message is configured in a QuickAction and states that the Incident is closed. The other message is configured in a Notification block and asks the reporter to provide feedback by completing a survey (a link to the survey is also provided in the email). (Figure 12).

Trigger conditions:

Incident record is updated and:

• Status equals Closed.

QuickActions used:

Incident Closed Customer Notification

Figure 12 Incident Survey workflow

Edit and Create Notification Workflows

Use the Web administration interface to configure Incident email notification:

1. Launch the Web administration interface as described in “Employee Profile Setup” on page 19.

2. Under Application Configuration tab, select the Overview tab.

3. Under Business Objects, click View All. A master list of all Business Objects displays.

4. Scroll to and click the Incident Business Object. The Incident details page displays.

5. Click Workflows. A list of workflows associated with the Incident Business Object displays.



Depending on your installation, one or more notification workflows are already in place. For example, New Incident Notification is a commonly available workflow that sends email when a new Incident is created. The QuickActions used by the default notification workflows provided with ITSM are described in “Default Notification Workflows” on page 39. For information about creating and editing QuickActions, see “Defining QuickActions” on page 219.

From here you can edit an existing notification workflow or create a new one as described in “Example: Notification Workflows” on page 216.

Configure the Email Server

Before notification email can be sent, the email server must be configured in the Application Administrator. This action uses Microsoft Messaging (MSMQ) to send notifications.

1. From the FRS Application Administrator, select System Settings > Notification Settings.

2. Fill out the Notification Server Settings in this dialog.

3. Click OK.


This section describes default configurations and customization procedures for:

Incident forms and grids

Incident templates

Incident matching

Incident Forms and Grids

Forms are customizable graphical displays that present and capture field information. Grids are customizable tabular displays for viewing multiple records simultaneously. Layouts, as used in Dashboards, are one screen that contains more than one form (in other words, the screen is divided into multiple areas, each one displaying a different form). For information about understanding and editing forms and grids, see the Foundation Administration Guide.

Default Configuration

Form and Grid fields are described and defined in “Work with Incidents” in the ITSM User Guide.



CAUTION

Editing or removing forms and grids that are directly and indirectly associated with the Incident module could have an effect on other modules.

The following table shows the forms (also called panels and shown in the Panels column), grids, and layouts associated with the Incident module:

Incident Form and Grid Objects

The following table shows the Forms (Panels), Grids, and Layouts associated with the tabs in the Incident workspace:

Master Business Object Panels Grids Layouts

Incident(Also see “Associated Objects Related to Incident Tabs” table below)

IncidentIncidentSummaryIncident.BriefIncidentHeaderResolutionDetails

IncidentOrderByBreachDateCIServiceMapIncidentHomepageIncidentIncidentSLAIncidentGroupByOwnerIncidentIncidentOrderByPriorityBreachIncidentResponseBreachSelfServiceIncidentSMHomepageIncidentIncidentMatchingforPM

SearchIncidentIncident



Associated Objects Related to Incident Tabs

Customize the Configuration

See the Foundation Administrator Guide for information about customizing forms, grids, and dashboards.

Incident Templates

Incident templates are designed to speed data entry in commonly completed Incident form fields. A template contains predefined content for one or more fields. When a user creates a new Incident and applies a template, the predefined content is transferred into the Incident record, and the user does not have to fill in the predefined areas manually. You can reconfigure existing templates or create new templates as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide. The Incident object can have any number of templates.

Tab Master Business Object

Activity History Journal

Journal.Email

Journal.Notes

Journal.VoiceActivity

Task TaskTask.AssignmentTask.PurchaseRequest

Attachment Attachment

Service Request ServiceReq

Resolution Incident

Asset CI.Switch

CI.FAX

CI.Rack

CI.Service

CI.Cluster

CI.VideoConference

CI.Server

Audit History AuditHistory

Escalation Watch Frs_data_escalation_watch

Survey Response FRS_SurveySession

Workflow Instance WorkflowInstance




The following default Incident templates are included with ITSM:

Account Lockout - Domain

Account Lockout - HR System

Cannot Access Drive X

Daily Backup Failure

Desktop Application Failure

Email - Cannot Open Outlook

Mobile Phone - Email Issue

No Dial Tone on my Phone

PC is Very Slow

Printer - Out of Toner

Printer - Paper Jam

Voicemail Problem

VPN Connection Failure

To see configuration details about these templates:

1. Access the Template Center by selecting Tools > Template Center in the main ITSM toolbar.

2. In the Template Center Associated With field, select Incident from the drop-down list.


You can edit, create, and delete Incident templates in the following ways:

From the Template Center.

From the Templates tab in Smart Client workspaces.



The actions that you can perform from these areas are as follows:

See the Foundation Administrator Guide for configuration procedure details.

Incident Matching

Incident matching is a specific configuration of the more general object matching feature. Incident matching provides a way for users working in an Incident form to search other Incidents, Problems, and Knowledge Center articles for keyword matches with the current Incident. Search results are ranked by how closely they match the search criteria. Results are displayed in the Search Results panel in the Incident workspace. All of these actions take place without the user leaving the current Incident form.

A default configuration (see “Default Configuration” on page 46) is provided so that Incident matching can be used as soon as ITSM is installed. To customize this configuration, follow the procedure for configuring object matching, using criteria that are specific to the Incident object as described in “Customize the Configuration” on page 47.


The default Incident matching configuration is as follows:

Object matching is enabled for the Incident object.

The Summary field is specified as the field that Incident matching searches are

based on, and the object matching icon appears next to it.

Manual Incident matching—in which a user can click the icon to initiate a

search—is enabled.

Automatic Incident matching—in which a search is executed when a user changes text in the Summary field—is enabled.

Individual words in the entire Summary field are used as the basis for an Incident matching search unless a user highlights just a portion of the Summary field text.

All Knowledge Center articles and the Summary and Description fields in the Incident and Problem tables are searched for matches with the current Incident.

Area

Template Action

Edit Create (New Design)

Create (Based on Existing Record)

Delete

Access Templates

for All Objects

Template Center X X X X X

Smart Client Templates Tab X X X



When Incident matching is invoked, text in the Summary field is parsed by the database and Knowledge engines.

Displayed search results are limited to 20 each from Incidents, Problems, and the Knowledge Center.

Search results are not filtered for matches with any additional fields.


You can configure Incident matching in the following ways:

Completely disable Incident matching.

Specify which field triggers a search.

Specify which objects are searched.

Change or delete the object matching icon.

Base Incident matching on highlighted text.

Disable automatic Incident matching.

Configure appearance and content of displayed results.

Specify actions to perform from displayed results.

Filter displayed results.

Incident matching is configured through:

The Application Administrator. See the Foundation Administrator Guide for configuration procedure details.

The Web administration interface. See “Working with Object Matching” on page 201 of this document for configuration procedure details.

Escalation

The Escalation Configuration Tool lets you define how Incidents, Tasks, and other items are escalated over time. An escalation is executed by the Escalation Engine when a triggering event occurs or condition exists.

Factors affecting escalation schedules can include hours of operation and service level agreements. Throughout the Incident Management process, users are notified when there is a change in the status of an Incident and when an Incident is resolved.

Escalation configurations define the following:

The business object and field that the escalation is based on. An escalation is based on the status of a specified field in a business object’s form. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is based on the value of the Status field in the Incident business object form.



How form events are mapped to escalation clock activity. Because escalations are time-based, each has an escalation clock that you can configure to run, stop, reset, and so on based on the status of the specified form field. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is configured so that when the Incident Status field is set to Resolved, the escalation clock starts running.

The number and target duration of escalation levels, and what action is taken when the target duration is exceeded. After the escalation clock starts, it runs for a specified period of time at one or more stages, or escalation levels. Escalation levels are defined by thresholds that must be reached to trigger a call for additional resources to meet a service level target or customer expectation.

When the duration at any level is exceeded, the Escalation Engine takes an action that you specify. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is configured so that if the escalation clock runs for more than one day, the Auto Close action is executed. You can configure up to three escalation levels for each escalation. Each level can have its own target duration and action when the target duration is exceeded.

Exceptions to field status that the escalation is based on. You can specify that different escalation levels be based on form fields other than the field that the escalation was based on originally. For example, you could specify that Level 2 of the Incident Closing escalation be based on the value of the Priority field instead of the Status field (which the escalation was originally based on).


ITSM includes the following predefined Incident escalations. Each escalation is based on the Incident Status field. You can modify these or configure new escalations as described in “Defining Escalations” on page 226.

Incident Closing. After an Incident has had a status of Resolved for seven days, the Auto Close for “Resolved” QuickAction is executed, and the Incident status changes to Closed.

Incident Resolution. Notification email is sent to an Incident owner and/or the owner’s team after an Incident has had a status of Active, Logged, and/or Waiting for 3rd Party for a pre-determined time period. These notifications are sent by the following QuickActions:

1st Escalation Notification Email for Incident

2nd Escalation Notification Email for Incident

3rd Escalation Notification Email for Incident

If the Incident is still not resolved after having had any combination of the statuses listed above for a total of five days, the Resolution Threshold Breach Notification Email for Incident QuickAction is executed, and notification email is sent to the Incident owner and the Incident team.

Incident Response. After an Incident has had a status of Logged for two days, the Response Threshold Breach Notification Email for Incident QuickAction is



executed, and notification email is sent to the Incident team so that an owner can be assigned.

Incident Waiting for Customer. After an Incident has had a status of Waiting for Customer for 28 days, the Auto Close for “Waiting for Customer” QuickAction is executed, and the Incident is closed.

Each escalation has three main configurable areas: schedule, threshold, and exceptions. The following sections describe how each area is configured for each predefined Incident escalation.

Schedule

The following table shows the schedule configurations for the predefined Incident escalations.

NOTES

Incident status values of Waiting for Customer and Waiting for Resolution are “on-hold” values, meaning that the SLA clock stops when an Incident has one of these status values. The SLA clock will automatically restart when any other status value is selected.

Each Incident record optionally has a primary Configuration Item, selected from a constrained list of computer or hardware items within the CMDB.

Table 2 Incident escalation default settings

Incident Closing

Incident Resolution

Incident Response

Incident Waiting for Customer

Status Field Value and Escalation Clock Action

Active Pause Run Completed Pause

Closed Completed Completed Completed Completed

Logged Pause Run Run Pause

Resolved Run Pause Completed Pause

Waiting for 3rd party Pause Run Completed Pause

Waiting for customer Pause Pause Completed Reset and Run

Waiting for resolution

Pause Pause Completed Pause

Secondary Clock? No. No. No. No.

Action When this Esc. Schedule Replaces Existing Esc. Schedule

Reset clock to zero.

Recalculate clock from object creation time.


Reset clock to zero.

Link Field for Escalation Watches ClosingEscLink

ResolutionEscLink

ResponseEscLink

WaitingEscLink



Threshold

A threshold is a time limit that—when exceeded, or breached—triggers a QuickAction. You can configure a threshold’s time limit (target time), the QuickAction that is triggered, and other parameters as described in “Define Escalation Lifecycles” on page 228.

Refer to the information available in the Web administration interface for details about default Incident escalation thresholds.

Exceptions

An exception is a modified threshold setting that is based on another field in an Incident form. For example, the Incident Waiting for Customer escalation is based on the Incident Status field and is configured to close an Incident after 28 days if a customer does not respond to a request for information. However, you could define an exception based on the Priority field so that the Incident remains open for a longer time if it has a Priority of 1. See “Set Exceptions” on page 229 for more information.

Refer to the information available in the Web administration interface for details about default Incident exception settings.


Chapter 3

Enable Service Requests through the Incident Module

Overview

This chapter describes how to configure the Incident module to support Service Requests through both the Smart Client and Self Service. This configuration is appropriate for environments that need basic Service Request features but do not have the Request Fulfillment module or the Service Catalog installed.

After this configuration is enabled:

Smart client users, typically Service Desk Analysts (SDAs), can place, track, and update Service Requests (see “Smart Client” on page 52).

Self Service users logged in under the Self Service User role can place, track, and update Service Requests (see “Self Service” on page 52).

A default workflow manages the request fulfillment (see “Workflow” on page 54).

NOTES

Unless otherwise noted, the term Service Request used throughout this chapter refers to an Incident that has been configured to duplicate Service Request functionality. These “Service Requests” are processed by the Incident module together with other Incidents.

Updates to Service Requests through the Smart Client can include the full range of activities that an SDA would perform while resolving any Incident (such as creating tasks, implementing changes, and so on). See “Work with Incidents” in the ITSM User Guide for a description of those activities.

Updates to Service Requests through Self Service are limited to the addition of notes and attachments.

You must manually create and configure a form for each type of Service Request that you plan to make available to end users.


Chapter 3: Enable Service Requests through the Incident Module

Smart Client

This section describes the Smart Client features that are available after you perform the configuration described in this chapter.

When a Service Request is created and viewed through the Smart Client Incident module, a category-specific form becomes available in the Incident Detail tab when the category is selected. For example, if you select Account Lockout in the Category field in an Incident form, the Incident Detail tab is added next to the Incident form’s Details tab (Figure 13). This occurs because the Account Lockout category is preconfigured to enable a category-specific form.

Figure 13 Category-specific Incident Detail tab and form for the Account Lockout category

The Incident Detail tab can contain any information that you configure it to (typically information similar to that in a Service Request form).

NOTE

Some default Incident categories (such as Account Lockout and Website Failure) already have category-specific forms that are used in both the Smart Client and Self Service. As you perform the configuration described in this chapter, you can refer to those categories for additional implementation examples.

Self Service

This section describes the Self Service features that are available after you perform the configuration described in this chapter.



When a Self Service user logs in under the Self Service User role, a Service Request can be placed using the New Incident button (Figure 14) that is available from these locations:

An Incident detail form accessed from the Incident page.

An Incident detail form accessed from the New Incident link in the Commonly Reported Issues area in the Self Service User home page.

Figure 14 Incident and Service Request templates in Self Service

The drop-down list in the button displays available Incident templates. Service Request templates that you configure as described in this chapter are also available for a user to select from the list.

When a Service Request is created as shown in Figure 14, a Request Detail tab (Figure 15) displays fields for the requester to fill in. When the Service Request is viewed later, the tab is still visible but is read-only so that a Self Service user cannot change the information while an SDA is working to fulfill the request through the Smart Client.



Figure 15 Child object (Request Detail) displays in Self Service Incident form

Workflow

When a Service Request is submitted, the Default Incident Detail workflow is triggered. This workflow creates a task for the default team, waits for the task to finish, and then updates the Service Request status to Resolved.

NOTE

The Default Incident Detail workflow can be triggered only if the IncidentDetail.WorkflowTag field is set. This field comes with a preconfigured setting that allows Default Incident Detail to be triggered.



Configuration Procedure

Enabling Service Requests through the Incident module involves the following overall steps:

1. Use the ITSM application administrator to:

a. Create a Business Object for a category-specific form in the IncidentDetail group and make the new form available in an Incident form tab as shown in Figure 13. See “Smart Client Configuration” on page 55.

b. Optionally reconfigure tab visibility and content. See “Reconfigure Tab Visibility (Optional)” on page 58.

2. Use the Web administration interface to:

a. Create category-specific forms in Self Service and associate them with Incident views. See “Create Forms and Associate them with Incident Views” on page 59.

b. Configure category-specific Self Service templates and associate them with the Incident object. See “Configure Templates” on page 62.

c. Optionally configure object matching for use in Self Service Incident and Service Request forms. See “Configure Object Matching in Self Service (Optional)” on page 65.

d. Optionally reconfigure the Default Incident Detail workflow. See “Reconfigure the Default Incident Detail Workflow (Optional)” on page 65.

The following sections describe these procedures in detail. Procedures are mandatory unless otherwise noted.

Smart Client Configuration

To create a category-specific form to use for Service Requests in the Smart Client, you must create and configure a new business object in the IncidentDetail group using the Application Administrator as described in the following procedure. When you are done, the form displays in a new tab similar to that shown in Figure 13 when you select the category in an Incident form.

NOTE

For information about configuring other aspects of Incident categories, see Chapter 2, “Incident Configuration.”

1. Open the ITSM Application Administrator and navigate to your system’s definition set.

2. Open the definition set in the Definition Set editor.

3. Set the navigation pane to View Master Business Objects. Scroll to the Incident business object, right-click, and select Add Business Object. The Business Object Wizard opens.



4. Click Next in the Welcome page.

5. Select Member of Existing Group in the Type Selection page and click Next.

6. Scroll to and select IncidentDetail in the Business Object Group page. Click Next.

7. Type a name of your choice in the Name field in the Name and Description page. For example, if you are creating a form for the Connectivity category, you could name the business object “Connectivity.” Optionally type a description (Figure 16). Click Next.

Figure 16 New business object name and description

8. Accept the defaults in the Business Object Use page and click Next.

9. Click Finish in the Congratulations page. The new business object (for example, IncidentDetail.Connectivity) displays in the Application Administrator navigation pane.

10. Right-click the new business object in the navigation pane and select Edit Business Object.

11. In the resulting dialog, under the Basics tab select the check box for Different display name. The field below the check box becomes active. Enter a display name here that matches the category name (for example, Connectivity; Figure 17).

NOTE

The display name needs to match the category name, but does not need to match the Business Object name. For example, if the category is “Phone Number Change,” the Business Object can have any name (for example, “PhoneNoChange”), but the display name should be “Phone Number Change.”



Figure 17 Business object display name for category-specific form

12. Click Close.

13. If necessary, add, edit, or delete fields in new business object as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide. The default fields created for the business object are inherited from the object group. For example, IncidentDetail.Connectivity inherits the fields from IncidentDetail.

NOTE

See the IncidentDetail.AccountLockout and IncidentDetail.WebsiteFailure Business Objects for form configuration examples.

14. Save and commit the definition set. After the definition set is committed, you are prompted to convert the changes and apply them to Self Service (Figure 18). Answer Yes to this prompt.

Figure 18 Convert the definition set for Self Service

The category-specific form will now open in a new Incident Detail tab when the category is selected in an Incident form in the Smart Client.

15. Proceed to one of these sections and continue from there:

“Reconfigure Tab Visibility (Optional)” on page 58.

“Self Service Configuration” on page 59.



Reconfigure Tab Visibility (Optional)

Visibility of category-specific Incident Detail tabs in the Smart Client (Figure 13) is controlled by the Incident.IsIncidentDetail field, which comes with a preconfigured setting. This is a calculated field that is set according to the Incident Detail Tab Visibility rule. If the rule evaluates to True, a tab displays. If it evaluates to False, a tab does not display. To change these settings:

1. In the Definition Set editor navigation pane, scroll to and expand Incident.

2. Expand Fields.

3. Right-click IsIncidentDetail and select Edit Field.

4. Select the Advanced tab.

5. Take one of the following actions:

Delete the rule on the tab or field to make the tab always visible, or

Click Incident - Incident Detail Tab Visibility to open the rule for editing and edit as needed to modify the evaluation logic used in the rule.

6. Optionally select criteria for recalculating the value (Always, Never, or Only if the value is empty) as needed.

Tab Label

The label of a category-specific tab in the Smart Client is controlled through Incident(Layout). The default label for a category-specific tab is Incident Detail.

To use the Tab Editor to edit the default tab label:

1. In the Definition Set editor navigation pane, scroll to and expand Incident.

2. Expand Displays.

3. Double-click Incident(Layout).

4. Click the Incident Detail tab to the right of the Details tab to highlight it.

5. Right-click in the Incident Detail tab and select Tab Properties (Figure 19). The tab opens in the Tab Editor.

Figure 19 Open the Incident Detail tab for editing

6. Edit tab label as necessary in the Tab Editor.



Self Service Configuration

NOTES

The procedures in this section require that the procedure for creating a category-specific form in the Smart Client (described in “Smart Client Configuration” on page 55) be completed first.

The examples used in this section are continuations of the examples from the Smart Client procedure.

Create Forms and Associate them with Incident Views

1. In the Web administration interface, open the Application Configuration > Business Objects page:

a. Click the Business Objects tab under the Application Configuration tab.

b. In the Business Objects page, click View All on the right side of the screen. A master list of all Business Objects displays.

2. Scroll to and select the Business Object that you created in the Smart Client procedure described in “Smart Client Configuration” on page 55 (for example, IncidentDetail.Connectivity). The Business Object’s Details page displays (Figure 20).

Figure 20 IncidentDetail.Connectivity details page

3. Click the Forms tab and click Add New. The Form Editor opens.



4. Construct one or more forms as necessary; see “Using the Form Editor” on page 191 for more information. These are the Service Request forms that will display in the Request Detail tab within an Incident form in Self Service.

NOTES

It is recommended that you construct two forms that are identical in appearance. One form will be writeable by Self Service users, and the other will be read-only. The writeable form will be displayed to capture information when the Service Request is first created, and the read-only form will be displayed while the Service Request is being resolved. This prevents a Self Service user from changing information in the form when the Service Request is updated by an SDA through the Incident module in the Smart Client.

The example used in this procedure assumes that two hypothetical forms — IncidentDetail.Connectivity(writeable) and IncidentDetail.Connectivity(read.only) — are created in this step. These files are referenced in step 9 and step 15 later in this procedure.

5. Return to the Application Configuration > Business Objects page and select Incident.

6. Click the BO Layouts tab. In the resulting list of Incident layouts, click Incident. The Layout Editor opens for the Incident object (Figure 21).

Figure 21 Incident Layout Editor

7. Click formViewNew in the list of views. This is the Incident view that is writeable by Self Service users and is displayed when an Incident is first created. The view opens in the Form View Editor.



8. In the Child Panel list at the bottom of the page, locate the row that has IncidentDetail in the Object column. In this row, click the link located in the Form(s) column (Figure 22).

Figure 22 Child panels for formViewNew

9. The Form Selection dialog displays showing all of the IncidentDetail Business Objects, including the object that you just created (IncidentDetail.Connectivity in this example).

In the row for this object (e.g., IncidentDetail.Connectivity), click <Not Set>. In the resulting drop-down list, select the form that you created in step 4 that you want to associate with the formViewNew view for Incident. If you created identical writeable and read-only forms, select the writeable form here (Figure 23) and click OK.

Figure 23 Associate a form with an object for the formViewnew view

10. Save your changes in the Incident Layout Editor (click the Save button above the editor area) and return to the BO Layouts tab.

11. Click Incident just as you did in step 6.

12. In the Incident Layout Editor (Figure 21), click formViewEdit in the list of views. This is the Incident view that is read-only and is displayed when Incident resolution is in progress. The view opens in the Form View Editor.

13. Repeat step 8.



14. In the row for the new Business Object (IncidentDetail.Connectivity), click <Not Set>. In the resulting drop-down list, select the form that you created in step 4 that you want to associate with the formViewEdit view for Incident. If you created identical writeable and read-only forms, select the read-only form here and click OK.

15. Save your changes in the Incident Layout Editor (click the Save button above the editor area) and close the Business Object Layout: Incident and Business Object: Incident tabs.

16. Go to the next section (“Configure Templates”) and continue from there.

Configure Templates

Associate the new Business Object (e.g., IncidentDetail.Connectivity) with the Incident object and optionally configure the templates for Incident and the new Business Object as follows. When you are done, the form for the new Business Object (IncidentDetail.Connectivity) is contained in the Incident form.

1. Open the Quick Actions Center:

a. In the Web administration interface, go to Application Configuration > Overview.

b. Click the Quick Actions link on the right side of the screen.

2. Scroll to the Incident Business Object and click Form Quick Actions.

3. In the Actions Manager pane (Figure 24), select an existing Incident template or create a new Incident template to associate the new Business Object (IncidentDetail.Connectivity) with:

To edit a template, double-click an existing Incident template in the Templates section, or

To create a new template, click the Add Group/Quick Action button in the toolbar and select Template.

The Quick Action - Template wizard opens.



Figure 24 Create or edit an Incident template to include the new form

4. Fill in fields in the Quick Action - Template wizard General page as follows:

Name. Specify or edit a template name.

Category. Select Templates.

Publish action to. Select Self Service User. Do not select other users; only the Self Service User home page is designed to support this configuration.

Hide from UI. Leave unchecked to make the template visible.

Confirm before run. Select as necessary to require user confirmation.

Confirmation Prompt. Type the confirmation message if confirmation is required.

Click Next.

5. In the Update Object Configuration page, select which fields will be visible in the Incident form, which fields will be prepopulated, and what information will be used to fill them in.

Click Next.

6. Use the Additional Actions page to add and configure a child object:

If you are creating a new Incident template, click Add New > Insert Child Object.

If you are editing an existing Incident template, highlight the InsertChildObject action and click the Edit button.

When the Insert Child Object wizard starts, use it as follows to associate the new Business Object (IncidentDetail.Connectivity) with this Incident template. After the child object is associated with this Incident template, it will display within the template based on the conditions that you specify here.

a. In the General page, fill in fields as you did in step 4 of this procedure.

Click Next.



b. In the Insert Child Object Configuration page:

• In the Select Child Object Type field, select the type that contains the new Business Object. For example, to add the IncidentDetail.Connectivity child object, select IncidentContainsIncidentDetail:IncidentDetail#Connectivity.

• In the list of form fields, select which fields will be visible in the child object (IncidentDetail.Connectivity) form, which fields will be prepopulated, and what information will be used to fill them in (for example, as shown Figure 25.)

Figure 25 Specify child object type and fields

• Click Next.

c. In the Save Behavior Configuration page, fill in save actions and criteria for hiding and disabling this QuickAction as necessary.

Click Save. The Insert Child Object wizard closes and you are returned to the Quick Action - Template wizard.

7. Click Next in the Quick Action - Template Additional Actions page.

8. In the Save Behavior Configuration page, fill in save actions and criteria for hiding and disabling this QuickAction as necessary.

9. Click Save.

Now, when a Self Service user who is logged in under the Self Service User role creates a new Incident, the Service Request template that you created is available in the drop-down list in the New Incident button as shown in Figure 14.



Also, when the issue is viewed in the Incident details page in Self Service, the child object form displays in the Request Detail tab (Figure 15). Note that the Created By and Created On fields in Figure 15 were configured as shown in Figure 25.

Configure Object Matching in Self Service (Optional)

Perform the following steps to enable and configure object matching in Self Service. After you are done, a Self Service user filling in a Service Request form can click the object matching icon next to the Summary field to display related items (Figure 26).

Figure 26 Object matching in Self Service (object workspace)

1. In the Web administration interface, open the Application Configuration > Business Objects page.

2. In the list of Business Objects, scroll to and select Incident.

3. Click the BO Layouts tab. In the resulting list of Incident layouts, click Incident. The Layout Editor opens for the Incident object (Figure 21).

4. Click formViewNew in the list of views. This is the Incident view that is writeable by Self Service users and is displayed when a Service Request is first created. The view opens in the Form View Editor.

5. Click the check box for Enable Matching panel.

6. Click Edit Matching Settings and configure object matching as described in “Working with Object Matching” on page 201.

Reconfigure the Default Incident Detail Workflow (Optional)

Perform the following steps to access the Workflow Designer to reconfigure the Default Incident Detail workflow.

1. In the Web administration interface, open the Application Configuration > Business Objects page.

2. Click the View Workflows button on the right side of the screen.



3. In the Incident section, click Default Incident Detail Workflow.

4. In the resulting list of workflow versions, click the edit (pencil) icon in the row for the currently published version (the row that is highlighted in green). The workflow opens in the Workflow Designer.

5. Edit the workflow as necessary as described in “Defining Workflows” on page 204.


Chapter 4

Service Catalog Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the Service Catalog by using the Self Service interface to create services, request offerings, service level packages, and service level agreements.

NOTE

The Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module must be installed before you can perform any of the procedures described in this chapter.

After you create services, request offerings, and service level packages, a Business Unit Manager can subscribe to your service level packages to make your request offerings available to end users through the Service Catalog.

Overview

Configuring the Service Catalog involves the following steps.

NOTE

See Chapter 7, “Service Level Management Configuration,”for definitions of the terms used here.

1. Create a service (see “Create Services” on page 72). Specify characteristics that define a service. These characteristics are inherited by all service level packages and request offerings that are linked to the service. Specifically:

Service name, provider, and owner.

Status, which states whether the service is under design, in production, and so on.

Service type.

Service hours of operation.

Descriptions and summaries that provide additional details, and in some cases are displayed in the Services list view.


Chapter 4: Service Catalog Configuration

2. Create request offerings (see “Create Request Offerings” on page 73). After a service is defined, end users do not see or request the service itself. Instead, they select from a list of request offerings, which are features that you define and make available to them through the Service Catalog.

3. Define service level packages (see “Create and Link Service Level Packages” on page 99). Specify additional characteristics that define how a service is offered to subscribers. A service level package is based on one service, from which it inherits general characteristics such as owner, provider, and so on.

A service can have multiple service level packages. For example, you could define service level packages named “Gold,” “Silver,” and “Bronze” for a service, each with a different price, response time, hours of operation, and so on.

The service level package characteristics that you define include:

Package name.

Status.

The service that the package is based on.

Price.

Hours of operation.

Target times for Service Request delivery, Incident response, and Incident resolution.

Dates for package review and expiration.

Links to request offerings.

4. Optional: Adjust links between service level packages and a service (see “Link Service Level Packages to a Service” on page 102). This step is necessary only if you want to change the link that you established when you created a service level package.

5. Link request offerings to a service level package (see “Link Request Offerings to a Service Level Package” on page 102). After you define a service level package, you must link it to one or more request offerings. When a link is established, the request offering is included in the service level package. When a Business Unit Manager subscribes to the service level package, the request offering is made available to end users.

6. Subscribe to service level packages and create service level agreements (see “Create and Modify Service Level Agreements” on page 103). Request offerings are available to end users after you create a service level agreement by subscribing to a service level package.

View Services and Service Level Packages

Perform the following steps to display, navigate, and work with services and service level packages.



Services1. Log in to Self Service under the Administrators or Service Owner role. The Self

Service home page displays.

2. Click the Services tab. The Services workspace opens displaying a list view of available services in the top pane and details about the highlighted service in the bottom pane (Figure 27).

Figure 27 Services workspace

3. Double-click a service in the list to display the details page for that service (Figure 28) or click New Service to create a service (see “Create Services” on page 72 for more information).



Figure 28 Service details

From the service details screen you can:

Return to the Services workspace (Figure 27) by clicking List View.

Bookmark the service by clicking Bookmark.

Edit the QuickActions available from the Action menu by clicking Edit Actions.

Use the Details tab to edit the service definition details displayed in the Services workspace (Figure 27). See “Create Services” on page 72 for more information.

Use the Request Offering tab to:

• See which request offerings are based on this service.

• Click the Go to button to open the main Request Offerings workspace.

Use the Service Level Package tab to:

• See which service level packages are based on this service.

• Create a new service level package based on this service.

• Delete a service level package.



• Click the Go to button to open a service level package for editing in the main Service Level Package workspace.

See “Create and Link Service Level Packages” on page 99 for more information.

Use the Service Desk Category tab to manage the service categories that are available for Incidents. You can:

• Link a service to an existing category.

• Create a new category that you can link this and other services to.

• Specify that the category be available in the Problem module in addition to the Incident module.

The categories that you create and link here are displayed in the Category field drop down list in Smart Client Incident forms (Figure 29).

Figure 29 Service categories in Smart Client Incident form

Service Level Packages1. Log in to Self Service under the Administrators or Service Owner role. The Self

Service home page displays.

2. If the Service Level Package tab does not display in the workspace tab bar, click the down arrow located at the left end of the workspace tab bar. In the resulting menu, select More > Service Level Package. The Service Level Package tab now displays in the workspace tab bar and the Service Level Package workspace opens.

The Service Level Package workspace displays a list view of available service level packages in the top pane and details about the highlighted service level package in the bottom pane.

3. Double click a service level package in the list to display the details page for that package.

From the service level package detail screen you can:



Specify service level package details, including which service and request offering(s) a service level package is linked to.

Specify targets for:

• Service Request delivery

• Incident response

• Incident resolution

See which service level agreements are based on the service level package.

Link and unlink request offerings.

See “Create and Link Service Level Packages” on page 99 for more information.

Create Services

This section describes how to create services by specifying information in the Details tab of the service details screen. After a service is created, create request offerings (this step includes linking one or more request offerings to the service) as described in “Create Request Offerings” on page 73 and create and link one or more service level packages based on the service as described in “Create and Link Service Level Packages” on page 99.

Perform the following steps to create services.

1. Log in to Self Service under the Administrators or Service Owner role. The Self Service home page displays.

2. Click the Services tab. The Services workspace displays (Figure 27).

3. Click the New Service button. The service details screen displays (Figure 28).

4. Fill in the fields in the Service Information form under the Details tab as follows:

Status. Select one of the following statuses for the service:

• Design

• Planned

• Production

• Retired

• Transition

Name. Type a service name of your choice.

Provider. Select a group or individual who is responsible for providing the service.

Owner. Select a group or individual from the drop down list.

Type of Service. Select the type of service from the drop down list.



Hours of Operation. Select 24 x 7, Weekly HOP, or Weekly8x4 (see “Define Hours of Operation” on page 27 for more information).

Summary. Type a short summary description of the service.

Description. Type a detailed description of the service.

Value Proposition. Type additional information about how the service benefits a user.

Price Description. Type information about pricing structure.

Stakeholder. This field is populated from the Owner field.

Attachment.

5. Click Save and proceed to the next section (“Create Request Offerings”).

Create Request Offerings

This section describes how to configure request offerings and make them available to end users. For example, one of the predefined ITSM services is Mobile Communications. However, end users cannot place requests for the Mobile Communications service. Instead, they can select request offerings such as Mobile Phone Request and Mobile Smartphone Request from the Service Catalog. These request offerings are based on the Mobile Communications service, but have different costs, fulfillment workflows, and other aspects of the service.

The main steps in this process are:

1. Define the request offering (see "Define Request Offerings" (see page 4-74)). Specify a name, the service that the offering is based on, category, description, price, and other information about the request offering.

2. Define the request form (see “Design Request Forms” on page 76). Create headings, define form fields and check boxes, and provide images for the form that an end user fills out to request the offering.

3. Define the request fulfillment method (see “Define Request Fulfillment Method” on page 92). Specify whether fulfillment is done through email or a multi-step workflow when an end user submits the request form.

4. Define how the request offering is published (see “Define Publishing Parameters” on page 94). Specify how wide of an audience the request form is published to.

NOTE

The term request offering is not typically used in end-user interfaces and documentation. In those situations, the term request item is used. The two terms are interchangeable.



Define Request Offerings

Perform the following steps to access the Request Offerings workspace and create or edit a request offering definition.

1. Log in to Self Service under the Administrators or Service Owner role. The Self Service home page displays.

2. Click the Request Offerings tab. The Request Offerings workspace displays (Figure 30).

Figure 30 Request Offerings workspace

The Browse by Category pane on the left side of the screen contains the same categories that are displayed in the Browse by Category pane in the Service Catalog.

The main workspace pane in the center of the screen displays a grid containing the first page of request offering templates. Template names are the same as the request form names displayed in the Service Catalog. If necessary, specify a search string (request offering name and summary fields are searched) and filter the list by service type and status.

3. To open an existing request offering to edit its definition, click the request offering name located in the Name column. To define a new request offering, click the New Request Offering button. The request offering wizard opens with the Define Request Offering page displayed (Figure 31).



Figure 31 Define request offering page

As you work in the request offering wizard, you can go to the page for any wizard step by clicking the page name (Figure 32) or by using the Back and Next buttons at the bottom of the page (Figure 33). Your entries persist as you move from page to page, but the request offering is not saved until you click the Save button.

Figure 32 Request offering wizard navigator

Figure 33 Request offering wizard controls

4. In the Service field, select which service this request offering is affiliated with. For example, if you were defining the Request Mobile Phone offering, you would select the Mobile Communication service in this field.

5. In the Name field, provide a name for the request offering (for example, Request Mobile Phone). This is the name that end users see in the Service Catalog.

6. In the Delivery Item field, state what physical items are delivered to the requester (for example, Mobile phone).

7. In the Category field, specify where the request offering will reside in the Service Catalog tree structure (that is, the structure that displays in the Browse by Category pane in the Service Catalog):

a. Click the Category field.



b. In the resulting navigation dialog, go to the directory of your choice (for example, Communication Services > Mobile Phone Service).

c. Optionally add more categories (request offerings can belong to more than one category).

8. In the Price and Recurring Price fields, specify the cost of this request offering:

Price is the cost per request.

Recurring Price is a time-based cost (for example, per month).

The price that you specify here is different from the price of the service (the service price is incurred when the service is subscribed to as described in “Create and Modify Service Level Agreements” on page 103).

9. In the Description field, write a brief description of the request offering. This is the description that end users see underneath the request offering name in the Service Catalog.

10. In the Deliver By field, specify the maximum delivery time for the delivery item and all of the services necessary to support it.

NOTE

See step 2 on page 95 for information about how the target specified in the Deliver By field relates to the service level targets that you specify in a service level package.

11. After filling in all of the necessary information on this page, click Next to go to the next step in the wizard (Design Request Form).

Design Request Forms

After you define a request offering as described in the previous section, use the request form designer to create or edit the form that end users fill out to request the offering. You can create a form of your own design, or - if templates are available - you can base the form on a template.

Perform the following steps to create a form:

1. If you have not already accessed the request form designer, do so now by clicking the tab for wizard step 2, Design Request Form (Figure 34).

Figure 34 Design Request Form tab

The request form designer displays (Figure 35).



Figure 35 Request form designer

2. Optional: Change the image that is displayed for the request offering in the main Service Catalog menu by clicking Change Photo and selecting a new image from the resulting navigation dialog.

3. Optional: To base the form on a template, open the Templates tab in the Form Designer Tools pane (Figure 36) to see your template choices and make a selection.

4. Optional: If you plan to attach documents, images, or other files to the form when you customize form controls as described in “Customize Request Forms” on page 80, you must first import the attachment files through the Attachments tab in the Form Designer Tools pane (Figure 36).

Figure 36 Form Designer Tools pane

5. Select the Controls tab in the Form Designer Tools pane to display the menu of form controls that you can drag and drop on to the form (Figure 37).



Figure 37 Control menu in the Form Designer Tools pane

6. Construct or edit the form by double-clicking controls on the Control menu or dragging and dropping controls on to the form. If you are dragging and dropping controls, the first control that you drop on to the form must be located directly on top of the blue bar labelled “Drag items to this panel” (Figure 38).

Figure 38 Drop location of first control

Figure 39 and Figure 40 show examples of each control that you can put into a form. Description entries are optional. If you leave them empty, they do not display in the finished form.

Optional: Edit the configuration of controls that you placed into the form (for example, some controls can be configured to display dynamically based on object status and other conditions). Click the edit icon next to a control in the form to open



the Item Configuration Editor and follow the instructions in “Customize Request Forms” on page 80.

Figure 39 Example controls

Figure 40 Example controls (continued)

7. Optional: By default, forms use a single-column layout. To change to a two- or three-column layout, click Choose a style (above the upper-right corner of the request form) and select a new layout (Figure 41).



Figure 41 Style layout

8. After completing a draft of the form, click Preview (above the upper-right corner of the request form) to see how it will look when an end user opens it in the Service Catalog. To make further changes, repeat any of the steps in this section. To go to the next wizard screen, click Next.

Customize Request Forms

After you place controls into a request form as described in “Design Request Forms” on page 76, you can configure them as described in this section. To configure a control,

access the Item Configuration Editor (Figure 42) by clicking the (edit) icon next to a control in the form.

Figure 42 Item Configuration Editor



The following table summarizes the control features that you can configure. For details about how to perform each configuration, see the page shown in the More Information column.

Table 3 Request form configuration

Control Feature Applicable Controls More Information

Specify a default value • Check Box

• Text or Number Field

• Text Area

• Dropdown Selection

• Date Field

• Date/Time Field

• Time Field

page 82

Specify pick list details • Dropdown Selection

page 83

Specify image details • Image page 85

Specify control visibility • Check Box


• Text Area


• Date Field

• Date/Time Field

• Time Field

• Image

page 86

Specify a unique ID for a control • All controls page 87

Make a control read-only • Check Box


• Text Area


• Date Field

• Date/Time Field

• Time Field

• Image

page 87



Specify a Default Value

Perform the following steps to set a static or dynamically generated default value for a request form field:

1. In the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Default Value area (Figure 43).

Figure 43 Default Value area

2. Select an option as follows:

None. The field does not have a default value.

Value. Type a static value or select an object from the drop down list. If you select an object, you can view (and optionally edit) the expression that uses it by

Specify a required field • Text or Number Field

• Text Area


• Date Field

• Date/Time Field

• Time Field

page 88

Specify field data type (text or number) • Text or Number Field

page 89

Specify response value boundaries • Number field

• Date Field

• Date/Time Field

• Time Field

page 89 (Number field)

page 89 (All other fields)

Add a dividing line between form sections

• Category Heading page 91

Display categories on separate form pages

• Category Heading page 91

Indent a field • All controls page 91

Table 3 Request form configuration

Control Feature Applicable Controls More Information



clicking the Expression button (see the following section for more information).

Expression. Select an object to use as the basis for dynamically setting the default value:

• In the Triggered by field, the drop down list displays other fields (if any) in the request form that use validation lists. If you select a field, the business object associated with the validation list for that field displays in the navigation area. You can then navigate that business object and select a child object to use in the expression for the current field’s default value.

• In the navigation area, expand the folder containing the object that will be the basis of the default value. For example, to use the current user’s first name as the default for this field, select the Current User folder in the Dropdown Selection control shown in Figure 44.

• Double click an object (for example, Current User: First Name) to create the expression that will be used to generate the default value based on the object. The expression displays in the expression editor to the left of the navigation area. Items in the current request form are contained in the This Form folder and can also be used to generate a default value.

3. Click OK.

Figure 44 Dynamically generated default value

Specify Pick List Details

You can create a pick list so that it is based on a custom list of items that you define or is generated dynamically based on a validation list (see the Foundation Administrator Guide for information about configuring validation lists). You can optionally associate each custom list item with an image so that an item’s image displays when a user selects the item.

Perform the following steps to create a pick list:

1. In the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Pick List area (Figure 45).



Figure 45 Pick List area


Custom. Define the items on a custom pick list and optionally associate some or all of them with images (Figure 46):

• Click the plus icon to create a new list item.

• In the Option name field, type the item as it will appear on the pick list.

• In the Price field, optionally type a price for the item.

• In the Image file field, optionally select an image from the drop down list. Images are available only if you have already added them to the Attachment repository through the Form Designer Tools Attachment tab.

• Click the plus icon to add more list items as necessary.

Figure 46 Static pick list with prices and images

Validation List. In the Validation List to Use field, select a validation list from the drop down list (Figure 47).



Figure 47 Dynamic pick list based on a validation list

3. Click OK.

Specify Image Details

When you use the Image control to display an image as a field, you can specify a file to use for a static image and/or a field on the current form to use as the basis for a dynamically generated image. You can also specify image height and width, and whether it has a border.

Perform the following steps to specify image details:

1. Open the Item Configuration Editor for an Image control and expand the Field Options area (Figure 45).

Figure 48 Field Options area for the Image control

2. Specify static or dynamic image options as follows:

• Static image. Select an image file from the drop down list in the Static/default image field. Images are available only if you have already added them to the Attachment repository through the Form Designer Tools Attachment tab.

• Dynamic image. In the Trigger field from which to dynamically set image field, select the field from the current form that will determine which image file is used.

NOTE

The drop down list in this field is based on one or more pick lists that 1) are defined in Dropdown Selection controls on the current request form, and 2) are configured to use images as shown in Figure 46. At least one such pick list must exist on this form in order for the field described here to display a populated drop down list.



3. Specify image dimensions (in pixels) in the Max Width and Max Height fields. These fields can have a maximum value of 250.

4. Select whether the image will have a border.

5. Click OK.

Specify Control Visibility

You can specify whether a control is visible all of the time, none of the time, or part of the time based on an expression.

1. In the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Visible area (Figure 49).

Figure 49 Visible area


Yes. The field is visible all of the time.

No. The field is never visible (that is, it is not used on the form). This setting is typically used for test or temporary fields that should not be shown to end users.

Expression. Select an object to use as the basis for dynamically setting visibility.

• In the navigation area, expand the folder containing the object that will be the basis of the visibility setting. For example, to use the current form’s Computer Type field to control whether the current control is visible, navigate to This Form > Computer Type in the navigation area and double-click Computer Type.

• Edit the resulting expression so that it evaluates to true or false as necessary for your requirements (Figure 50). The control is visible when the expression evaluates to true.



Figure 50 Dynamically generated visibility setting

3. Click OK.

Specify a Unique ID for a Control

To specify a unique ID for a control so that the control can be referenced programmatically, open the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Properties area (Figure 51), and type an ID of your choice in the Unique ID field. Click OK.

NOTE

All form controls have a unique ID generated automatically. The configuration described here changes the generated value to a value of your choice. Any values that you specify must be unique within the request form.

Figure 51 Properties area

Make a Control Read-Only

To a control read-only, open the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Read-Only area (Figure 52), and select Yes. Click OK.

Figure 52 Read-Only area



This control is often used together with a Default Value based on an expression. For example, a control could be configured as follows so that it would be read-only and would contain the user’s Cost Center information by default (Figure 53):

Control type: Text Field

Read-Only: Yes

Default Value: Expression

Triggered by: a Dropdown Selection field named “Recipient”

Expression: $([Profile#Employee.]CostCentre)

Figure 53 Example read-only field with expression-based default

Specify a Required Field

You can specify whether a field enforces required input all of the time, none of the time, or part of the time based on an expression.

1. In the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Required area (Figure 54).

Figure 54 Required area

2. The options in the Required area operate in the same way as those in the Visibility area as described in “Specify Control Visibility” on page 86.

3. Click OK.



Specify a Field Data Type (Text or Number) and Numeric Constraints

When you use the Text or Number Field control, you must specify whether the field data type is alpha-numeric or numeric. For numeric fields, you can optionally set upper and lower boundaries for responses.

1. Open the Item Configuration Editor for a Text or Number Field control and expand the Field Options area (Figure 55).

Figure 55 Field Options area for the Number Field control

2. Select options as follows:

Alpha-numeric data type. Select Alpha-numeric from the Type field drop down list.

Numeric data type. Select Numeric only from the Type field drop down list. Use the resulting Min and Max fields to constrain response values.

3. Click OK.

Specify Response Value Boundaries (Date and Time Fields)

To set upper and lower boundaries for Date, Time, and Date/Time fields:

1. In the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Field Options area (Figure 56).



Figure 56 Field Options area (Date, Time, and Date/Time)

2. Expand the Lower bound area.

a. In the first field, select None to specify no boundary or >= to set a lower boundary.

b. If you specified >= in the first field, go to the second field and select a value as shown in Figure 57. Items in parentheses are date and time functions. Items not in parentheses are other fields on the form. Other fields are displayed only if they match the current field type. For example, if a Date field is being configured, only other Date fields are included in the list.

NOTE

For Date/Time fields only, you can specify the time component for a range as shown in Figure 56. For Date fields and Time fields, you can set only date and time, respectively.

Figure 57 Date/Time field constraint

c. In the third field, click + or - to toggle between adding and subtracting days and specify the number of days to add or subtract.

d. In the fourth field (if available), select a time.

3. Repeat the preceding steps for the Upper bound area.

4. Click OK.



Add a Dividing Line Between Sections

To insert a dividing line beneath a category heading:

1. Open the Item Configuration Editor for a Category Heading control and expand the Field Options area (Figure 58).

Figure 58 Field Options area (Category Heading)

2. Select Show a dividing line with this category section.

3. Click OK.

Display Categories on Separate Form Pages

To display a category on its own page in a form, select Create a new page with the category as shown in Figure 58. Selecting this option creates a request form with navigation controls as shown in Figure 59.

Figure 59 Multi-page request form with navigation controls

Indent a Field

To indent a field, open the Item Configuration Editor, expand the Field Options area, and select Indent this field on the form (Figure 60).



Figure 60 Indent a field

Define Request Fulfillment Method

After you define the request form as described in the previous section, use the Plan Request Fulfillment page to define how the requested items or services are delivered to the requester. You can specify one of the following:

No fulfillment. Select this option if:

You plan to use the Business Rules Engine (included as part of the ITSM Foundation) instead of the native Service Catalog Fulfillment Engine to perform fulfillment workflow for Service Requests.

No fulfillment activity is necessary (for example, if a request form includes an attachment that by itself meets all fulfillment criteria).

E-Mail. Select this option for requests that can be fulfilled by sending a single, preconfigured email message to one or more recipients. The email is sent automatically when a requester submits a request form. For example, if the service level agreement states that a third party is to perform all fulfillment tasks, this option provides a way to send email to the third party notifying them to perform those tasks.

Workflow. Select this option to create workflows that define tasks, ownership, and timing of multi-step fulfillment processes. A workflow is triggered automatically when a requester submits a request form. You create workflows using the ITSM workflow designer. Workflows are executed by the ITSM workflow engine.

The following sections describe how to configure the E-Mail and Workflow options.

Configure Fulfillment by Email

Perform the following steps to configure a request offering to use email fulfillment.

1. If you have not already accessed the Plan Request Fulfillment page of the request offering wizard, do so now by clicking the tab for that page (Figure 61).



Figure 61 Plan Request Fulfillment tab

The Plan Request Fulfillment page displays.

2. Select E-Mail from the dropdown list in the Fulfill As field. The email fulfillment template displays.

3. Fill in the email fulfillment template with the recipient’s email address (in the E-mail field), a subject, and the body of the message. If you are sending email to multiple recipients, separate their email addresses with semicolons.

4. Click Next to go to the next wizard screen to define publishing parameters.

Configure Fulfillment by Workflow

Perform the following steps to configure a request offering to use workflow fulfillment.

1. If you have not already accessed the Plan Request Fulfillment page of the request offering wizard, do so now as described in step 1 on page 92.

2. Select Workflow from the dropdown list in the Fulfill As field. The workflow designer opens (Figure 62).

Figure 62 Workflow designer (with no workflow)

The workflow designer is a graphical tool that allows you to drag and drop blocks to create a fulfillment workflow for a request offering. The workflow engine executes workflows created with the workflow designer.



3. Drag and drop blocks from the left panel into the main workflow panel to assemble the workflow, and complete the fields required for each block. See Chapter 8, “Web Administration Interface,”for details about these steps.

NOTE

When using the workflow designer through Self Service as described here, you cannot configure the triggering event for the workflow. All workflows designed through Self Service are triggered when an end user submits a request form through the Service Catalog.

The workflow that you create is automatically associated with the ServiceReq business object.

4. Click Next to go to the next wizard screen to define publishing parameters.

Define Publishing Parameters

After you define the request fulfillment method as described in the previous section, use the Publish Action page to specify whether to publish the request offering, and if so to how wide of an audience.

1. If you have not already accessed the Publish Action page of the request offering wizard, do so now by clicking the tab for that page (Figure 63).

Figure 63 Publish Action tab

The Publish Action page displays (Figure 64).



Figure 64 Publish action page

2. Specify whether to publish the request offering and if so, to how wide of an audience:

To keep the request offering unpublished so that you can continue to develop it, select Design Mode.

If the Service Level Management module is included in your installation (that is, if the SLA Subscription tab is available from the Self Service home page), select Publish and then use the SLA Subscription workspace to manage subscriptions. Under this scenario:

• The request offering is available only to the users and groups who are subscribed to the SLA that contains the request offering.

• The response and resolution targets that are defined in the service level package that the SLA is based on (see step 3 on page 101) take precedence over the targets defined in the request offering wizard (see step 10 on page 76)

If the Service Level Management module is not included in your installation (that is, if the SLA Subscription tab is not available from the Self Service home page), select Publish and Subscribe and specify a subscription audience:

• Corporate Organization: The request offering is made available to the entire organization shown at the top of the tree structure below the Selected Organizations option.



• Selected Organizations: The request offering is made available only to a portion of the organization. Click Select Organizational Unit to open the organization tree navigator and make your selection.

• The service level targets defined in the request offering wizard (see step 10 on page 76) are used.

Hide or Delete a Request Offering

After you create and publish a request offering, you can hide or delete it as follows:

Hide. Remove the request offering from the Service Catalog, but do not delete it from the system. To do this, select Design Mode in the Publish Action page as described in step 2 on page 95.

Delete. Remove the request offering from the system completely. To do this:

a. Put the request offering into Design Mode as described in step 2 on page 95.

b. In the main pane of the Request Offerings workspace (Figure 30 on page 74), locate the request offering and click the delete icon next to it.

CAUTION

When you delete a request offering, the fulfillment workflow associated with it is also deleted. If a request is in the process of being fulfilled when you delete its associated request offering, it cannot be fulfilled through the workflow that was originally set up for it. To avoid this situation, it is recommended that prior to deleting a request offering, you keep it in Design Mode for a period of time that is sufficient to ensure that the fulfillment workflows for all pending requests are able to complete.



Configure Default Request Offering Approver Settings

Default Service Catalog request offerings that require approval are configured so that the approver is the manager of the organizational unit that the requester belongs to. To view or change this configuration, you must use both the ITSM Smart Client Application Administrator and the Self Service Web administration interface as follows:

1. Open the ITSM Application Administrator and navigate to your system’s definition set.

2. Open the definition set in the Definition Set editor.

3. Set the navigation pane to View Master Business Objects. Scroll to and expand ServiceReq > Fields.

4. Double-click DefaultApprover.

5. In the resulting dialog, select the Autofill tab. The Autofill dialog displays (Figure 65).

Figure 65 Default Service Request approver setting (Smart Client)

6. Edit the approver settings as necessary and click Apply.



7. Save and commit the definition set.

8. Open the Self Service Web administration interface as described in “Access the Web Administration Interface” on page 176.

9. Under the Application Configuration tab, click Business Objects.

10. In the resulting page, click View All on the right side of the screen. Scroll to and click the ServiceReq business object.

11. Under the Business Object: ServiceReq tab, select Business Rules.

12. In the resulting ServiceReq - Business Rules page, scroll to the Editing Rules section (Figure 66).

Figure 66 Default Service Request approver setting (Web administration)

13. Edit the settings as necessary in the Whenever OrgUnitLink is changed set area. In the example shown here, the DefaultApprover setting is for the user’s login ID, and the DefaultApprover_Valid setting is for the user’s RecID.

14. Click the Save button under the Business Object: ServiceReq tab.

CAUTION

The default approver settings must be set to the same approver in both the Smart Client Application Administrator and the Web administration interface as described here. Configuring these areas differently from each other will result in Service Requests having different approvers depending on whether the request was placed through the Smart Client or through Self Service. Having different approvers in this manner is not a supported configuration.



Create and Link Service Level Packages

This section describes how to create service level packages and link them to services.

NOTE

The procedures described here require that you have a Service Level Management license so that you can access and use the Service Level Package and SLA Subscription workspaces.

After you create and link a service level package, a user logged in under the Business Unit Manager role can subscribe to it as described in “Create and Modify Service Level Agreements” on page 103.

When you define a service level package, you specify parameters such as hours of operation; target times for delivery, response, and resolution; pricing; and other factors. A service can have any number of service level packages linked to it. By varying the parameters in the service level packages linked to a service, you can offer different levels of service to different customers. For example, you could define service level packages named “Gold,” “Silver,” and “Bronze” for the Mobile Phone Request service, each with a different price, response time, hours of operation, and so on.

Creating a service level package involves the following overall tasks:

Specify service level package details, including which service a service level package is linked to.

Specify targets for:

Service Request delivery

Incident response

Incident resolution

The following sections describe these tasks in detail.

Define Service Level Package Details

Perform the following steps to define service level package details:

1. If you have not already done so, access the Services workspace as described in step 1 and step 2 in “View Services and Service Level Packages”.

2. In the list of available services, double-click the service that you will link a service level package to. The details page for the service displays.

3. Click the Service Level Package tab. The list of service level packages currently linked to the service displays.



NOTE

By default, each service has a service level package named Default.

4. Click New Record. The Service Level Package form displays.

5. Fill in the fields in the Service Level Package form as follows:

Name. Type a service level package name of your choice.

Description. Type a detailed description of the service level package.

Price. Specify the price charged when a Business Unit Manager subscribes to the service level package.

Description. Type a description of what features are included in the price.

Status. Select one of the following for the service level package:

• Draft. The service level package is not available for subscription.

• Published. The service level package is available for subscription.

• Expired. The service level package is not available for subscription because the date specified in the Expiration Date field has passed.

• Obsolete. The service level package is not available for subscription because it was discontinued (end-of-life status).

You can optionally search for a status name or partial name by clicking the search icon and specifying search criteria in the search form.

Service. Search for or enter the service that the service level package is based on and linked to. The service level package inherits the parameters (owner, provider, and so on) from the service named here.

Hours of Operation (HOP). Select on of the following:

• 24 x 7. 24 hours per day, seven days per week.

• Weekly HOP. Eight hours per day, Monday through Friday.

• Weekly 8 x 4. Eight hours per day, four days per week. Days can be specified.

Review Date. Specify the date prior to the expiration date by which the service level package must be reviewed for renewal.

• By default, the review date is the expiration date minus 30 days.

• Ten days prior to review date, email notification is sent to the account specified in the ServiceLevelManagerLoginID global value.

Expiration Date. Specify the date when the service level package expires.

Audit Information. These fields are populated automatically.

6. Click Save. The service level package is created and is added to the list of service level packages under the Service Level Package tab.



Even though the service level package is created, it is not completely configured until you define its service level targets. Proceed to the next section (“Define Service Level Targets”) and continue from there.

Define Service Level Targets

Service level targets define the maximum time allowances for the following activities:

Service Request delivery

Incident response

Incident resolution

A service level package can have just one target in each of these areas. If a target time is exceeded, the service is considered to be breached.

NOTE

See step 2 on page 95 for information about how the service level targets that you specify in a service level package relate to the target specified in the Deliver By field of the request offering wizard.

Perform the following steps to define service level targets:

1. If you have not already done so, go to the Service Level Package tab (see step 3 in “Define Service Level Package Details”).

2. In the list of service level packages, click the name of the package that you will create targets for. The Service Level Package workspace opens displaying package details.

3. Use the tabs for Delivery Target, Response Target, and Resolution Target to define targets as follows:

• Name. This field is pre-populated using the name of the service; you can change the name if necessary.

• Description. Type a description of your choice for the target.

• Target Duration (Response and Resolution Targets only). Specify the maximum time allowed to perform the targeted activity. If this time is exceeded, the condition is considered breached. For example, if you are configuring Incident response and want to specify that all Incidents be responded to within one day, enter 1 in the days field.

• Hours of Operation. This field is pre-populated based on the hours of operation setting for the service level package. You can override that setting so that just this targeted activity is based on a different hours of operation setting.

• Compliance Target. Specify the percentage of targeted activity instances that must be done within the target duration. For example, if you are



configuring Incident response and want to specify that 95% of all Incidents must be responded to within the target duration, enter 95 in this field.

4. Click the Save button located at the top of the Service Level Package workspace.

Link Service Level Packages to a Service

When you created a service level package, you specified which service it is linked to (see step 5 in “Define Service Level Package Details”). Because the link is already established, you need to perform the steps in this section only if you want to change the link so that the service level package is linked to a different service.

1. Access the service level package list as described in “Service Level Packages” on page 71 or as follows:

a. Access the Services workspace.

b. In the list of available services, double-click the service that is linked to the service level package that you will change. The details page for the service displays.

c. Click the Service Level Package tab. The list of service level packages currently linked to the service displays.

2. Double click the service that you are linking a service level package to. The Service Level Package workspace opens displaying package details.

3. In the Service field, click the search icon. A searchable list of all services displays.

Locate a service by searching or by using the page display controls below the service list.

To search, enter a search target and criteria in the fields above the service list. In the first field, specify CIService. In the remaining fields, enter criteria of your choice.

To save the search criteria as the default, click Save as Default.

4. After locating a service to link, highlight it and click Select.

5. Click the Save button located at the top of the Service Level Package workspace. The link to the original service is broken, and the service level package is now linked to the new service.

Link Request Offerings to a Service Level Package

After you define a service level package, you must link it to one or more request offerings. When a link is established, the request offering is included in the service level package. When a Business Unit Manager subscribes to the service level package, the request offering is made available to end users.

Links between request offerings and service level packages have the following characteristics:



A service level package can be linked to multiple request offerings.

A request offering can be linked to multiple service level packages.

A service level package and request offering must be linked to same service in order to be linked to each other.

NOTE

Linking a request offering to a service level package (as described in this section) is different than linking a request offering to a service (as described in “Create Request Offerings” on page 73). You must do both to make the request offering available to an end user.

Perform the following steps to link a request offering to a service level package:

1. Access the service level package list as described in step 1 in “Link Service Level Packages to a Service” on page 102.

2. Double click the service level package that you are linking a request offering to. The Service Level Package workspace opens displaying package details.

3. Click the Request Offering Link tab. The list of currently linked request offerings displays.

4. Click Link Request Offering. The Request Offering Delivery Spec form displays.

5. Fill in the Request Offering Delivery Spec form as follows:

Request Offering. Select a request offering to link to the service level package. The drop-down list populates with the request offerings that are linked to the service that the current service level package is linked to. These are the only request offerings that are eligible for linking to this service level package.

Delivery Target.

Price.

Create and Modify Service Level Agreements

After services, request offerings, and service level packages are created and linked, a user (typically logged in under, but not limited to, the Business Unit Manager role) can create a service level agreement by subscribing to a service level package. Users with the necessary permissions can also modify existing service level agreements.

Use the SLA Subscription Workspace

Perform the following steps to access the SLA Subscription workspace and create or edit a service level agreement.

1. Log in to Self Service under one of these roles:



Administrators

Business Unit Manager

Service Owner

The Self Service home page displays.

2. Click the SLA Subscription tab. The SLA Subscription workspace displays (Figure 30).

Figure 67 SLA Subscription workspace

The Browse by Service pane on the left side of the screen lets you view the SLAs for all services at once or filter the view to show the SLAs for a selected service.

The main workspace pane in the center of the screen displays a grid containing the first page of service level agreements. If necessary, search for an SLA by specifying a search string in the Search SLA Subscription field (SLA name and summary fields are searched).

3. To open an existing SLA to edit its definition, click the SLA name located in the Agreement column. To define a new SLA, click the Create Agreement button. The SLA wizard opens with the Select Service page displayed (Figure 68).



Figure 68 SLA wizard

Create a New Agreement

Perform the following steps to create a new SLA.

1. Click the Create Agreement button in the SLA Subscription workspace. The SLA Wizard opens (Figure 68).

2. Select a service that the SLA will be based on by clicking the Select link located on the right side of the screen. An SLA can be based on just one service. When you select a service the Select Service Level Package page of the SLA wizard displays (Figure 69).



Figure 69 SLA wizard, Select Package page

3. In the Select Organizational Unit area, navigate to and click the organizational unit that will subscribe to a service level package (in other words, the organizational unit that the SLA is being created for).

If you highlight a folder for a parent organization (for example, Research and Development), additional information about the child organizational units in that folder displays in the Select Service Level Package area (Figure 70).



Figure 70 Parent organization summary information

4. The Select Service Level Package area displays all of the service level packages that are linked to the service. Select one by clicking its Select link. If the selected organizational unit is already subscribed to a package for the service, an error message displays. After you select a service level package, the Customize Service Options page of the SLA wizard displays (Figure 71).

Figure 71 SLA wizard, Customize Service Options page

5. The area on the left side of the screen contains summary information based on your selections so far, including the service level targets defined in the service level package that you selected.

The Customize Service Options area displays the request offerings associated with the service level package that you selected. To customize a request offering for this SLA, click its Customize link.

NOTE

You can customize only Check box fields that specify a price and Dropdown Selection fields.

The ways in which you can customize an option are controlled by the settings in the Field Options area of the Item Configuration Editor for Check box and Dropdown Selection fields in the request form wizard. See “Customize Request Forms” on page 80 for more information.

You can customize an option in the following ways:



Specify whether to require the requestor to select an optional feature at a specified price.

Specify whether to let the requestor choose whether to select an optional feature.

After reviewing or customizing the information in this page, click Next. The Review and Save page of the SLA wizard displays (Figure 72).

Figure 72 SLA wizard, Review and Save page

6. Click a Change link to go back to a wizard page and change your selection(s). When you are satisfied with terms of the SLA, click Save. The SLA is created and added to the list of existing SLAs displayed in the SLA Subscription workspace.


Chapter 5

Change Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the Change module for your company or organization. Only those configuration tasks that are specific to the Change module are described here. Configuration tasks for other modules or for the ITSM application in general are described elsewhere in this document. Cross references to those topics are included throughout this chapter.


Change Approval Workflow


Change Risk

Change Calendar


The goal of Change Management is to ensure the use of standardized methods and procedures for handling Change requests, minimizing the impact of Change-related issues, and improving daily operations.

Change Management is responsible for controlling Change to all Configuration Items (CIs) within the live environment. Effective change management involves the proper processing of Change requests.

The Workflow Engine forms a large portion of the Change approval process by being responsible for creating Change Approvals, status changes, sending Vote Requests to Approvers and incoming Approvals with a status of Approved.

Change Approval Workflow Process

Change Management enables you to assess the impact, risk, and resource requirements associated with Changes, and then use the assessment to create plans and automate approval functions to implement those Changes effectively, efficiently, and eliminating redundant steps.


Chapter 5: Change Configuration

Seven Key Steps to Change Management

Figure 73 Change Request Process Workflow

The seven key basic steps of the Change Management process implements best-practice ITIL (guideline IT Infrastructure Library), which is depicted as follows:

1. Initiate Change—Change is requested

2. Identify Configuration Item(s) or Release Package —Add any CIs to the Change

3. Schedule Change—Change is scheduled and placed on the Change Calendar

4. Assess Risk—Decide the risk to the organization if the Change is implemented. The four categories of changes and the type of approval for each is as follows:

Significant Change—Change Advisory Board (CAB) must approve

Emergency Change—Emergency CAB (ECAB) must approve

Major Change—Both CAB and Management Committee (MC) must approve

5. Receive Approval—Change approved by respective board/committee

6. Implement Tasks—Change Tasks are performed

7. Close Change—Change is reviewed, completed and closed



Configure Change Approval Workflow

Some organizations may require a different workflow from the preconfigured Change Approval workflow. Perform the following steps to configure the Change Approval Workflow for your organization:

1. Access the ITSM Self Service.

2. Select Settings > Configure Application.

3. Click Business Objects followed by the View All button on the right side of the screen.

4. In the list of Business Objects, scroll to and click Change.

5. Click Workflows in the Change - Business Object’s Details screen, then click Change Approval Workflow from the resulting grid.

6. Scroll down to the bottom of the Change Approval Workflows list and click on the edit icon of the green highlighted workflow. (Un-highlighted workflows are previous workflows.) The Change Approval Workflow screen will appear.



7. Double-click on one of the three Get Approval (ECAB, CAB or MC Approval) boxes to open the Get Approval Block Properties edit window.

8. Edit the settings necessary.

Approvers—The radio button “From a Group” allows you to select which group must approve the Change.

Approval Notification QuickAction—Denotes which contact group will be notified.

Approval / Denial Criteria—Select amount of approvers must approve (or deny) the Change.

Approval Voting Deadline—Deadline designated as the deadline for approvers to vote.

9. Click Save when completed.



NOTE

If the system determines that there is not enough time to Approval (according to the settings) before the Approval board meeting, the approval will automatically roll over to the next Approval board meeting.


This section defines the panels, grids and layouts associated with the Change module.

Dashboard

The Change Dashboard is the first screen that appears after the user clicks Change from the main ITSM menu. The Dashboard displays important overall Change information and allows the user to access specific Changes and view the Change Calendar. For user information on using the Change Dashboard, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 74 Change Dashboard




The Change Dashboard default settings are as follows:


NOTE

This section defines how to customize Change Dashboard. For a detailed description and procedure for editing, adding and deleting Dashboards in general, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 75 Dashboard Layout and Change Dashboard

The default Change Dashboard is based on two items:

Dashboard Layout—The Change Dashboard is divided up into four quadrants, with each quadrant displaying detail that is generated from the Dashboard part. To configure the layout, see “Configure Change Dashboard Layout” on page 115.

Dashboard Parts—Objects or other items that are displayed on a particular quadrant that has been defined by the Dashboard Layout. To configure parts, see the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Table 4 Change Dashboard Default Settings

Dashboard Layout Parts

Change Module Tabbed Part Changes by:Change Link List

Tab Type Priority

Change All Active Changes Column Chart Pie Chart Approved

Emergency

Priority 1

Major

FrontRange Web site

Scheduled This Week

Scheduled This Month

Past Due

Approval Approved Active Active

Calendar Appointment Bar Background GridData Value

GridPercent Value



Configure Change Dashboard Layout

Layout is accessible from the Dashboard Center. To open the Dashboard Center and configure the Change Dashboard, perform the following:

1. Access the Dashboard Center in one of the following ways:

From the ITSM Smart Client, select Tools > Dashboard Center > Dashboard Center from the main application menu bar.

From the FRS Application Administrator, select Definition Set > New Definition Set > Definitions > Dashboards.

The Dashboard Center screen displays. It contains a set of organizational tabs and menus.

2. Select Change from the Associated with: list. The area for available templates populates with all of the Change dashboards.

Figure 76 Change dashboards in the Dashboard Center

3. Click a dashboard listed or select the click the Edit icon for a dashboard. The Edit Change Dashboard editor displays.



Figure 77 Edit Dashboard - General

NOTE

For detailed instructions and information on editing Dashboards and Dashboard Parts, see “Dashboards” on page 47 in the ITSM User Guide and as well as “Dashboards” in the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Forms and Grids

Forms are graphical displays that can be customized to present and capture field information. Grids are customizable tabular displays for viewing multiple records simultaneously. Layout, as in Dashboards, is a screen (Form UI of an object) that is divided up into more than one quadrant with each displaying related objects. For information on understanding how forms and grids work and editing forms and grids, see “Forms and Grids” on page 116, and the “Forms” and “Grids” sections in the Foundation Administrator Guide.



t

low

Figure 78 Change Details Form

Figure 79 Change Grid

Change module Form and Grid fields are described and defined in the ITSM User Guide.

CAUTION

Editing or removing forms and grids that are directly and indirectly associated with the Change Module may have an effect on other modules.

The table below defines the Forms (Panels) and Grids (as well as Layout or combination of Panels) directly and indirectly associated with the Change Module:

Change Form and Grid Objects

Master Business Object Panels Grid Layout

Change(Also see “Associated Objects Related to Change” table below)

ChangeHeaderChangeChange.Brief

ChangeCABHomepageChangeChange

SearchChangeLayouChange

ChangeJustification ChangeJustification ChangeJustification None

ChangeLockout ChangeLockoutChangeLockout.Brief

ChangeLockout ChangeLockout

ChangeRiskLevel ChangeRiskLevel ChangeRiskLevel None

ChangeStatus ChangeStatus ChangeStatus None

ChangeStatusWorkflow ChangeStatusWorkflowChangeStatusWorkflow.Brief

ChangeStatusWorkflow ChangeStatusWorkf

ChangeTypeOfChange ChangeTypeOfChange ChangeTypeOfChange None

ChangeWindow ChangeWindowChangeWindow.Brief

ChangeWindow ChangeWindow



ry

n

The table below defines the Forms (Panels) and Grids (and Layout) associated with tabs:

Associated Objects Related to Change

Change Templates

Change templates are designed to speed data entry in commonly completed Change form fields. A template contains predefined content for one or more fields. When a user applies a template to a form, the predefined content is transferred into the form, and the user does not have to fill in the predefined areas manually.

NOTE

Standard Changes are all based on and can only be created from Change templates.


Activity History JournalJournal.Email

Journal.NotesJournal.VoiceActivity

JournalNotesCategoJournalNotesSource

Announcement Announcement

Approval FRS_Approval FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking

Risk Level FRS_RiskAnswer FRS_RiskCatalog FRS_RiskQuestion

Change Schedule (See above table)

Install/Reinstall ChangeDetail (See above table)

Task TaskTask.Assignment

Task.PurchaseRequestTaskOffering

Post Implementation Review PIR

Release Package FRS_ReleasePackage

CI CICI.AccessPointCI.BatchJobCI.ClusterCI.ContractCI.DatabaseCI.DocumentCI.EnterpriseApplicationCI.FAXCI.FirewallCI.GeneratorCI.HubCI.Middleware

CI.MobileDeviceCI.MonitorCI.PeripheralDeviceCI.PrinterCI.ProductivityAppCI.RackCI.RouterCI.SANCI.ScannerCI.ServerCI.ServiceCI.SwitchCI.System

CI.UPSCI.VideoConferenceCI.VirtualServerCI.VirtualWorkstatioCI.VOIPCI.WorkstationCIDiscoveryMapCILevelCILevelCriteriaCIRoleCIServiceMapCITypedLinkCILink

Problem Problem

Service Request ServiceREQ

Incident Incident






You can reconfigure existing templates or create new templates as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide. You can have any number of Change templates.


The following sections describe the default Change templates that are included with ITSM.

Create Mail Archive for MS Exchange Mail Folder

Install Approved Software Package

Field Setting

CurrentStatus Scheduled

Status Scheduled

Summary Create Mail Archive for MS Exchange Mail Folder

Description Create Mail Archive for MS Exchange Mail Folder

Team Desktop Support

Type Standard

Related Records None

Category Software

Justification Scheduled Maintenance

Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary Install Approved Software Package

Description Install Approved Software Package


Type Standard


Category Software

Justification Enhancement

Urgency Low

Impact Low



MS Security Patch Install for Windows Servers

Replace Printer Accessory

Server Reboot

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary MS Security Patch Install for Windows Servers

Description MS Security Patch Install for Windows Servers

Team Server Support

Type Standard


Category Software


Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary Replace Printer Accessory

Description Replace Printer Accessory


Type Standard


Category Network Device

Justification Scheduled Maintenance

Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary Server Reboot

Description Server Reboot

Team Server Support



Server Relocation

Update Antivirus Files

Type Standard


Category Computer

Justification Unscheduled Maintenance

Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary Server Relocation

Description Server Relocation

Team Server Support

Type Standard


Category Computer


Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting


Status Scheduled

Summary Update Antivirus Files

Description Update Antivirus Files

Team IT

Type Standard


Category Software


Urgency Low

Impact Low

Field Setting




You can edit, create, and delete Change templates in the following ways:


From the Templates tab in the Smart Client Change workspace.


Change Risk

Create Risk Questions with Multiple Answers

It is important to create Risk Analysis questions and multiple weighted answers to those questions in order to make an accurate assessment as to the risk of a change to the organization. Each question that is created will need to have two or more multiple choice answers associated with that question. Each answer must have a specific weight assigned which will accurately determine the risk of that item compared to the overall risk of the change so that change approvers will accurately determine the total risk in their assessment. Each Risk Catalog contains a particular set of Risk Analysis questions and associated answers to those questions.

Perform the following steps to create new Risk Catalogs, Risk Questions with multiple answers.


From the ITSM Smart Client, select Search > More... > Risk Catalog from the main application menu bar, then search for an existing Risk Catalog.

From the ITSM Smart Client, select Saved Searches > Home > All Risk Catalog, then open the existing BaseCatalog or create a new Catalog, see step 2 below.

From the FRS Application Administrator, select Definitions > Search Criteria. The Search Criteria dialog displays. It contains a set of organizational tabs in the left panel and an area for available related objects in the right panel. Select Risk Catalog from the View Search Definition associated with list Double-click the RiskCatalog in the right panel. The Risk Catalog grid appears.



2. Double-click a pre-existing Risk Catalog to configure questions and associated answers from the list of choices available in the Risk Catalog grid. To create a new Risk Catalog, click New Risk Catalog and fill add a name and description of the Catalog in the text boxes provided on the Details tab screen.

Figure 80 Risk Catalog

3. Click Risk Question tab and review existing questions that are part of the catalog or create a new on by clicking on New Risk Question to create a new question. To make changes to an existing question, double-click the question to edit. The Risk Question window will automatically appear.



Figure 81 Risk Catalog Questions

4. Type in the name and description of the question in the Question Text and Description text boxes. Click Save when you are finished with the Question.

Figure 82 Risk Question

5. Double-click the Answer of the Question in the question grid below the Risk Question tab. Edit or create a new answer by clicking on the pencil icon, the Risk Question Answer window will automatically appear.

6. Type in the answer to the question in the Answer Text box.

Figure 83 Risk Answer Window

7. Type in a number that accurately reflects the amount of the risk to the organization of the question in relation to the change in the Weight box. Click Save to save the question and answer. When you are completely finished with the answer, click Save & Use to save the question and answer and use it.

8. The Validating window will automatically appear. If a pop-up dialog box appears, notifying that the Risk Answer has not been validated, click the OK button to return to the Add window.



9. Create additional answers to each question by repeating step 5 through step 7 above. This will create multiple choice answers for each question. Make sure to have different weights associated with different answers.

Create New Risk Catalogs with Change

ITSM Smart Client comes with one Risk Catalog called BaseCatalog, as a result the field Change.CatalogName has a default value of BaseCatalog.

To create a new Risk Catalog with Change, perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). open Change, open Fields, Right-click CatalogName and select Edit Field Object. The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs.

2. Within the Field Basics tab, change CatalogName in the Name field identity to any other value, then click the Autofill tab and select the Field is Autofilled check box and add the correct values, see “Basics Tab” on page 67 from the Foundation Administrator Guide for more information.

Figure 84 Create New Risk Catalogs with Change

NOTE

FRS_RiskCatalog record must have the same name, otherwise the Relationship constraint will be violated.



Integrate Risk Catalog with Change

To integrate Risk Catalog with Change perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). Right-click Change and select Edit Business Object in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Auditing tab.

2. Follow all the steps in “Auditing Tab” on page 51 from the Foundation Administrator Guide in order to integrate the Change Risk Catalog fields and relationships.

Figure 85 Auditing Tab in Business Object Editor



Associated Fields Related to Risk Analysis Functionality

Associated Objects Related to Change Risk Catalog

To specify restraints do the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). open Change, open Relationships, Right-click ChangeAssociatedFRS_RiskCatalog and select Edit Relationship in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Constraints tab.

Field Definition

CatalogName Stores the name of the Catalog that is used in Relationship constraint. Default setting is BaseCatalog.

CalculateRiskQuestions Field that serves as a trigger for the Jscript to link create new Answer records (based on the Catalog selected) that the user must complete. Out-of-the-box field is set to trigger whenever the Category field is changed.

RiskLevel Text field that is set to contain the values High, Medium or Low, depending on the value of RiskSum. A Conditional List expression that calculates the value can be easily modified to set different thresholds for Risk Level.

RiskSum Numeric value calculated by a Before Save rule. All Weights associated with the User’s answers to the risk analysis questions are added to produce the result.

Business Object Definition

FRS_RiskCatalog Relationship that contains the Catalog to be used for this Change record, based on the value contained in the CatalogName field.

FRS_RiskAnswer Relationship that will contain the user’s Answers to the Risk Questions. This is populated dynamically by the Jscript associated with the CalculateRiskQuestions field, and the records can be edited on the Risk Level tab on the Change Layout.



2. Follow all the steps in “Constraints Tab” on page 68 from the Foundation Administrator Guide in order to set constraints to the Risk Catalog and Risk Answers. Make sure to select the Specify constraints radio button.

Figure 86 Constraints Tab in Business Object Editor

3. When you have finished setting the constraints for the Risk Catalog, do the same for the Risk Answer by right-clicking ChangeContainsFRS_RiskAnswer and select Edit Relationship in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, then click the Constraints tab.



Change Calendar

Once a Change has been scheduled it will appear on the Change Calendar along with other scheduled changes. The Change Calendar may also show all of the scheduled changes divided into tasks in addition to other information derived from a variety of fields. For user information on scheduling Changes and filtering the Change Calendar, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 87 Change Calendar

Configure Change Calendar

Change Advisory Board (CAB) Meeting Schedules

Significant Changes are subject to CAB meetings and approval. A Change will be added to the Change Calendar after the Change has been approved at the regular CAB meeting. The CAB must have time to review and approve the Change before the CAB meeting. As a result, if the next CAB meeting is scheduled to soon for a proper review, the Change must be scheduled after the next CAB meeting.

Major Changes are subject to CAB meetings and approval as well as Management Committee (MC) approval. Standard and Minor Changes are routine and can be scheduled and made without prior approval from the CAB. Emergency Changes can be made and then later approved by the Emergency CAB (ECAB).



Configure Change Calendar

To configure Change Calendar properties perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). Right-click Change and select Edit Business Object in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Calendaring tab.

2. Follow all the steps in “Calendaring Tab” on page 53 from the Foundation Administrator Guide in order to configure the Change Calendar.

Figure 88 Calendaring Tab in Business Object Editor

Configure Change Calendar Display Fields and Filters

To access the Change Calendar display fields and filters perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Change by clicking on the + to the left of Change, then expand Displays in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.



2. Right-click ChangeOverview(Calendar), and select Edit Calendar. The Change Calendar Forms screen will appear, displaying the Change Calendar Title, Display Fields and Filter items to configure.

Figure 89 Change Calendar Forms Screen

3. To rename the Calendar Title, click on the Change Title: text box and type in a new title.

Figure 90 Set Change Calendar Title



4. The Change Calendar displays five fields derived from the Change Details screen:

Summary—Title/Summary of the Change located in the Summary text box of the Change Details box.

Figure 91 Set Change Title

Type—Classification type chosen in the Type drop-down list.

Category—Choice indicated in the Category drop-down list.

Figure 92 Set Change Classification Items

Priority—Priority derived from Urgency and Impact in the Classification box.

RiskLevel—Level indicated in the Risk Level text box.



To add a field item (or related field), click on the Add Field (or Add Related Field) button.

Figure 93 Add Field

The new field will appear at the bottom of the fields.

To delete a field item, click on the red x that appears to the right of the item.

5. Scheduled Changes that are displayed on the calendar can be filtered to show only Changes that contain particular criteria from the Change Details screen:

CurrentStatus—Change status indicated in the Status drop-down list.

Category—Choice indicated in the Category drop-down list.

Type—Classification type chosen in the Type drop-down list.

As with Display Field to add a filter item, click on the Add Field button located below the filters. The new filter will appear at the bottom of the filters.To delete a filter, click on the red x that appears to the right of the item.



Configure Scheduled Change Window

It may be necessary to configure the appearance of the Change Window.

Figure 94 Change Window Scheduling

To configure a Change Window perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). Right-click ChangeWindow and select Edit Business Object in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Calendaring tab.

2. Choose the field from the Subject: drop-down list that the subject of the Change Lockout will access text from. The default is ChangeWindow.Name which means that the title of the Change name will appear in the calendar. All fields from the Change Window screen as well as other Change related fields will appear in the list.

Figure 95 Change Window Subject Selection

3. Click Apply button to have changes “temporarily” added to your copy of the definition set. To permanently apply them, commit the Definition Set.



NOTE

For more information on working with the Calendaring, see “Calendaring Tab” on page 53 from the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Configure Scheduled Change Lockout

Particular CIs may need to be locked out for a variety of business organizational reasons and as a result it will prevent any Changes to a specific CI during that particular time period.

Figure 96 Change Lockout Scheduling

Locking out a CI is necessary to prevent others from scheduling a Change during a specified time so that no changes to the CI can take place during that time period. To configure a Change Lockout perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). Right-click ChangeLockout and select Edit Business Object in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Calendaring tab.

2. Choose the field from the Subject: drop-down list that the subject of the Change Lockout will access text from. The default is ChangeLockout.Name which means that the title of the Change Lockout name will appear in the calendar. All fields from the Change Lockout screen as well as other Change related fields will appear in the list.

Figure 97 Change Lockout Subject Selection

3. Click Apply button to have changes “temporarily” added to your copy of the definition set. To permanently apply them, commit the Definition Set.



NOTE

For more information on working with the Calendaring, see “Calendaring Tab” on page 53 from the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Configure Change Scheduler Fields and Filters

To access the Change Schedule display fields and filters perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Change by clicking on the + to the left of Change, then expand Displays in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.

2. Right-click Change(Layout), and select Edit Layout.

3. Click on the Change Schedule tab from the template that appears.

4. Right-click anywhere within the Change Schedule screen and select Tab Container Properties from the menu that appears.

Figure 98 Access Change Schedule Tab Container Properties

5. Click on the Layout tab within the Container Properties for: CalendarPresentationRegion window.



6. Scroll to the bottom of the window and select the Scheduler radio button.

Figure 99 Set as Scheduler

7. Make any necessary configurations to the Change Schedule by following the instructions in the Foundation Administrator Guide.

8. When you are finished configuring the Change Schedule click Close.


Chapter 6

Task Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the Task(s) for your company or organization. Only those configuration tasks that are specific to the Task are described here. Configuration tasks for other modules or for the ITSM application in general are described elsewhere in this document. Cross references to those topics are included throughout this chapter.

The following configuration topics are described in this chapter:

Task Templates

Task Toolbar

Task List (Dashboard Configuration)

Escalation


The goal of Task Management is to ensure the use of standardized methods and procedures for handling and managing assigned Tasks, centralizing the management of those Tasks initialized by other modules, minimizing the impact of Tasks to the organization, and improving daily operations.

Task Management provides a central location for managing Tasks that are displayed within other module Dashboards. Each module Dashboard associated with Tasks contains a Task List that displays Tasks and Task details.

Effective Task management involves Task creation, acceptance and modification ability within Incident, Problem and Change modules.

The Workflow Engine forms a large portion of the Task implementation process by being responsible for Task acceptance, reassignment, completion, postponement or continuance of Task(s).

Configure Task Templates

Templates are designed to speed data entry in commonly completed form fields. A template contains predefined content for one or more fields. When a user applies a


Chapter 6: Task Configuration

template to a form, the predefined content is transferred into the form, and the user does not have to fill in the predefined areas manually.

NOTE

Standard Changes, Incidents and Problems are all based on and can only be created from templates within the various modules.

You can reconfigure existing templates or create new templates as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide. You can have any number of templates.


NOTE

There are currently no out-of-the-box preconfigured Task Templates.


You can edit, create, and delete templates in the following ways:


From the Templates tab in the Smart Client Change, Incident and Problem workspace.


Configure Task Toolbar

The Task Toolbar is used to change the state of Task to another state within the lifecycle of the Task. Task Toolbar icons coincide with the defined lifestyle states of the Task. Task Tab items allow the user to refresh, navigate, delete, edit, print, and view multiple Tasks as a table/grid..

Figure 100 Task Toolbar

To access the Task Toolbar display perform the following:

1. The Task Toolbar is accessible from several modules. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Change or Incident by



clicking on the + to the left of Change or Incident, then expand Displays in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.

Figure 101 Access Module Layout

2. Click Change(Layout) from with Change Displays or Incident(Layout) from Incident Displays.

3. Click on the Task tab from the template that appears.

Figure 102 Access Toolbar Edit

4. From the Task tab template, click on Edit toolbar... located on the right hand side of the screen. The Task Toolbar window will then display.

5. Click on the Toolbar item to customize in the upper-right area of the Task Toolbar Edit Window.

Figure 103 Task Toolbar Edit Window



6. To change the behavior of a Quick Action button, double-click on the button, then click on the visible link and change the content of the expression in the resulting pop-up window.

For instructions on reconfiguring existing tab toolbar Quick Action buttons see the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Dashboard Configuration for Task List

The Task List (sometimes referred to as grid) is accessible from within various module. For user information on using the Incident and Change Dashboards to access the Task List, see the ITSM User Guide.

Configure Task List

Grids/Lists are customizable tabular displays for viewing multiple records simultaneously. Layout, is a screen (Form UI of an object) that is divided up into more than one quadrant with each displaying related objects. For information on understanding how forms and grids work and editing forms and lists, see the “Forms” and “Grids” sections in the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Figure 104 Task List

Change, Problem and Incident module Form and Grid/List fields are described and defined in individual module chapters within the ITSM User Guide.

CAUTION

Editing or removing forms and grids that are directly and indirectly associated with one module, such as Change, Problem or Incident, may have an effect on other modules.

To access and edit the Task List perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Task.Assignment by clicking on the + to the left of Task.Assignment, then expand Displays in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.



2. Double-click Task.Assignment(Grid).

3. To make any edits to the Header Text or Associated Fields, click on the item and type any necessary edits.

4. To edit the list (grid) appearance and/or behavior, click Edit grid properties. See the Foundation Administrator Guide for information on editing display properties.

Escalation Configuration

Escalation Configuration is available as part of the Incident Module. For more information on configuring Escalation Configuration, see “Escalation” on page 47.


ITSM includes the following predefined Task Assignment escalations. You can modify these or configure new escalations as necessary:

Task Assignment Resolution

Task Assignment Response

Each escalation has three main configurable areas: schedule, threshold, and exceptions. The following sections describe how each area is configured for each predefined Task Assignment escalation.



Schedule

The following table shows the schedule configurations for the predefined Task Assignment escalations.

Task Resolution

Task Response

Trigger Field Status Status

Trigger Field Value and Escalation Clock Action

Accepted Run Completed

Assigned Run Run

Cancelled Completed Completed

Completed Completed Completed

Logged Run Run

On Hold Pause Pause

Reassigned Run Reset & Run

Waiting Run Completed

Secondary Clock? No. No.

Action When this Esc. Schedule Replaces Existing Esc. Schedule



Link Field for Escalation Watches ResolutionEscLink

ResponseEscLink



Threshold

The following are threshold configurations for the predefined Task Assignment escalations:

Task Assignment Resolution

Task Assignment Response


For more information on accessing the Escalation configuration tool, creating new, editing, deleting, setting exceptions and defining Escalation lifecycles, see “Defining Escalations” on page 226.


Chapter 7

Service Level Management Configuration

This chapter contains an overview of Self Service and Service Catalog concepts and the

procedures for using the Smart Client to configure Self Service and the Service Catalog.

NOTE

Sections that discuss the Service Catalog are relevant only if the Service Catalog was purchased and installed at your site.

Overview

Service Level Management ensures that IT provides the level of service required to meet an organization’s business needs. IT maintains and improves service quality using a process that creates agreements with customers, implements processes to meet those agreements, and then monitors and reports on status. When the process is unsuccessful, steps are taken to eliminate the service shortcomings while keeping IT service in line with business needs and budgets.

Terminology

This section describes Service Catalog and Self Service terms. You should be familiar with these before performing the procedures described later in this chapter.

Refer to Figure 105 for additional details about the terms in the following list.

End User. A user role that describes a person who logs into Self Service to consume services, report issues, or use other tools within the solution. In the context of the Service Catalog, the end user is also known as the consumer.

Organizational Unit. A business unit that subscribes to a service level package.

Request Item. Term used instead of request offering in end-user interfaces and documentation.


Chapter 7: Service Level Management Configuration

Request Offering. A specific set of actions and items that an end user can request through the Service Catalog interface. For example, “Request for a new Mailbox” and “Quarantine” are request offerings under the “Email” service.

NOTE

Request offerings are available only through the Service Catalog. If the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are not installed at your site, you cannot configure or implement request offerings as described in this document. In the absence of request offerings, services and service level packages pertain only to Incidents and Incident-related parameters such as service level targets for Incident Response and Incident Resolution. See “Concepts” on page 151 for more information.

When an end user places a request, it is processed and tracked by a Service Desk Analyst through the Request Fulfillment module in the ITSM Smart Client or other Service Management solution.

Each request offering is associated with a service. Details that you specify when defining a request offering include:

The service that the request offering is associated with.

The service level package that the request offering is part of.

The request offering name.

Delivery items that the end user receives when the request is fulfilled.

Category.

The form that is displayed for an end user to fill in and submit.

How the request is fulfilled.

How the request offering is published.

The term request offering is not typically used in end-user interfaces and documentation. In those situations, the term request item is used. The two terms are interchangeable.

Service. A generally defined framework for actions or items that will be provided to an end user. Specific actions, items, response times, and other details are not part of a service definition; those details are defined in service level packages, request offerings and service level agreements. Instead, a service provides the basis for those detailed definitions and contains just the following:

Service name

Provider

Owner

Status

Category

Summary



Hours of operation

Various narrative descriptions

An example of a service is “Email.” After a service is defined, end users do not see or request the service itself. Instead, they use the Service Catalog to view and submit request items, which are features that are based on the service and that you (as a Service Owner) define and make available to them.

Multiple request offerings can be based on the same service. The service defines who the overall owner and provider are, but the request offering defines exactly what is delivered, the cost of delivery, and other details.

Service Level Agreement. When an organizational unit subscribes to a service level package, a service level agreement (SLA) is created between the service provider and the organizational unit. The SLA that is created copies all of the service level targets from the service level package. You can modify these targets if needed before the SLA is published. A service level package can be the basis for multiple service level agreements. A service level agreement can be based on just one service level package.

Service Level Target. There are three types of service level targets:

Service Request Delivery Target (also called Delivery SLT; available only with the Service Catalog)

Incident Response Target (Response SLT)

Incident Resolution Target (Resolution SLT)

The targets are the maximum amount of time allowed to pass before the target is considered breached. A service level package can have just one target of each type shown above.

Service Level Package. A service that has been packaged (typically by a Service Level Manager or Service Owner) and subscribed to by an organizational unit. The service level package defines which request offerings are available for the package and the service level targets associated with the service.

A service level package can be the basis for multiple service level agreements. However, a service level agreement can be based on just one service level package.

A user logged in under the Business Unit Manager role typically subscribes to a service level agreement, making available to end users all of the items defined in the service level package that the service level agreement is based on. Requests placed by end users are fulfilled according to the parameters that are part of the service level package definition.

Any number of service level packages can be linked to a single service. By varying the parameters in the service level packages that are linked to the same service, you can offer different levels of service to different customers while keeping all of the parameters defined in the base service (owner, provider, and so on) the same.

Details that you specify when defining a service level package include:

The service that the service level package is based on.

The request offerings that are included in the service level package.



Service level package parameters such as price, hours of operation, target times, status, expiration date, and other items.

Target Override. A target override specifies a different target based on additional field criteria. For example, the Resolution SLT has a target duration of 40 hours, but the override target is 16 hours if the Incident Priority field has a value of 1.

Roles

Service Level Management configuration is typically performed by users logged in under the Business Unit Manager, Service Level Manager, or Service Owner role. This section briefly describes these roles.

Business Unit Manager

If you log in under the Business Unit Manager role, you have access to the same features as end users logged in under the Self Service role. Additionally, you can:

See the status of all Incidents and Service Requests for your business unit.

Create service level agreements by subscribing to service level packages.After subscription, all of the request offerings in a service level package are available for end users to request.

Service Level Manager

If you log in under the Service Level Manager role, you have access to the same features as end users logged in under the Self Service role. Additionally, you can:

Create services, configure request offering links and targets, and service level packages.

Create service level agreements by subscribing to service level packages.After subscription, all of the request offerings in a service level package are available for end users to request.

Service Owner

If you log in under the Service Owner role, you have access to the same features as business unit managers.

Additionally, you can create new services, service level packages, and request offerings, and publish service level packages so that they are available for business unit managers to subscribe to.



Concepts

This section contains an overview of main Service Level Management configuration concepts, a figure illustrating those concepts, and examples based on the concepts and illustration.

NOTES

Service Level Management can be used with or without the Service Catalog and the Service Request module.

The concepts and examples used in this chapter assume that the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available at your site.

If the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available at your site, Service Level Management pertains to both Incidents and Service Requests. Items such as request offerings and the Service Request Delivery service level target are supported under this scenario.

If the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are not available at your site, Service Level Management pertains only to Incidents and Incident-related parameters such as service level targets for Incident Response and Incident Resolution. Items such as request offerings and the Service Request Delivery service level target are not supported.

Setting up an initial Self Service and Service Catalog configuration involves these overall tasks:

1. Create services, request offerings, and service level packages.

2. Link services, service level packages, and request offerings in a way similar to that shown in Figure 105.

Figure 105 shows a hypothetical set of services, service level packages, and request offerings. Details to note:

For a service to be fully configured and available to end users, you must establish links between all components. For example, Service 1 is linked to a service level package and a set of request offerings. The service level package is also linked to the set of request offerings. All of these links are necessary to make it possible for end users to submit requests and have them fulfilled by the Service Desk.

A service can be linked to multiple service level packages. For example, Service 2 is linked to Service Level Package 2 and Service Level Package 3.

A service can be linked to multiple request offerings. For example, Service 1 is linked to Request Offerings 1, 2, and 3.

A service level package and request offering must be linked to the same service in order to be linked to each other. For example, Service Level Package 2 and Request Offerings 4, 5, and 6 are all linked to Service 2. Therefore, Request Offerings 4, 5, and 6 can be linked to Service Level Package 2, although in this case



the Service Owner has chosen to link just Request Offerings 4 and 5 to Service Level Package 2.

A service level package can be linked to just one service. For example, because Service Level Package 1 is linked to Service 1, it cannot be linked to another service until the link to Service 1 is broken.

A request offering can be linked to just one service. For example, Request Offering 1 is linked to Service 1, and cannot be linked to another service until the link to Service 1 is broken.

A service level package can be linked to multiple request offerings. For example, Service Level Package 1 is linked to Request Offerings 1, 2, and 3.

A request offering can be linked to multiple service level packages that are linked to the same service. For example, Request Offering 5 is linked to Service 2. Service Level Packages 2 and 3 are also linked to Service 2. This makes it possible for Request Offering 5 to be linked to both Service Level Package 2 and Service Level Package 3.



Figure 105 Conceptual overview

Example: Service 1

A user logged in under the Service Owner role creates Service 1 (as described in “Create Services” on page 156) and Request Offerings 1, 2, and 3, linking them to Service 1 (as described in “Create Request Offerings” on page 73).

The Service Owner also creates just one service level package (Service Level Package 1) based on Service 1 (as described in “Create and Configure Service Level Packages” on



page 157) and links all three request offerings to it (as described in “Configure Request Offering Links and Targets” on page 163).

After these steps are done and Service Level Package 1 is published (as described in “Publish Service Level Packages” on page 163), Service Level Package 1 can be subscribed to by an organizational unit (as described in “Subscription and Service Level Agreements” on page 164).

If an organizational unit subscribes to Service Level Package 1, a service level agreement is created for the subscribing organizational unit based on Service Level Package 1. At that time, Request Offerings 1, 2, and 3 are available to end users. When an end user requests one of these offerings, it is fulfilled according to the terms defined in the service level agreement (these terms specify service level targets for duration and compliance, and also control escalation schedules). The owner and provider defined in Service 1 are responsible for fulfilling the request.

NOTE

Service level targets in a service level agreement are not implemented until the service level agreement is published. Prior to that, targets are based on the default escalation schedules that apply to all unsubscribed users. After publishing, service level targets in the service level agreement override the default targets, and an escalation schedule based on the new targets is automatically created. The escalation engine then enforces the new targets.

Example: Service 2

A user logged in under the Service Owner role creates Service 2 and Request Offerings 4, 5, and 6, linking them to Service 2.

The Service Owner next creates two service level packages (Service Level Packages 2 and 3) based on Service 2. By having two service level packages, different levels of service (for example, “gold” and “silver”) can be offered based on Service 2.

Establishing links in this way makes it possible for the Service Owner to offer Request Offerings 4, 5, and 6 in Service Level Package 2, 3, or both.

The Service Owner next chooses to offer Request Offerings 4 and 5 with Service Level Package 2, and Request Offerings 5 and 6 with Service Level Package 3.

After these steps are done and Service Level Packages 2 and 3 are published, Service Level Package 2, 3 or both can be subscribed to by a Business Unit Manager.

If Service Level Package 2 is subscribed to, a service level agreement is created for the subscribing organizational unit based on Service Level Package 2. Request Offerings 4 and 5 are available to end users. If Service Level Package 3 is subscribed to, a service level agreement based on it is created, and Request Offerings 5 and 6 are available to end users.



NOTE

See “Use Cases” on page 171 for additional examples.

SLM Dashboard

The Service Level Management dashboard (Figure 106) is the home page for the Service Level Manager. This dashboard allows the Service Level Manager to navigate to services, service level packages, and service level agreements. It also consists of dashboard parts that report on compliance.

NOTE

You can use the SLM and other dashboards in the Smart Client interface to view and link request offerings. However, to create and edit request offerings, you must use the Self Service interface as described in Chapter 4, “Service Catalog Configuration”.

Figure 106 Service Level Management dashboard



Configure Service Level Management

Perform the following tasks to configure Service Level Management:

Create services (see “Create Services” on page 156).

Create service level packages, associate them with services, and define service level targets for each package (see “Create and Configure Service Level Packages” on page 157).

Link request offerings to service level packages (applicable only if the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available at your site; see “Configure Request Offering Links and Targets” on page 163).

Publish service level packages (see “Publish Service Level Packages” on page 163).

Subscribe to service level packages and create service level agreements (see “Subscription and Service Level Agreements” on page 164).

Create Services

When you create a service, you specify characteristics that are inherited by all service level packages and request offerings that are associated with (or linked to) the service. Specifically:

Service name, provider, and owner.

Status, which states whether the service is in the design phase, in production, under maintenance, and so on.

Type of service.

Hours of operation.

Descriptions and summaries that provide additional details.

Perform the following steps to create a service:

1. Log in to the Smart Client using the Service Owner role.

2. On the Service Owner dashboard, select New > CI > Service to open a new service form.



3. In the Configuration tab, specify characteristics that define the service. These characteristics are inherited by all service level packages and request offerings that are linked to the service:

Name. Type a service name of your choice.

Status. Select one of the following statuses for the service:

• Planned

• Design

• Transition

• Production

• Retired

Provider. Select the organization that is responsible for providing the service.

Owner. Select an individual (based on your Provider selection) who is responsible for providing the service.

Type of Service. Select the overall classification of the service.

Hours of Operation. Select 24 x 7, Weekly HOP, or Weekly8x4 (see “Define Hours of Operation” on page 27 for more information).

CI Version. This value defaults to 0 when a service is first created.

Summary. Type a short summary description of the service.

Description. Type a detailed description of the service.

Value Proposition. Type additional information about how the service benefits a user.

Price Description. Type information about pricing structure.

It is not necessary to fill in other tabs at this time (you will provide that information in the procedures described in the next sections).

4. Save the service. A default service level package is created for the service. You can customize this package or create a new package as described in “Create and Configure Service Level Packages” on page 157.

Create and Configure Service Level Packages

A service level package is a service that has been packaged by the Service Level Manager or Service Owner, and subscribed to by an organizational unit. The package specifies target times for Incident response and resolution. If the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed, the service level package also specifies which request offerings are available as well as a target time for service request delivery.

Any number of service level packages can be linked to a single service. By varying the parameters in the service level packages that are linked to the same service, you can offer different levels of service to different customers while keeping all of the parameters defined in the base service (owner, provider, and so on) the same.



Each package has the following service level targets defined:

Delivery service level target (SLT) for service requests (applicable only if the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available).

Request offering overrides

Response SLT for Incidents

Overrides based on any field in the Incident form

Resolution SLT for Incidents

Overrides based on any field in the Incident form

After a service level package has been configured and published, an organizational unit can subscribe to the package, and a service level agreement (SLA) is created between the service provider and the organizational unit. End users who are members of the organizational unit are then entitled to request any request offerings that are a part of the service level package, and the requests are fulfilled according to the parameters that are part of the service package definition.

New Service Level Package Creation Business Rule

When a new service level package is created, the business rule NewServicePackageCreation is triggered. This business rule runs the CreatePackageSLTs Quick Action. This Quick Action automatically creates the following service level target (SLT) records:

Service Request Delivery SLT

Incident Response SLT

Incident Resolution SLT

Each service level package can only have one setting for each type of SLT.

NOTE

To change the default values used for the auto-creation of SLTs, you must change the global values shown in the following table. Global values are set through the Web administration interface as described in “Defining Global Constants” on page 250.

Table 5 Global values used for service level target auto-generation

Global Value Names For:

Service Request Delivery SLT Incident Response SLT Incident Resolution SLT

SLTDeliveryComplianceTarget SLTResponseComplianceTarget

SLTResolutionComplianceTarget

SLTDeliveryTargetDurationHrs SLTResponseTargetDurationHrs

SLTResolutionTargetDurationHrs

SLTDeliveryTargetDurationMin SLTDeliveryTargetDurationMin

SLTResolutionTargetDurationMin



Create a Service Level Package

Perform the following steps to create and configure service level packages:

1. Log in to the Smart Client using the Service Level Manager role.

2. On the Service Level Management dashboard, select the Services tab and double click to select the service you want to create a package for. The service opens in the Service workspace.

3. In the Service form, select the Service Level Package tab and click New Service Level Package (Figure 107).

Figure 107 Create a new service level package

4. Enter information as follows in the resulting form:

Title. Enter a title for the service level package (for example, Gold, Silver, Bronze, and so on).

Description. Enter a brief description of this service level package.

Expiration Date. Open the calendar and select a date when the service level package expires.

Review Date. Open the calendar and select the date when the service level package should be reviewed for approval.

Price. Enter the total cost of the service level package.

Price Description. Enter a brief description of the price for the service level package.

Compliance Target. Specify the percentage of time that targets must be met in order for the service level package to be in compliance.



Hours of Operation. This field is populated with the value that you selected when you defined the service. You can:

• Leave the field as-is and use the default (service-defined) setting.

• Select a new setting that applies only to this service level package.

5. Save the service level package.

Specify Service Level Targets

This section describes how to specify service level targets for Service Request delivery, Incident response, and Incident resolution, and how to set target overrides.

Service Request Delivery Target

NOTE

This section is applicable only if the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available at your site.

The Service Request delivery target is the default target time for all service requests to be delivered to the end user who submitted the request item. If the target time is exceeded, the service is considered to be breached. A service level package can have only one service request delivery target setting.

1. On the Service Level Package tab of the Service form, select the service level package that you will set the target for and click the edit icon.

2. In the resulting Service Level Package form, select the Service Request Delivery Target tab.

3. In the resulting list, select the target and click the edit icon.

4. Modify the Description, Target Duration, Hours of Operation, and Compliance Target fields as necessary (Figure 108). Default values (if any) come from these locations:

Hours of Operation. Service definition.

Compliance Target. Global value.

If you specify new values in these fields, they apply only to the current service level package.



Figure 108 Set the Service Request delivery target


6. Save the service.

Incident Response Target

The Incident response target is the default target time for responding to an end user who opened an Incident against the service attached to the service level package. If the target time is exceeded, the service is considered to be breached. A service level package can only have one Incident response target setting.

1. Access the Service Level Package workspace as described in “Service Request Delivery Target”.

2. Select the Incident Response Target tab and follow the directions in “Service Request Delivery Target” on page 160.

Incident Resolution Target

The Incident resolution target is the default target time for resolving an Incident opened against the service attached to the service level package by the subscribed end user. If the target time is exceeded, the service is considered to be breached. A service level package can only have one Incident resolution target setting.

1. Access the Service Level Package workspace as described in “Service Request Delivery Target”.

2. Select the Incident Resolution Target tab and follow the directions in “Service Request Delivery Target” on page 160.



Target Overrides

You can create a target override (also called a target variant or target condition) for an Incident response target or Incident resolution target. For example, you might want to set a different response target for a Priority 1 Incident. If the ticket submitted is Priority 2, 3, 4, or 5, the default Incident response target will be used. However, if the Incident submitted is Priority 1, the target variant Priority 1 target will be used instead (it overrides the default Incident response target).

To create a target override:

1. Select the Incident Response Target tab or the Incident Resolution Target tab from the Service Level Package form and click on the edit icon.

2. Select the Target Override Conditions tab and click New Target Override Condition (Figure 109).

Figure 109 Set target overrides

3. Enter information as follows in the resulting form:

Field Name. The default field is Priority. To use a different Incident field, type the exact name of the field (Urgency, Category, and so on).

Field Value. Enter a value for the field (for example, it the field name is Priority, the value would 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5).

Days. Enter the number of days for the target duration.

Hours. Enter the number of hours and minutes for the target duration.

4. Save the target.





Configure Request Offering Links and Targets

NOTES

The procedures in this section require that request offerings have already been created through the Self Service interface (they cannot be created through the Smart Client interface). See Chapter 4, “Service Catalog Configuration” for details about creating request offerings.

The information in this section is applicable only if the Service Catalog and the Request Fulfillment module are installed and available at your site.

A request offering is a specific set of actions and items that an end user can request through the Service Catalog interface. Each request offering is associated with a service. For each service level package, you can specify which request offerings are available in the package.

When you select a request offering for inclusion in a service level package, the target duration is derived from the request offering template (that is, the target duration was defined when the request offering was created as described in “Create Request Offerings” on page 73). If the request offering template does not contain a target, the target defaults to the service request delivery target.

To select a request offering for inclusion in a service level package:

1. On the Service Level Package tab of the Service form, highlight the service level package that you will link a request offering to and click the edit icon.

2. In the resulting Service Level Package form, select the Request Offering Target tab and click New Request Offering Link.

3. In the Request Offering field, select the request offering to add to the service level package from the drop-down list.

4. Depending on your configuration, the Delivery Cost field might contain a default value derived from the request offering definition. Either accept the default or specify a different delivery cost that applies only to this service level package.

5. In the Target Duration field either accept the default or specify a different value that applies only to this service level package.

6. To add another request offering, click New Request Offering Link again.



Publish Service Level Packages

A service level package must be published before it can be subscribed to. After a service level package is published, an organizational unit can subscribe to the package, and a service level agreement (SLA) is created between the service provider and the organizational unit. End users who are members of the organizational unit will then be



entitled to request any request offerings that are added to the service level package, and the requests are fulfilled according to the parameters that are part of the service level agreement.

To publish a service level package:

1. Navigate to the service level package from the Service form or select the service level package from the Service Level Management dashboard.

2. Click Publish Package (Figure 110).

Figure 110 Publish a service level package

Subscription and Service Level Agreements

When an organizational unit subscribes to a service level package, a service level agreement (SLA) is created between the service provider and the organizational unit. The SLA that is created copies all of the service level targets from the service level package. You can modify these targets if needed before the SLA is published.

In order for the SLA to be in effect, it must be in Published status, and all related escalation schedules must be in Active status.

The following sections describe how to subscribe to a service level package, create an SLA, and publish the SLA.

Subscription Procedure

To subscribe to a service level package:

1. Ensure that the service level package has already been published.

2. Navigate to the service level package from the Service form or select the service level package from the Service Level Packages tab on the Service Level Management dashboard.

3. Click Create SLA for selected Package (Figure 111). The Subscribe and Create SLA QuickAction initiates (see “QuickAction Details” on page 165 for more information).



Figure 111 Run the Subscribe and Create SLA QuickAction

4. In the resulting dialog, select the organizational unit that will subscribe to the package. Click OK. The SLA Details tab displays.

5. Enter information as follows in the SLA workspace form:

Description. Enter a description of this SLA.

Start Date. Open the calendar and select a date when the SLA starts.

End Date. Open the calendar and select a date when the SLA ends.

Review Date. Open the calendar and select a date when the SLA should be reviewed.

Compliance Target. Enter the overall compliance target for the SLA.

6. To modify the service level targets for only this SLA (and not for the service level package):

a. Select the Service Level Targets tab.

b. Use the left- and right-arrow buttons to select a target.

c. Click the edit icon.

d. Edit details and override conditions as described in “Specify Service Level Targets” on page 160.

NOTE

You can also add a target override condition by clicking New Target Override Condition.

QuickAction Details

The Subscribe and Create SLA QuickAction performs the following actions:

1. Create SLA Record.

2. Link SLA record to the service level package.

3. Run for Child Records SLT Delivery.

a. Clone SLT Delivery.

b. Link Clone SLT Delivery record to SLA.



c. Create child Escalation Schedule for cloned SLT Delivery.

d. Run for Child Records Request Offering Targets.

• Clone Request Offering Targets.

• Update Cloned Request Offering Targets (clearing SLPLink).

• Link Cloned Request Offering Targets to cloned SLT Delivery.

• Link Cloned Request Offerings to SLA.

• Create child Escalations Schedule for Request Offering Targets.

4. Run for Child Records SLT Response.

a. Clone SLT Response.

b. Link Clone SLT Response record to SLA.

c. Create child Escalation Schedule for cloned SLT Response.

d. Run for Child Records Response Override Targets.

• Clone Response Override Targets.

• Link Cloned Response Override Targets to cloned SLT Response.

• Link Cloned Response Override Targets to SLA.

• Create child Escalation Schedules for Response Override Targets.

5. Run for Child Records SLT Resolution.

a. Clone SLT Resolution.

b. Link Clone SLT Resolution record to SLA.

c. Create child Escalation Schedule for cloned SLT Resolution.

d. Run for Child Records Resolution Override Targets.

• Clone Resolution Override Targets.

• Link Cloned Resolution Override Targets to cloned SLT Resolution.

• Link Cloned Resolution Override Targets to SLA.

• Create child Escalation Schedules for Resolution Override Targets.

SLA Publishing Procedure

To publish an SLA:

1. Navigate to the Service Level Agreements tab from the Service Level Package form or select the service level agreement from the Service Level Agreements tab on the Service Level Management dashboard.

2. Perform one of the following steps:

If you navigated to the Service Level Agreements workspace in the Service Level Package form, select the agreement that you want to publish and click Publish Selected Agreement.



If you navigated to the Service Level Agreements workspace in the Service Level Management dashboard, click Publish Agreement.

The Publish Agreement QuickAction initiates (see “QuickAction Details” on page 167 for more information).

QuickAction Details

The Publish Agreement QuickAction performs the following actions:

1. Update Agreement Status to Published

2. Run for Child Resolution SLT

a. Run for Child Resolution Escalation Schedule

• Update Resolution Escalation Schedule Status to Active

b. Run for Child Resolution Override Target Condition

• Run for Child Resolution Override Target Condition Escalation Schedule

• Update Resolultion Override Target Condition Escalation Schedule Status to Active

3. Run for Child Response SLT

a. Run for Child Response Escalation Schedule

• Update Response Escalation Schedule Status to Active

b. Run for Child Response Override Target Condition

• Run for Child Response Override Target Condition Escalation Schedule

• Update Response Override Target Condition Escalation Schedule Status to Active

4. Run for Child Delivery SLT

a. Run for Child Delivery Escalation Schedule

• Update Delivery Escalation Schedule Status to Active

b. Run for Child Request Offering Override Target

• Run for Child Request Offering Override Target Escalation Schedule

• Update Request Offering Override Target Escalation Schedule Status to Active



Hierarchical Expression

ITSM Enterprise Foundation now contains an expression that allows for selecting a record in a hierarchy. The expression specifies:

The hierarchy to search (for example, Incident.OrgUnitLink).

The type of related record to select (for example, Service Level Agreement)

Filter criteria (for example, ServiceAgreement.ServiceLink = Incident.Service fusion/validation). This expression is used as a calculation rule on the SLALink field for both Incident and Service Request to select and attach the correct SLA.

Incident - Select SLA Expression

On the Incident business object, the SLALink field uses the calculation expression Incident - Select SLA (Figure 112).

Figure 112 Incident.SLALink field control properties



The Incident - Select SLA expression is configured with the following parameters (Figure 113):

The Link Field that references the Hierarchy = Incident.OrgUnitLink

Type of record to select = Service Agreement (OrganizationalUnitAssociatedServiceAgreement)

Filter criteria:

ServiceAgreement.ServiceLink = Incident.Service+ fusion/validation

ServiceAgreement.Status = Published

Figure 113 Incident - Select SLA expression

Service Request - Select SLA Expression

On the Service Request business object, the SLALink field uses the calculation expression ServiceRequest - Select SLA (Figure 114).



Figure 114 ServiceReq.SLALink field control properties

The ServiceRequest - Select SLA expression is configured with the following parameters (Figure 115):

The Link Field that references the Hierarchy = ServiceRequest.OrgUnitLink

Type of record to select = Service Agreement (OrganizationalUnitAssociatedServiceAgreement)

Filter criteria:

ServiceAgreement.ServiceLink = ServiceReq.Service+ fusion/validation

ServiceAgreement.Status = Published



Figure 115 Service Request - Select SLA expression

Use Cases

This section describes the data assumptions, scenarios, and expected results for attaching SLAs to Service Requests and Incidents.



Assumptions

The use cases in the following sections are based on the following assumptions:

1. The organizational unit structure has three levels:

Corporate (Level 0)

Sales and Marketing (Level 1)

• Sales (Level 2)

• Marketing (Level 2)

Finance (Level 1)

• Payroll (Level 2)

2. The service used in use cases is Payroll Administration.

3. There are three request offerings for the Payroll Administration service:

Direct Deposit

Federal Exemption Update

Shift Differential Request

4. There are three service level packages (Gold, Silver, and Bronze) for the Payroll Administration service:

Table 6 Service level package details

Package Name Request Offerings Delivery SLT Response SLT Resolution SLT

Gold

• Direct Deposit

• Federal Exemption Update

• Shift Differential Request

• Base: 24 hours

• Override: Direct Deposit = 8 hours

• Base: 8 hours

• Override: Priority 1 = 4 hours

• Base: 24 hours


Silver

• Federal Exemption Update


• Base: 32 hours


• Base: 16 hours


• Base: 32 hours


Bronze


• Base: 40 hours


• Base: 24 hours


• Base: 40 hours




5. Service level package subscription and SLAs are as follows:

Use Case 1

Sales Requests a Direct Deposit

1. An employee who belongs to the Sales organizational unit submits a request for a direct deposit.

2. A Service Request is created with the Direct Deposit Request Offering template.

3. The Payroll Administration Gold for Sales SLA is selected and attached to the Service Request.

4. The delivery target for this request is 8 hours.

Use Case 2

Sales Requests a Federal Exemption Update

1. An employee who belongs to the Sales organizational unit submits a request for a Federal Exemption Update.

2. A Service Request is created with the Federal Exemption Update request offering template.

3. The Payroll Administration Gold for Sales SLA is selected and attached to the Service Request.

4. The delivery target for this request is 24 hours.

Use Case 3

Marketing Submits an Incident Against the Payroll Administration Service

1. An employee who belongs to the Marketing organizational unit submits a Priority 2 Incident against Payroll Administration Service.

Table 7 Subscription and SLA details

Package Name Organizational Unit Service Level Agreement

Gold Sales Payroll Administration Gold for Sales

Silver Sales and Marketing Payroll Administration Silver for Sales and Marketing

Bronze Corporate Payroll Administration Bronze for Corporate



2. Because the Marketing organizational unit is not subscribed to any service level packages, the hierarchical expression continues to look up the organizational unit hierarchy for an SLA. The organizational unit directly above the Marketing organizational unit is Sales and Marketing. Therefore, the Payroll Administration Silver for Sales and Marketing SLA is selected and attached to the Incident.

3. The response target for this Incident is 16 hours, and the resolution target is 32 hours.

Use Case 4

Payroll Submits an Incident Against the Payroll Administration Service

1. An employee who belongs to the Payroll organizational unit submits a Priority 1 Incident against Payroll Administration Service.

2. Because the Payroll organizational unit is not subscribed to any service level packages, the hierarchical expression continues to look up the organizational unit hierarchy for a SLA. The organizational unit directly above Payroll also does not have an SLA. Therefore, it continues up the hierarchy and selects the Payroll Administration Bronze for Corporate SLA for the Incident.

3. The response target for this Incident is 8 hours, and the resolution target is 16 hours.


Chapter 8

Web Administration Interface

This chapter describes how to use the Web administration interface to:

Configure the Self Service interface.

Configure other, more general ITSM features such as user accounts and workflows. Some of these features are described in the context of Self Service, but the procedures in this chapter can also be used to configure these features for all of ITSM (and not just Self Service).

Troubleshoot metadata and other changes not being processed or shared between the Web platform and the Smart Client.

Self Service and Web Administration Login

Perform the following steps to log in to Self Service. After logging in you can use Self Service and the Web administration interface.

1. Open your Web browser to the following URL:


The Self Service login dialog displays.



Chapter 8: Web Administration Interface

2. Enter your login ID and password, select a platform, and then click Login. When the list of available roles displays, select Administrators and then click Continue.

The the Self Service home page displays.

Access the Web Administration Interface

From the Self Service home page, select Settings > Configure Application (Figure 117).


The Web administration interface opens in the Application Configuration tab (Figure 118):

Figure 118 Web administration interface (Application Configuration tab)



From here, you can:

Use the workspaces in the Application Designer (located under the Application Configuration tab) to design and configure Self Service as described in the following sections:

Workspace Description

User Interfaces

Manage the appearance of workspaces associated with roles. Workspaces provide access to different Business Objects, such as summary information displayed in the Home dashboard, Incident, Problem, etc. Different workspaces can be defined for each role.

See “Defining User Interfaces” on page 179 for more information.

Pick Lists

Manage pick lists (the lists of options provided in certain selection fields). Pick lists are obtained from specific Business Object data types, and are limited by a set of constraints.

See “Defining Pick Lists” on page 184 for more information.

Business Objects (including workflows)

Manage the Business Objects available in each workspace, including creating object-specific workflows. A Business Object is any business component that needs to be tracked or managed. Examples of Business Objects are employees, incidents, notes, attachments and priorities.

See “Defining Business Objects” on page 186 and “Defining Workflows” on page 204 for more information.

Automation Tools

Define:

• Quick Actions

• Escalation schedules

• Saved searches

• Object matching

See “Using Automation Tools” on page 219 for more information

Dashboard

Find, create, edit, delete, and customize the layout of dashboards and dashboard parts.

See “Defining Dashboards” on page 236 for more information.

License Server

Review licensing information about your ITSM and other FrontRange product licenses.

See “Working with the License Server” on page 246 for more information.

Default Branding

Manage the branding elements (for example, logos) that are displayed in ITSM interfaces.

See “Defining Default Branding” on page 246 for more information.



Use the workspaces under the Settings tab to configure organizational settings as described in the following sections:

Use the workspaces under the User Management tab to set up user accounts as described in the following sections:

Use the Survey workspace to design and edit surveys. See “Set up Surveys” on page 267 for more information.

Workspace Description

Hours of Operation

Define your company’s operational calendar including daily hours and schedules.

See “Defining Hours of Operation (HOP)” on page 247 for more information.

Organization Charts

Create organizational units and manage the Org Unit Business Object.

See “Defining Organization Charts” on page 247 for more information.

Audit HistoryView your organization’s audit history.

See “Working with Audit History” on page 249 for more information

Global Constants

Manage values for reference throughout an ITSM installation.

See “Defining Global Constants” on page 250 for more information

Localization ToolsManage localization support.

See “Defining Localization Settings” on page 252 for more information

Module Description

RolesView and customize the ITSM Self Service default roles and define new roles.

See “Defining Roles” on page 252 for more information.

UsersView and create user (employee) profiles.

See “Managing Users” on page 259 for more information.

GroupsView and create contact groups.

See “Creating Contact Groups” on page 266 for more information.

TeamsView and create standard user teams.

See “Creating Standard User Teams” on page 266 for more information



Defining User Interfaces

Each user interface is a layout consisting of tabs, forms, grids, and controls that displays a Parent record and its Child records. The Parent record displays as a form with its Child records usually displayed as a series of tabs.

Layouts are displayed in the application user interface and house two main areas:

Parent Record. Displays the active Parent record (for example, an Employee record). A Parent record displays as a form, usually at the top of the work area. Each Parent record has a toolbar to help you navigate between Parent records and access operations.

Child Records. Displays the active parent’s Child records (for example, Attachments and Notes). Child records usually display using a series of tabs grouped together. Each tab represents a Child object, with individual records displayed on each tab. View the list of records in a grid or view an individual record as a form or a form summary. The Child Record toolbar helps you navigate between Child records and perform operations.

You can define whether a layout is displayed as a list view displaying the available child records, or as a detail view displaying the details of the parent record.

Layouts in Self Service are organized in two ways:

By role. Self Service comes with several default role-based layouts that address several basic business needs. The layouts define the user interface for each role that a user can log into Self Service under. As a system administrator, you can use these layouts, edit them, delete them, or create your own using the Layout Editor and other tools.

By business object. These layouts pertain to a single business object and can be edited through the Smart Client as well as through the Web administration interface.

The following sections describe how to configure layouts through Self Service.

Role-Based User Interface Layouts

Perform the following steps to view, create, and edit layouts for role-based user interfaces.

NOTE

Additional interface editing capabilities are available through the Roles page under the User and Security Management tab. If you need to edit an interface in a way that is not described in this section, see “Creating and Editing Roles” on page 253.

1. Click User Interfaces under the Application Configuration tab (Figure 119).



Figure 119 Access layouts for role-based user interfaces

A two-panel page displays (Figure 120).

Figure 120 Role-based user interfaces

2. The Roles panel on the left side of the screen lists all currently defined roles. Two lines are displayed for each role. The first line is the role’s system name; the second line is the display name. Click a role to display a list of its top-level tabs in the User Interfaces panel on the right side of the screen. Figure 120 shows the Self Service User role highlighted.



NOTE

The term “tab” as used in this section refers to the tab and the workspace that displays under it. Unless otherwise noted, “tab” and “workspace” are used interchangeably here.

3. Edit or create top-level tabs as follows:

Create a new top-level tab based on (“cloned from”) an existing top level tab. See “Clone an Existing Top-Level Tab” on page 181.

Create an all new top-level tab. See “Create an All-New Top-Level Tab” on page 182 and “Adding Top-Level Tabs” on page 255.

Edit an existing top-level tab. See “Edit an Existing Top-Level Tab” on page 182.

Clone an Existing Top-Level Tab

1. In the User Interface page shown in Figure 120, select the role whose user interface you will configure (for example, Business Unit Manager, Figure 121).

Figure 121 Select the Business Unit Manager user interface for editing

2. In the User Interfaces panel, click Clone next to the top-level tab that will be the basis for the new tab. For example, to create a new tab in the Business Unit Manager interface based on the Service Catalog tab, click as shown in Figure 122.

Figure 122 Clone the Service Catalog top-level tab



3. In the resulting New User Interface form, complete step 4 on page 255 through step 10 on page 256. When you are done:

The new top-level tab is available to Self Service users logged in under the role whose interface you configured (for example, Business Unit Manager).

The new top-level tab is added to the list in the User Interfaces panel (Figure 122).

Create an All-New Top-Level Tab


2. In the User Interfaces panel, click the Add User Interface tab. A default list of workspace types displays.

3. Continue from step 4 on page 255.

NOTE

To add a tab for a workspace type that is not displayed in the default list of workspace types (such as Incident), select Object Workspace from the list. In the resulting dialog, set the Object and Layout fields to the settings that you want the new workspace to be based on. For example, set both fields to Incident to create a new Incident tab and workspace.

Edit an Existing Top-Level Tab


2. In the User Interfaces panel, click Edit next to the top-level tab that you will edit. The Business Object that the tab is based on opens in the Business Object Layout Editor.

3. Edit the layout as described in “Creating Layouts” on page 197.

Business Object Layouts

Perform the following steps to view, create, and edit layouts for business objects.

1. In the Overview tab, click View All in the User Interfaces area (Figure 123).



Figure 123 Access layouts for business objects

The BO Layouts page displays, showing a list of existing layouts in table format. The table includes the layout display name, the default initial view (grid or form view), the ID of the last user to edit the layout, and the last time the layout was saved.

2. Click a layout name in the table to display and edit existing layout information. Click Add New to add a new layout.

3. See “Creating Layouts” on page 197 for details about how to create and edit layouts.



Defining Pick Lists

Pick Lists (also called validation lists) supply another object with field values, and are stored as child objects in a relationship. For example, you can create a list called Status to supply a list of possible values (such as Active or Logged) to the Status field in the Order object.

A pick list derives its value from a table row in a Business Object. For example, the Active Employee List by Full Name pick list derives its values from the Full Name table row in the Profile.Employee Business Object.

Viewing Pick Lists

View pick lists by accessing the Pick Lists page in one of these ways:

Click Pick Lists under the Application Configuration tab (Figure 124), or

In the Overview tab, click View All in the Pick Lists area (Figure 125).

Figure 124 Access the Pick Lists page (method 1)



Figure 125 Access the Pick Lists page (method 2)

Creating and Editing Pick Lists1. In the Pick Lists page:

To define new pick list, click Add New.

To edit an existing pick list, click the pick list name.

The Add New Validation List or Edit Existing Validation List page displays.

2. To include the pick list contents among the items to be localized, click the Translated check box.

3. In the List Name field, enter the name of the pick list to be stored.

4. In the Display Name field, enter the name of the pick list to be displayed in ITSM.

5. Select a data source from the Get List Data From drop-down list. This is a Business Object display name.

6. Select a visible field name to be displayed in the pick list from the Display field drop-down list.

7. Select a stored field name whose value is to be retrieved from the Value field drop-down list.

This entry frequently differs from the Display field selection. For example, the Owner fields in many Business Objects contain pick lists of DisplayName entries derived from the Profile.Employee Business Object, such as Bernard Jeffries. However, you can select a Value field entry that is based on the corresponding LoginID of the Profile.Employee object, such as Bjeffries.



This allows the LoginID value to be stored in the database when the pick list item is selected. In this case, it is a practical choice because many ITSM business rules and system functions use login ID values.

8. Select a sorting value from the Sort by field drop-down list.

9. Select the Ascending or Descending radio button to define the default sort order.

10. Add Constraints to the pick list to restrict the data presented. Click the plus button to display a formula for adding a constraint. This formula is based on the parameter selected in the Get List Data From drop-down list.

For example, you can add a constraint to the Active Employee List by Full Name pick list to include active Employees:

Status + not equal to + Terminated

11. After defining pick list parameters:

Click the Usage Stats button to display a dialog box listing the Business Objects where the pick list is used, and the name of its linked field.

Click the Preview button to display a preview of the pick list.

Click Save to save the pick list.

Defining Business Objects

A Business Object is defined by sets of metadata stored in a Business Object definition. Business Objects are created through the ITSM Application Administrator. You can use the Self Service interface to view Business Object properties and edit some Business Object features.

These properties control how the object is identified and how it operates. A Business Object is composed of:

Business Properties Information about the types of fields stored in a Business Object and their properties.

Relationships

When an object must include information from another object, create a relationship between the objects. Each relationship contains a:

Parent object: Functions as the center of a relationship.

Child object: Assists a Parent object by supplying it with additional data.

Forms A graphical display used to present and capture field information. One or many forms compose a record.

Grids A tabular display for viewing multiple records at once. Columns represent the fields for each record.



When a Business Object is created, its fundamental properties such as name and purpose are defined. You can use ITSM Self Service to edit some aspects of existing Business Objects such as forms, grids, layouts, workflows, and audit objects.

Viewing Business Objects

View Business Objects by accessing the Business Objects page in one of these ways:

Click Business Objects under the Application Configuration tab and then click View All (Figure 126), or

In the Overview tab, click View All in the Business Objects area (Figure 127).

Figure 126 Access the Business Objects page (method 1)

Layouts

A collection of forms, tabs, grids, and controls that displays a Parent record and its Child records. The Parent record displays as a form with its Child records usually displayed as a series of tabs.

Business Rules

Govern events based on user input forms. Business Rules define triggering events, actions triggered by an event, and characteristics of user input forms pertaining to the Business Object.

Workflows

A business process is a set of activities that performs a specific task. Workflows organize one or more business processes, and are triggered by a user action, a time-based event, or additional business process.

Audit Objects Store changes made to the records in this Business Object. The audit history for an individual record is then displayed as a tab.



Figure 127 Access the Business Objects page (method 2)

A table-formatted list of available Business Objects displays. The table contains the Business Object name as it is stored in the ITSM database, its display name in the ITSM application, and a brief description.

Click a Business Object name to view the Business Object’s properties.

You can use ITSM Self Service to view and edit the following aspects of business objects:

Object Fields. View details of the fields that appear on the business object’s form. Specify a pick list to use for each field’s validation.

Relationships. View the relationships that are currently defined for the business object.

Forms. Design the forms used to collect object data for storage and retrieval for use in dashboards and reports.

Grids. Design the grids used to display multiple records in a workspace.

Layouts. Design the layout of a record, including its fields, grids and labels.

Business Rules. Create and edit business, initialization, editing, read-only, required, and saving rules.



Workflows. The business processes used to perform tasks in your organization.

Audit Records. Define the information to include in an audit trail.

View and Change Object Field Settings

To view and change field settings for a Business Object:

1. In the Application Designer Business Objects page, click a Business Object name.

2. Click the Object Fields tab The list of existing fields associated with this Business Object displays.

3. Click a field name to view its details.

4. In the Pick List area, select the Validated check box to enable validation for the field. In the Pick List Name field, select a pick list to use for validation.

5. Click the Save icon to save your changes.

View Relationships

To view relationships for a Business Object:

1. In the Application Designer Business Objects page, click a Business Object name.

2. Click the Relationships tab The list of existing relationships associated with this Business Object displays. From the relationship list you can:

Click a relationship name to view relationship details.

Click a related object name to view details about that object.

Designing Forms

A form is a graphical display used to present and capture field information. On a form, each field is represented by a field control and often a label. Forms might also display other components, such as images, to enhance their usability and aesthetic quality.

One or many forms compose a record. Many records compose a layout.

ITSM Self Service contains several default forms designed for common business needs. You can use these forms, edit them, delete them, or create your own using the Form Editor.

Customizing Forms

A Business Object can use several forms for different purposes and audiences. For instance, by assigning forms to roles, one form can be used for managers and another for technicians. When designing forms, first customize the default Panel, the Brief Panel, and then add new fields if necessary.



Customizing forms involves these basic steps:

Add fields: Click and drag object fields from the navigator bar to the form.

Edit field position and appearance: Align fields and refine their aesthetic properties to enhance form usability.

Summary Forms

A summary form is a special read-only form most often used in the grid view for an object Workspace, providing a preview of the record for the selected grid item. Summaries are usually labeled as read-only. Create, edit, and delete summary forms as you would any other form.

About Controls

A control is a form item that can be individually selected and manipulated. Text boxes, drop-down lists, buttons, labels, and images are all controls.

Types of Controls

Controls are organized into the following categories:

Field controls contain field data. A field control consists of a physical control (either a date box, date/time box, label, logical/check box, name splitter, number box, radio button, text box, or time box) with a label. The Field Type determines what kinds of controls can be used for each field.

Link field controls display Link field data. A Link field is a special system field that stores a record’s RecID and category for identifying and linking records in a Business Object relationship. When you create a Parent-Child object, ITSM creates the ParentLink field for you. A link field control consists of a physical control (either an Associated Item Selector or a Label menu) with a label.

Other controls enhance the functionality or aesthetics of a form. These controls include banners, buttons, free-floating labels, images, and group boxes.

Control Properties

A control is defined by its properties, which determine its appearance and the way it operates. Define properties when you add a control to a form.

About Fields

A field is a parcel of information within a Business Object. Fields store information that is typed or selected by the application user.



After creating a field, add it to a form for viewing. On a form, a field is represented using a field control such as a check box, text box, or drop-down list. The Field type determines which controls can be used.

Using the Form Editor

Perform the following steps to create the forms associated with a Business Object. The completed forms are then available for display in a layout. For more information about designing layouts, see “About Layouts” on page 196.

To create a Form:

1. Access the Object Details page for a Business Object:

a. In the Application Designer, click the Business Objects tab followed by the View All button. The list of Business Objects displays in table format.

b. Click a Business Object name. The Details page for that Business Object displays.

2. Click the Forms tab above the Details page. The list of existing forms associated with this Business Object displays.

3. Click the Add New link.

The Form Editor opens, with a blank form displayed in a 1-by-1-by-1 (one cell by one row by one column) table format.

4. To manipulate table components, select the first cell in the form and click the Commands toolbar button to display the Form Editor Commands menu. Select an item from the Commands menu to insert or delete table rows and columns.

Field type Description Control used

Date/TimeStores a date using the format for date/time entries.

Date, Time, or Date/Time box

Link

A system field in a Parent object. Stores the child's RecID and category (if applicable). On a form, it displays an embedded Child record.

Label menu or link Selector

Logical A yes-no (or true-false) field. Check box or radio button

NumberStores whole numbers or currency.

Number box

TextStores letters, numbers, and punctuation.

Text box or Combo box; sometimes a radio button



Use the Cell Properties tab in the left panel to adjust individual cell properties, such as dimensions and ruling.

5. Drag and drop a field or components related to this Business Object from the folders in the left panel:

Fields: Includes all fields defined for this Business Object. For example, the Urgency field has been added to an Incident form called Incident.DataEntry. A value entered in the Urgency field on the Incident.DataEntry form is stored in the Incident Business Object.

Relationships: Includes all Business Objects linked with this Business Object through defined relationships. For example, the IncidentDetails form includes a Customer Name field allowing you to search through the display names returned from the Profile.Employee object. Upon selecting a name, the rest of the customer information is automatically populated.

Other: Includes controls and graphical elements. For example, the Incident.Brief form includes a pair of grids displaying Recently Updated Tasks and Recent Activities.

6. Edit the component’s properties using the Control Properties tab in the left panel:

• Delete control • Merge cells

• Note: Table cells cannot be split. Once merged, you must delete the merged cell using the Delete Row command.

• Add row at the end • Insert Column to Right

• Insert row above selection • Insert column to left

• Insert row below selection • Delete selected column

• Delete row •

Name Value

Control Type Select the type of control:

• Text Field

• Read-only Text Field

• HTML Editor

• HTML Viewer

• Radio Button

• Object Matching Control

Width Enter a value for the control width (ems).

Height Enter a value for the control height (ems).

Visible Expression Enter a visible expression for this control



Style Select a display style for this control from the drop-down list:

• Default

• Highlighted Row

• Header

• Bold Label

• Right Label

• Horizontal Rule Header

• Black Combo Box

• Blue Text

• Light Blue Text

• Light Blue Text Right

• Bold Highlighted

• Bold w/Horizontal Rule

• Counter

• Horizontal Rule

• Vertical Rule

• Vertical Rule (long)

• VIP

• Panel Header

• Panel Footer

• Panel Body

• Panel Body (No Border)

• Panel Body (First Row)

• Therm labels top

• Therm labels bottom

• Link (button)

Style Rule Enter an expression xxxxxx????

Label Enter the text to be displayed on the field or control label.

Label Expression Enter an expression???

Label Pos Select the label position from the drop-down list:

• On the left

• On the top

Field Name Contains the name of the associated Business Object field.

Read Only Define the read-only state of the component:

• Always

• Never

Name Value



You can:

Add Functions

Add fields representing any Business Object field to a form. You can add a field from a Business Object relationship provided the relationship is 1-to-1 or many-to-1.

Add buttons to initiate an action.

Define control actions when selected or manipulated (for example, run a report).

Define control behaviors (for example, contents or lack of content, use of a pick list, accompanying tool tips).

Add Structure and Design Elements

Add a free-floating label to identify a control or other item.

Add cell styles to organize a set of controls.

Read Only Expression Enter an expression associated with this read-only state. For example, you can set a field to be displayed as read-only when its status changes.

Required Define this field as required or not by selecting a state from the drop-down list:

• Always

• Never

Required Expression Enter an expression associated with this Required state. For example, a common expression would be requiring a field to be completed if an Incident is logged:$(iif( (Status == "Logged"), , true))

Control Definition

URL Button Button opens a URL resource when clicked.

Command ButtonButton executes a specific command, such as running a report or a QuickAction.

Label Add a static or dynamic Label to a form.

Expression TextCertain fields may need to use an expression for calculating a value or use a counter to automatically increment a tracking number contained within.

Progress BarDefine a progress bar for tracking purposes. For example, you can add a progress bar to track escalations for an Incident.

Attachment ViewerAllows the viewing of attachments as listed on the form.

PictureAdd images to the form, such as icons or company logos.

Grid Displays child records within a form in grid format.

Name Value



Add an image, such as a company logo, to enhance aesthetics.

Format the appearance of a control by adding colors, borders, alignments, fonts, text, and textures.

Specify the order in which a user proceeds through controls when the TAB key is pressed.

Add colors, aligning controls, centering controls, sizing controls, and moving controls in front of and behind other controls.

7. Enter a unique name for the form in the Form Name field and save your changes to create a placeholder for the form. Frequently saving your changes is recommended as you construct the form.

You can revise the form as your company needs change, adding and deleting layout components.

Tips for Designing Forms

While you can add more than one component to a form table cell, it can have an adverse effect on your form display. Adding elements will cause adjacent cell width and height to increase.

A column will expand to the width of its largest field name or control.

In the Form Editor, relationships are restricted to one-to-one or many-to-one definitions.

About Grids

A grid is a tabular display for viewing multiple records at a time. Columns represent the fields for each record. Use the Grid Editor to design the grids used with your Business Object. The completed grids are then available for display in a layout. For more information about designing layouts, see “About Layouts” on page 196.

The Available Fields panel displays the list of fields that can be displayed in the grid, both for the current Business Object and any objects linked through relationships.

To create a grid:

1. Access the Details page for a Business Object:


b. Click a Business Object name. The Details page for that Business Object displays.

2. Click the Grids tab above the Details page. The list of existing grids associated with this Business Object displays.

3. Click the Add New link. The Grid Editor opens.



4. Use the grid editor drag-and-drop function to select a field in the Available Fields panel and add it to the Column Properties area. To add the first field, drag it to the active (top) row of the Column Properties table. You can then add and rearrange fields within the active table.

The Grid Preview area changes to display the current grid definition. The display changes to reflect your edits.

5. In the Column Properties area, edit the grid column as needed:

Display Name. To add a customized column name, double-click on the field and enter the custom text.

Field Ref.

Renderer. Select a rendering option from the drop-down list. For example, you can render the column as an option to be checked, or as a Yes/No (True/False) option.

Style Expression. Click the associated icon to open a dialog box for entering a custom expression for this grid column.

Width. Enter the pixel width of this column (default: 100)

Sortable. Click the check box to enable sorting features for this grid column. The column name is added to the Sort Column drop-down list in Step 3.

Groupable. Click this check box to enable grouping features for this column. The column name is added to the Group By drop-down list in Step 3.

6. In the Grid Properties area, refine grid settings:

Default Sort Column: Set the default sort display for this column by selecting an available column from the drop-down list.

Default Sort Order: Select the default sort order for this column (Ascending or Descending).

Default Group By Column: Set the default grouping for this grid by selecting an available column from the drop-down list.

Column to Display as Link: Select a column to display as a hyperlink, allowing the object to be displayed in its own tab.

Default Page Size: Select a default page size in pixels from the default drop-down list, or enter a custom page size in the field provided.

Maximum Number of Records to Return: Enter a number of records to display in the grid.

7. Type a unique name for this grid in the Grid Definition Name field.

8. Click the Save Design button to save this grid definition.

About Layouts

A layout is a collection of forms, tabs, grids, and controls that displays a Parent record and its Child records. The Parent record displays as a form with its Child records usually displayed as a series of tabs.



Layouts are displayed in the application workspace and house two main areas:

Parent Record: Displays the active Parent record (for example, an Employee record). A Parent record displays as a form, usually at the top of the work area. Each Parent record has a toolbar to help you navigate between Parent records and access operations.

Child Records: Displays the active parent's Child records (for example, Attachments and Notes). Child records usually display using a series of tabs grouped together. Each tab represents a Child object, with individual records displayed on each tab. View the list of records in a grid or view an individual record as a form or a form summary. The Child Record toolbar helps you navigate between Child records and perform operations.

ITSM Self Service includes several default layouts that address several basic business needs. As an administrator, you can use these layouts, edit them, delete them, or create your own using the Layout Editor and other tools.

You can define whether the layout is displayed as a List view listing the available child records, or as a detail view displaying the details of the parent record.

Creating Layouts

When creating a layout for a simple Business Object, the Layout Editor display differs from that of a Master object in a Business Object Group.

To create a single layout:



b. Click a Business Object name. The Object Details page for that Business Object displays.

2. Click the BO Layouts tab above the Object Details page. The list of existing layouts associated with this Business Object displays.

3. Click the Add New link to open a New Layout page in the Layout Editor.

4. Enter a unique layout name in the Display Name field.

5. Click a check box to define the search configuration for this layout.

Display Simple Search Controls: Displays fields for entering simple search criteria.

Display Advanced, Saved Search, and Navigation controls: Displays fields for entering advanced search criteria, for recalling saved searches, and navigation tools for moving between records.

6. A list of existing layout views is displayed. Click a check box to select an initial view to associate with this layout. The same initial view cannot be shared between layouts.



Click the Add New List View link to display a dialog box for adding a new list view. Go to “To add a new list view:” on page 198 and continue from there.

Click the Add New Form View link to display a dialog box for adding a new form view (see “To add a new form view:” on page 199).

7. Click the Save Layout link to save the layout.

To add a new list view:

1. Click the Add New List View link to display a dialog box for adding a new list view.


3. Select a grid type for this layout from the Grid drop-down list. To add a new grid to the list, click the Add New Grid link to open the Grid Editor in a new tab (see “About Grids” on page 195).

4. In the Preview Forms area, select the form to use with the associated Business Object in this layout from the Use This Form drop-down list. To add a new form to the list, click the Add New Form link to open the Form Editor in a new tab (see “Using the Form Editor” on page 191).

When selecting the Preview form for the master object in a group, this area changes to reflect the options available for each child object in the group. Grids are displayed at the top of the form, while child records are shown at the bottom. Selecting None from the Form Name drop-down list prevents new objects from being created for a particular child object.

5. If needed, create any custom toolbar options for the grid area by clicking the Edit link to open the Toolbar Editor in a new tab (see “Using the Toolbar Editor” on page 200).

6. Click the Remember Position of the Splitter between the Grid and Preview form check box to save the custom setting in this view

OR

Click the Reset personal user settings to default button to return the view to default settings. This is useful for testing layout changes.

7. Define any navigation between this form and other form views.

NOTE

You cannot define navigation to other list views in this area.

Select a view to display upon submitting a request to create a new object from the drop-down list. By default, a New View is displayed. Click the Edit link to edit the view, or click the Add New Form View link to open the Form View Editor in a new tab (see “To add a new form view:” on page 199).

Select a view to display upon submitting a request to edit an existing object from the drop-down list. By default, an Edit View is displayed. Click the Edit link to edit the view, or click the Add New Form View link to open the Form View Editor in a new tab (see “To add a new form view:” on page 199).



When defining navigation for the Master object in a group, the Navigation area of this tab changes to reflect the options available for each child object in the group.

8. Click the Save link to save the list view.

To add a new form view:

1. Click the Add New Form View link to display a dialog box for adding a new form view.


3. Select the form to associate with this detail view from the Main Form drop-down list. To add a new form to the list, click the Add New Form link to open the Form Editor in a new tab (see “Using the Form Editor” on page 191).

4. If needed, create any custom toolbar options for the view by clicking the Edit link to open the Toolbar Editor in a new tab (see “Using the Toolbar Editor” on page 200).

5. If needed, customize view behavior settings:

To automatically fill form fields with common values, click the Enable smart fill on repetitive input of the same values check box.

To enable rapid movement through records returned in search results, click the Enable Next/Previous buttons on the search bar check box.

To display the Object Matching module for enhanced search capability, click the Enable Matching panel check box. When enabled click the Edit Matching Settings link to change settings. See “Working with Object Matching” on page 201 for more information.

6. If needed, customize navigation settings:

By default, the browser Back button returns you to the previous list or form view in the form present in the browser history. To add this detail view, click the Add this view to Browser Back button history check box.

Select the action to take place after saving the object from the drop-down list. The default setting is New View.

7. If the Business Object is a Master Object in a group, any associated Child panels are displayed in a table at the bottom of the form, and will be displayed as tabs on this layout. To associate a child object, click the Add Child Panel link to add a row to the Child Panels table and complete the cells of the table.

a. Enter a name for the child panel in the Display Name field.

b. Select the object to associate with this child panel from the Object drop-down list. You can select a standalone or group object.

c. If more than one relationship exists between the child object and the related object, select the valid relationship from the Relationship drop-down list.

d. To create custom toolbar options for the child panel, click the Toolbar link to open the Toolbar Editor in a new tab (see “Using the Toolbar Editor” on page 200).



e. Select Grid or Form from the Display type drop-down list, and select the grid or form type to display from the associated drop-down list.

When you select a Form display type for a group object, a dialog box is displayed listing the available group objects. Here, you can associate a specific form with each object type and enable or disable the creation of additional objects of each type.

f. Select a panel placement option from the Placement drop-down list:

• Panel: displayed first at runtime.

• Tab

8. Click the Save link to save the form.

Using Attachments and Audit History as Child Panels

Attachments and audit history objects can be added as child panels within the detail view.

1. Establish a relationship between a Business Object and an attachment or audit history.

2. Create a new child panel within the detail view, selecting the object and the relationship.

The toolbar editor is not available when creating this child panel.

Using the Toolbar Editor

Use the Toolbar Editor to add, organize, delete and customize toolbar items. Toolbar items include QuickActions, Commands, Separators, and blank Buttons. Each toolbar item (except Separator) can contain additional menus.

If you disable the button’s ability to invoke an action, the button is limited to a placeholder for secondary menus.

To add Toolbar components:

1. Open the Toolbar Editor. The editor dialog window opens.

The Toolbar Editor displays a palette with available buttons. You can filter the display to show special buttons, predefined commands, literal strings and QuickActions.

2. Drag and drop buttons from the palette to the toolbar, aligning them to the left or right. When the button is dropped on the toolbar, a configuration dialog opens (except with Separators). The dialog fields are populated with default button parameters, such as commands, text and images. You also can double-click the button to open the editing dialog, where you can add submenu items and even advanced expressions or hiding and disabling the buttons.

Drag buttons from the left-aligned area to the right-aligned area as needed.



To delete a button, drag it from the toolbar area to the Trash area. A prompt displays asking you to confirm the action.

Working with Object Matching

While working in a Business Object, you can search other objects, records and Knowledge Base articles for keyword matches with the current object. Search results are ranked by how closely they match the search criteria, and are displayed in the Search results panel on the dashboard being used.

You can perform a full-field search that used the entire contents of a field as the search criteria, or a partial-field search that uses a portion of the field contents.

The following object areas are searched for matches with the keywords in the current Business Object:

Summary and Description information for each record in the ITSM database.

Database information that has been full-text indexed.

Knowledge Base information in the database that has been full-text indexed.

On the Object Matching page, you can view existing searches. Click the Add New link to create a new object matching set.

To create new object matching criteria:

1. In Run Object Matching whenever field, select the field that when changed will trigger a search.

2. In Match keywords from Object’s, select the field whose contents will be used as search criteria.

3. Specify objects to search in the Search for matches in area.

a. Click the new Object Name cell and select a Business Object from the drop-down list.

b. Click the Preview link to display a dialog box for constructing a preview form for search results.

• Select a field for a default search from the Title Field drop-down list.

• Select a field from the Preview Text Field drop-down list.

• Select the number of Preview lines to display (1-10) from the drop-down list.

• Click the Highlight matching text in the preview check box to more easily identify the matching text by having it highlighted.

• Select a form to use from the Form for Hover Panel drop-down list(s).

• To optionally add more fields to the Preview form, click Add New Button and enter field details in the resulting dialog.

• Click Save to save the preview form



• Click its corresponding Edit Filter link to display a dialog box for constructing matching filters. A list of existing filters is displayed in table format.

• Enter a display name for the filter in the Filter Display Name cell.

• In the Condition cell, enter a combination of fields from the current Business Object and Boolean logic to create a search criteria.

• Click Save to save the filter.

4. Use the Show X matches per search area drop-down list to select the number of matches to display.

5. Click Save to save this object matching set.

Create and Edit Business Rules

A Business Rule pertains to a single Business Object. Use the Business Rule Editor to create rules with the following characteristics:

Defined by Business Object.

Commonly used to configure events that are based on user input forms.

Contain definitions that include:

Triggering events.

Actions triggered by an event.

Characteristics of user input forms that pertain to the Business Object.

Executed immediately when triggered by an event.

Cannot be used to define time-based events such as start times, delays, etc.

Adding and Editing Business Rules

Click the Business Rules link for an open Business Object to display its Business Rules page. Here, you can add, edit and delete business rules associated with this Business Object.

By adding rules, you are adding restrictions rather than removing them. If a Business Object field is only available to a particular user, you cannot add access by using a business rule.

1. Select an available default form from the Show rules for form drop-down list. To execute custom rules, you should select a specific form to apply them to.



2. Edit the rules tables as needed. Click the plus icon to display a dialog box for adding a rule to one of these tables:

Rules are triggered in the order they are listed within these sections. Use the arrow keys to move rules up or down in the list.

Business

Select an event to trigger the rule. This can include:

• On Initialize

• On Insert

• On Delete

• On Update

• On Initialization of Specific Field select a field from the drop-down list)

• On Update of Specific Field (select a field from the drop-down list)

Initialization Select a field used to provide a default value from the drop-down list, then add expressions in the field provided.

Editing

Editing rules automatically populate the value of a field when the dependent field is changed (for example, the value displayed in the Email field changes when the Owner is changed).

Editing rules also can include calculation fields allowing you to define calculations on the field

Use the drop-down lists to create an On Change, set sequence. Add expressions in the field provided. Two additional check boxes are provided:

• Assign Only if this field is Empty

• Invoke editing rules for the dependent fields of the target field

Click the additional plus sign to add a calculated field to the rule that specifies a field, condition and expression.

Read only

1. Select a field to add from the drop-down list.

2. Select a radio button:

• This field is always read-only

• This field is conditionally read-only based on expression.

3. Add expressions in the field provided.

Required

1. Select a field to add from the drop-down list.

2. Select a radio button:

• This field is always required

• This field is conditionally required based on expressions.


Saving1. Select a field from the Set drop-down list.




3. Click the Save link to save your changes.

Configure Audit Generation

Store changes made to the records in a Business Object in a designated Auditing Business Object. The audit history for an individual record is then displayed as a tab.




2. Click the Audit tab above the Object Details page. Audit information for this Business Object displays.

3. Select the conditions under which an audit record is created for this Business Object:

Entity: Displays the Entity (stored) name of the Business Object.

Min. Date: Define part of an audit record date range by setting a minimum date.

Max. Date: Define part of an audit record date range by setting a maximum date

Author: Select a record author from the drop-down list.

Operation: Select an operation type (All, Insert, Update, Delete) from the drop-down list.

Type: Select a definition type (displayed as metadata tables) from the drop-down list. The list displays all the available definition types (Business Object, business rules, object matching) in the ITSM SaaS application.


Defining Workflows

A business process is a set of activities that performs a specific task. A workflow is type of business process, typically structured in ITSM to handle support tickets and escalations. Workflows can be triggered by a user action, a time-based event, or another business process.

The Workflow Designer is a graphical tool that allows you to arrange blocks of code using a drag-and-drop interface to create workflows. The Workflow Engine executes the business processes created with the Workflow Designer. Workflows are distinguished by the following characteristics:

Defined for individual Business Objects.

Unlimited run time.



Can define time-based events such as start times, delays, etc.

Can be triggered by an action, a time-based event, or another workflow.

To create a basic workflow entry for a Business Object:

1. Access the Details page for a Business Object:



2. Click the Workflows tab above the Object Details page. The list of existing workflows associated with this Business Object displays.

3. Click the Add New link. The page changes to display a form for entering workflow information.

4. Enter the workflow name in the List Name field.

5. Enter the display name in the Display Name field.

6. Enter a working description for this workflow in the Description field.

7. Click Save button. The workflow entry is added to ITSM, and the page display changes to reflect the new entry.

8. Locate and click the new workflow in the table on the main Workflow page. If a version does not yet exist, create one now by clicking Add Version. The Workflow Designer displays. You can now create the initial workflow version as described in “Using the Workflow Designer” on page 205.

You can deploy different versions of a workflow entry. To change the workflow version being used, select the workflow from the list, then click the More Actions menu button. Select Activate Version. Once a version becomes active, it cannot be edited. You must create a new version for editing purposes.

NOTE

If you activate a different version of a workflow, any in-progress processes belonging to the previous version will run to completion.

Using the Workflow Designer

Use the Workflow Designer to assemble the components of the workflow. This includes defining the trigger conditions for the workflow, its required starting and stopping points, and its logical business processes.

1. Click the Trigger button to display a dialog box where you can define trigger conditions.

a. Click a check box to select an Event for the context object:



• Created

• Updated

• Deleted

b. Click a radio button to apply AND or OR Boolean logic operators.

c. Create an expression for applying this condition. An expression contains one or more operators (actions) and one or more operands (values).

• Select an entry from each of the Field, Operator, and Value drop-down lists. You can click the Calendar button to schedule a date for applying this condition.

• Click the Plus button to add rows for creating additional expressions.

d. Click Save to save this condition.

2. Drag and drop the following blocks to assemble the business processes of the workflow, and complete the fields required for each block:

Double-click on a block to open a dialog box for entering parameters, including the input and output (Exit Port Configuration) interface, the information required by the block, as well as the information returned in order to execute the business process.

See “Block Descriptions” on page 206 for details about each block.

NOTE

Scheduled actions do not require input.

3. Connect the blocks by using your mouse to drag an arrow from a block’s exit port to its destination block in the workflow. You can create if-then sequences and loops within the same workflow.

4. Click the Save button to save this workflow.

Block Descriptions

This section describes the workflow blocks listed in the preceding table.

• Insert Child Object

• QuickAction

• Run for Child

• Run for Search

• Update

• Task

• Get Approval

• Wait

• Wait for Child

• If needed, you can use the Exit Configuration tab to define additional exit ports.

• Join

• Start

• Stop

• Switch

• Notification

• Invoke Workflow



Insert Child Object

Insert a Child Object block into the workflow. Use its dialog to define a child object within this workflow.

1. Enter an object title in the Title field.

2. Select an object from the Available Fields panel. You can navigate the folders in the tree structure to select a field or function associated with the Business Object.

3. Select an available field from the Target Object Fields drop-down list.

4. Edit the Target Object Fields table as needed.

To add a value for a particular field, type a literal value in the Value table cell or drag-and-drop a valid field or function from the Available Fields tree.

Click the Overwrite check box to overwrite default values with this value.

Use the up and down arrows to rearrange table items and the order in which they are processed. The order of processing decides can affect the creation or update of the Business Object, as specific values are determined to be correct or not.


QuickAction

Define a QuickAction to execute when a business process has completed. You can select an action associated with this Business Object.

You can add a QuickAction to execute when a business process has completed.

1. Enter a title for this QuickAction block in the Title field.

2. Select an available QuickAction from the drop-down list.


You can also use the QuickAction block to configure workflows to send email messages that include URLs. See “Configure URLs in Workflow Email” on page 214 for more information.

Run for Child

Specify a secondary workflow to run against each instance of a specified child record related to the current Business Object. Specify the relationship, Boolean operators and expressions.

The OK exit port in this block is available upon completion of the workflow run against the child record instances, and is not contingent upon its success.

1. Enter the title in the Title field.

2. Select an available relationship for the child object from the Relationship drop-down list.



3. Select a child filter condition by selecting an AND or OR radio button.

4. Select an operand from the Field drop-down list.

5. Select an additional operator from the Operator drop-down list.

6. Add a value in the Value field. Depending on the child object, this can be a drop-down list or calendar selection.

7. Select a QuickAction to run if these conditions are met from the QuickAction drop-down list.

Click the plus sign to add another expression to the block. Repeat steps 2-7


Run for Search

Specify a search that can trigger a QuickAction or invoke a supplemental workflow. For example, you can run a search for all active Incidents, then generate a reminder or escalation notification.

The OK exit port in this block is available upon completion of the QuickAction or supplemental workflow run after the search, and is not contingent upon its success.

1. Enter the title in the Title field.

2. Select an available search definition from the Search Definition drop-down list.

3. Click a radio button to select an action:

Run QuickAction: After clicking this radio button, select an available QuickAction from the drop-down list.

Invoke Workflow: After clicking this radio button, select a defined workflow from the drop-down list.


Update

Updates data within the context of the Business Object where an action is running. If executed at the beginning of the workflow, the action updates the record causing the instance or the workflow to run.

Exit ports for this block allow workflow paths for successful and failed update actions.

1. Enter an object title in the Title field.

2. Edit the Target Object Fields table as needed.

To add a value for a particular field, type a literal value in the Value table cell or drag-and-drop a valid field or function from the Available Fields tree.

Click the Overwrite check box to overwrite default values with this value.

Use the up and down arrows to rearrange table items and the order in which they are processed.




Task

Assigns a task to an employee or team, including task priority and time lines.

Exit ports for this block can vary according to how the task assignment is processed:

accepted

assigned

logged

completed

cancelled

acceptance timed out

timed out

1. Enter the block title in the Title field.

2. Enter a summary description of the task in the Task Summary field.

3. Enter a detailed description of the task in the Task Details field.

4. Select a task type from the Type field:

Internal

External

5. Select the team assigned this task from the Team field.

6. Select a specific assignee for this task, if needed, from the Assignee field.

7. Click a radio button to select a Priority for this task:

Field: Select a field type for this task priority from the drop-down list. Its numeric value determines the task priority.

Value: Select a numeric value for this task from the drop-down list. A value of 1 is the highest priority.

8. Select a marker for the task timeout interval from the Accept Timeout Date drop-down list. This includes all date/time fields available for the Business Object, such as Created On: and Modified On.

9. Click a radio button to define the Due Date:

Field: The due date is generated relative to the field selected from the drop-down list.

Duration: Click this radio button to define the due date according to the interval defined in the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields.




Get Approval

Add approval stages to the workflow process. You can specify approvers, approval criteria and the time lines for approvals.

Exit ports for this block allow workflow paths for approvals, denied approvals and items that are timed out.


2. Enter a summary description of the required approval in the Approval Summary field.

3. Define Approvers:

Click the From a Group radio button to designate an Approver group, such as a Change Advisory Board (CAB). Approvals can be accepted from any member of this group.

Click the From a User radio button to specify a user for this Approval. Use the Department and Individual User drop-down lists to identify the person.

4. Click a radio button to Select an Approval/Denial criteria:

Approve if All Approved:

Approve if Any Approved

Approve if at least N% approved

Deny if any rejected

Deny if at least N% rejected.

NOTE

This criteria section is intended for use by approver groups.

5. If needed, select an Approval Notification QuickAction from the drop-down list.

6. Define the Approval Voting Deadline:

Field: The deadline is the date in the field selected from the drop-down list.

Duration: The deadline is specified as a duration in the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields (the duration clock starts when the Get Approval workflow block is triggered; the deadline is reached when the duration ends).


Wait

Waits for a condition specified in the block to become true, or for a timer to expire. By default, exit ports for this block allow for separate workflow paths for these events.








6. Define the Timeout interval:




If needed, you can use the Exit Configuration tab to define additional exit ports.

Wait for Child

Waits for a condition specified in the block to become true for a child object, or for a timer to expire. By default, exit ports for this block allow for separate workflow paths based on these events.


2. Select an available relationship for the child object from the Relationship drop-down list.





7. Define the Timeout interval:



Click the plus sign to add another expression to the block. Repeat steps 2-7.


If needed, you can use the Exit Configuration tab to define additional exit ports.

This feature allows a Boolean decision to be made between Fields, Literal, System Function and Global Values. Depending on the outcome, the exit port can connect to a different block, creating a different path within the workflow. The exit ports in this block allow for paths based on True and False returns.




2. Select the first operator to apply by clicking the AND or OR radio button.

3. Select a field as an operand from the Field drop-down list.

4. Select an additional operator to apply from the Operator drop-down list.

5. Select a value from the Value drop-down list.

Click the plus sign to add another expression to the block. Repeat steps 1-5.


Join

Combines two or more workflow paths. For example, you can specify that a combination of paths, or all paths, must reach this Join block in order to continue. Once the required number of actions successfully reach the Join block, the workflow continues.

A workflow process can continue if it does not reach the Join action as it continues, but terminates upon reaching the block.

The exit port in this block allows a common path to resume after combining workflows. To identify the junction, enter the block title in the Title field.

Click Save to save your changes.

Start

Starts the workflow when the trigger fires. The trigger event can be a condition, a scheduled action, or a call from another workflow process. The Start block is required. The first action in the workflow is to create a record within the Business Object.

1. You can enter a block title in the Title field.

2. Enter a summary description of the workflow or its starting point in the Description field.


Stop

Ends the workflow. The Stop block is required. You can enter a block title in the Title field.

Switch

Allows a Boolean decision to be made between Fields, Literal, System Function and Global Values. You can define multiple exit ports depending on the decision, routing the workflow to different blocks.

1. Enter a block title in the Title field.



2. Enter a summary description of the workflow switch in the Description field.

3. On the Exit Configuration tab, click the Add New Exit Configuration button to add a new exit port:

a. Enter the exit port title in the Name field.

b. Select the first operator to apply by clicking the AND or OR radio button.

c. Select a field as an operand from the Field drop-down list.

d. Select an additional operator to apply from the Operator drop-down list.

e. Select a value from the Value drop-down list.

f. If needed, click the plus sign to add another expression to the block. Repeat steps a-e.


Notification

Define settings for email notifications. Use the dialog box to create automated messaging within the body of the email message as well as designate the recipient individuals and teams.

1. Select an object from the Available Fields panel. You can navigate the folders in the tree structure to select a field or function associated with the Business Object.

2. Complete the email template:

a. Enter a valid email destination address in the To: field.

b. Enter a valid email address in the From: field.

c. If necessary, enter a a valid email destination address in the CC: or BCC: fields.

d. Enter and format the text of the automated message in the Body: field.


You can also use the Notification block to configure workflows to send email messages that include URLs. See “Configure URLs in Workflow Email” on page 214 for more information.

Invoke Workflow

This block invokes another workflow created within this Business Object. The exit ports allow for paths contingent upon the workflow being started, completed, and failing.

1. Enter a block title in the Title field.

2. Click a radio button to define the available workflows:

Current Context BO: Only workflows created for this Business Object are available in the Workflow drop-down list.

Relationship Name: Workflows defined for the child object in a relationship are available in the Workflow drop-down list.



3. Select an existing workflow to invoke from the Workflow drop-down list.

4. Click the Wait for workflow to finish check box to wait for the above workflow to complete before exiting the block.


Configure URLs in Workflow Email

You can use the QuickAction and Notification blocks to configure workflows to send email messages that include URLs. For example, an Incident notification workflow might send email to a customer when an Incident is closed, and the email could include a URL that the customer would click to take a survey. You can configure URLs to perform a variety of actions in ITSM. This section describes several typical URL configurations.

Create Records

New Incident

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=NewIssue

<SiteUrl>: Self Service URL. Can be set explicitly or programatically, for example: http://$(GetGlobal('ServerName'))

New Request by Request Offering ID

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=NewOfferingRequest&OfferingId=<ID>


<ID>: ID of the Request Offering that the new request is based on.

Open Objects in My Items

Open By ID

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=OpenMyItem&ItemId=<guid>

<SiteUrl>: Self Service URL. Can be set explicitly or programatically, for example:



http://$(GetGlobal('ServerName'))

<guid>: MyItems record RecID value.

Open By Attached Object ID

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=OpenMyItem&ItemType=<guid>&ItemId=<type>


<guid>: Object record RecID value corresponding to <type>.

<type>: All supported MyItems types:

Incident

ServiceReq

Change

FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking

Example 1: Approval

http://$(GetGlobal('ServerName'))?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=OpenMyItem&ItemType=FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking&ItemId=$(RecId)

Example 2: Service Request

http://$(GetGlobal('ServerName'))?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=OpenMyItem&ItemType=ServiceReq&ItemId=$(RecId)

Search

Search for a String in a My Items List

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=SearchMyItem&SearchString=<String>


<String>: Search string.



Search for a String in a Service Catalog Category

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?Scope=SelfService&CommandId=SearchOffering&SearchString=<String>&CategoryId=<ID>


<String>: Search string.

<ID>: Name of the Service Catalog category to search.

Take a Survey

Syntax

<SiteUrl>?action=take_survey&survey_id=<guid>&customer_id=<guid>&ot=<typeof object>&oid=<guid>


<guid> for survey_id: Survey RecID.

<guid> for customer_id: Customer RecID.

<type of object>: Object type:

Incident

ServiceReq

Change

FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking

<guid> for oid: Object RecID.

Example

http://$(GetGlobal('SurveyURL'))/public/TakeSurvey.aspx?action=take_survey&survey_id=E7146EFB-7700-4FB3-84A7-699100925528&customer_id=$(RecId)&ot=Incident%23&oid=$(RecId)

Example: Notification Workflows

This section describes how to edit existing Incident notification workflows and create new Incident notification workflows. The principles described here can be applied to any kind of workflow.



Use the Web administration interface to configure Incident email notification:

1. In the Web administration interface, click the Application Configuration tab and then select the Overview tab.

2. Under Business Objects, click View All. A master list of all Business Objects displays.

3. Scroll to and click the Incident Business Object. The Incident details page displays.

4. Click Workflows. A list of workflows associated with the Incident Business Object displays.

Depending on your installation, one or more notification workflows are already in place. For example, New Incident Notification is a commonly available workflow that sends email when a new Incident is created.

From here you can edit an existing notification workflow or create a new one.

Edit an Existing Notification Workflow

1. Click a notification workflow name (for example, New Incident Notification). A list of versions of this workflow displays. The currently published version is highlighted in green.

2. Click the Edit icon in the green highlighted workflow version. The workflow opens in the Workflow Designer.

3. Click the Configuration button to display a dialog where you can redefine trigger conditions.

a. Click a check box to select a triggering event for the context object:

• Created

• Updated

b. Click a radio button to apply AND or OR Boolean logic operators.

c. Create an expression for applying this condition. An expression contains one or more operators (actions) and one or more operands (values).

• Select an entry from each of the Field, Operator, and Value drop-down lists. You can click the Calendar button to schedule a date for applying this condition.

• Click the Plus button to add rows for creating additional expressions.

d. Click Save to save this condition.

4. Notification details can be specified in two ways: through a QuickAction or through the Notification workflow block. The workflow that you are editing could use one or both methods.

Notification block. Use a Notification block if you need to specify just these basic notification features:

• Sender and recipient email addresses.

• Subject and body content.



• Whether the message will be logged in Activity History.

• Incident fields, relationships, and functions used to populate notification fields.

QuickAction. Use a QuickAction if you need to configure more advanced notification features. You can specify all of the features that are listed above for the Notification block, plus all other features available for any type of QuickAction. These include:

• QuickAction category and role-based availability.

• Confirmation and prompting before running.

• Selection of attachments.

a. Open an existing QuickAction or Notification block for editing by double clicking it, or add a new QuickAction or Notification block by dragging one from the left pane into the main workarea.

b. Configure the QuickAction or Notification block as follows:

QuickAction:

• Enter a title for this QuickAction block in the Title field.

• Select an available QuickAction from the drop-down list.

• If you need to create a new QuickAction and make it available for selection in a Notification block, see “Managing Users” on page 259.

• Click Save to save your changes.

Notification block:

• Specify whether the message will be logged in an Activity History record.

• Specify sender and recipient email addresses, subject line, and body content. Alternatively, drag an item from the Available Fields pane into a form field to use that information to populate the form dynamically.

• Click Save to save your changes.

Create a New Notification Workflow

1. In the Incident - Workflow page displaying the list of current workflows, click Add New.

2. In the Add New Workflow dialog:

a. Select Incident in the Business Object field if it is not already preselected.

b. Specify a list name, display name, and description for the workflow.

3. Click Save. The version page for the workflow displays.

4. Click Add Version to create an initial version. The blank workflow opens in the Workflow Designer.

5. Click Configuration to set up the workflow’s trigger conditions as described in step 3 on page 217.



6. Continue to configure the workflow as described in step 4 on page 217. For additional details about constructing workflows, see “Defining Workflows” on page 204.

7. Click Save.

Using Automation Tools

The following sections describe how to use the Automation Tools page (located under the Application Configuration tab) to define:

Quick Actions (see page 219)

Escalation schedules (see page 226)

Saved searches (see page 232)

Object matching (see page 236)

Defining QuickActions

A QuickAction is a user-defined operation that performs one or more actions when executed. QuickActions allow you to perform advanced functions within Self Service. For example, a QuickAction can copy an account file or send a confirmation notification upon receipt of an email.

After published to a role, you can access a QuickAction from any user interface in Self Service. From the user module’s Action Menu, click Edit Actions to view the QuickActions defined for the application. The QuickActions Center is displayed, allowing you to view and run available QuickActions. Use the Actions Manager panel to view existing QuickActions associated with the active Business Object or module.

In addition, you can define new QuickActions in the QuickActions Center. You can create general QuickActions to be executed or run a QuickAction relative to a specific Business Object.

Working with the Quick Actions Center

1. Access the Quick Actions Manager in one of the following ways:

Under the Application Configuration tab, click Automation Tools and then click Get Started in the Quick Actions area (Figure 128); or

Click the Quick Actions link in the Overview page under the Application Configuration tab (Figure 129).



Figure 128 Access the Quick Actions Manager (method 1)

Figure 129 Access the Quick Actions Manager (method 2)

A list of existing Business Objects displays, containing links allowing you to open the Quick Actions Center to work with QuickActions on forms or grids.

2. Click Form Quick Actions or Grid Quick Actions for a Business Object to launch the Quick Actions Center and create QuickActions for that Business Object.

The Quick Actions Center contains two primary panels:

Actions Manager: Contains a list of existing QuickActions. They can be grouped into folders related to the Business Object or module such as form



actions, notifications, system tasks and templates to be published. This panel also contains a toolbar for managing adding, editing and deleting QuickActions.

Private Actions: Used to organize QuickActions for display in an Self Service module. Drag QuickActions from the Actions Manager to the Private Actions panel to make them available within a Business Object form or grid.

Adding New QuickActions

1. In the Actions Manager panel, click the Add QuickAction button to display a list of existing QuickAction categories.

Action Description

Export to Excel

Creates a new Excel spreadsheet containing the rows from a query created within its QuickAction Wizard. The list of columns exported to the spreadsheet is the same as displayed in the list view by default, but the list can be overridden or expanded here.

For example, you can export names and addresses to a mail merge list.

Send Email

Compose an email to be sent to a designated person or group. For example, you can send a confirmation email when a change has been approved. The email can be populated with data, such as field values, functions, counters, or global values.

You also can send updates to the target’s calendar application, such as Task updates when an change occurs in an Incident or Change record.

Insert Child Object

Inserts a child object into a form or grid, such as a new Incident, field value or a note.

Use the wizard to add levels of granularity, constructing additional expressions restricting the viewing and usage of the QuickAction to certain field states.

Search and Link

Searches for and links a Business Object record to another record. For example, you can link an Employee record to an Incident record.

You can only link records in a relationship with your associated Business Object.

Update Object

Updates an existing Business Object. Use the wizard to add levels of granularity, constructing additional expressions restricting the viewing and usage of the QuickAction to certain field states.

Composite Action Use the Composite Action wizard to assemble complex QuickActions with multiple actions.

Run for ChildApplies the QuickAction to a child object of the current Business Object. For example, you can run an update action and then export data to Excel.



2. Select an action. A dialog opens allowing you to add details for this QuickAction using a wizard. Each wizard captures the following basic information on the first page.

3. Click Next. The next wizard pages are tailored to capture information specific to the QuickAction category. Continue to fill in the wizard pages and click Save when done.

Run Web Service

Use the wizard to assemble the details needed to call an external web service such as Data Access or Notification. This involves defining the Web Services Description Language (WSDL) document, service and method to use, then specifying the parameters.

Parameters are mapped either from a Business Object field or a constant value.

A QuickAction used to obtain information from a Web service is often used in conjunction with an Update Record QuickAction. You also can use it in conjunction with a Business Rule to calculate a parameter and then use it in a process.

Run IPCM Web Service Use the wizard to assemble the details needed to call a web service for the IPCM application.

TemplateDisplays a template where you can create a Business Object with pre-populated field values and child objects.

UI Action

Executes an action within the form or grid. You can launch an application, clone an existing record and its children, call code in another application assembly or pass parameters such as API references or records.

For example, you can develop a list of employees enrolled in a training class by capturing data in an RTF or TXT file.

Run Report Runs a specified report that has been created to support QuickActions.

Action Description

Name Enter a name for this QuickAction.

CategorySelect a form action category from the drop-down list. When saved, the QuickAction will be saved to this folder.

Publish Action To Click a check box for each role you intend to publish this QuickAction to.

Hide From UI Click this check box to keep this QuickAction hidden in the module.

Confirm before run

Click this check box to generate a confirmation before running this QuickAction. This can be useful when defining a QuickAction that might consume system resources, such as scanning a large number of computers when performing an Inventory audit.

Action Description



QuickAction Use Case: Creating a Template

A typical use for QuickActions involves creating a template, which is a record with several default fields already completed.

An example of such a template is the Desktop Application Failure template, used to create Incident records when such failures are reported. You can create such a template as part of a Form QuickAction.

1. Open the QuickActions Center for the Incident Business Object.

2. Click the New button and select Template from the list of options. The first New Quick Action dialog opens for entering general information.

3. Complete the fields in the General dialog box:

Name: Desktop Application Failure.

Category: Select Templates from the drop-down list.

Publish action to: Select the roles requiring access to this QuickAction (Administrator, Service Desk Analyst, Service Desk Manager at minimum).

Hide from UI: Leave this check box blank to make this template available on the Self Service pages.

Confirm before run: Leave this check box blank to allow faster processing of an Incident while submitting.

Click Next to continue.

4. The Update Object Configuration dialog displays. Edit the components of this page to customize the template by populating field entries. In this example, the following fields have been edited:

Category: Overwrite with Application Error.

Service: Overwrite with Desktop Service.

Summary: Overwrite with Desktop Application Failure.

Description: Overwrite with Application Error.

Urgency: Overwrite with Medium.


5. The Additional Actions dialog displays. Click Next to continue, as no additional actions are required in this template.

6. The Save Behavior Configuration dialog displays. Leave this dialog box empty, as no additional configuration is required in this template.

7. Click Save to save the QuickAction.



QuickAction Use Case: Creating a Report

Another use for a QuickActions is to run an existing report against selected records. For example, you can create a printable report that displays selected items in a record. In this example, the report is called PrintReport.


2. Click the New button and select Run Report from the list of options. The General dialog box opens for entering general information.

3. Complete the fields in the General dialog box.


4. The Run Report Parameter Mapping dialog box is displayed. Complete this dialog box to customize the metrics gathered in the report.

Report Name: Select PrintReport from the drop-down list. The reports in this list have been enabled for use in QuickActions by editing the Reports module.

Can Run for Multiple Records: Click this check box to allow the report to be run for more than one record. When enabled, you can select multiple records in the Incident list view.

Report Parameters: Customize the report by dragging fields from the Available Fields panel to the Report Parameters table, or by typing new values.

For example, you can map the Owner field of the PrintReport report to the CreatedBy field of the Incident object. Or, you can enter a calendar date to restrict the report to items created after that date.


QuickAction Use Case: Run for Child

A QuickAction can run other actions against all Child records. For example, you can assign a notification action to Incidents containing task assignments.


2. Click the New button and select Run for Child Records from the list of options. The General dialog box opens for entering general information.


Click Next to continue. The Run for Child Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Complete the fields in the Run for Child Configuration dialog box.

a. In the Child Object and Relationship drop-down list, select a child object or relationship whose records this QuickAction will run against. In this example, select IncidentContainsTask:Task#Assignment.

b. In the Child Object Filter field, enter a filter criteria using expression syntax if needed. For example, you could add an additional filter for records with active status $(status=”active”).



c. Select an action to perform from the Action to Run drop-down list as dictated by the relationship, or enter a new action. In this example, select AssignedTaskNotification.


QuickAction Use Case: Creating a Composite QuickAction

A composite QuickAction runs several QuickActions at once, in the order in which they are added. For example, you can create a composite QuickAction to update an Incident record and then send an email notification.


2. Click the New button and select Composite Action from the list of options. The General dialog box opens for entering general information.


Click Next to continue. The Composite Action Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Complete the Composite Action Configuration dialog box.

a. Click the Add New button and select Update Object.

b. The General dialog box for creating an Update Object QuickAction opens. Complete the steps needed to create the QuickAction. After saving the QuickAction, the composite Action Configuration dialog box is updated with the Update QuickAction displayed in table format.

c. Click the Add New button and select Send Email.

d. The General dialog box for creating a Send Email QuickAction opens. Complete the steps needed to create the QuickAction. After saving the QuickAction, the composite Action Configuration dialog box is updated with the Send Email QuickAction displayed in table format.

5. Click Save to save the composite QuickAction. The QuickActions are run in order when invoked. However, the QuickActions run independently of each other.

QuickAction Use Case: Search and Link

Use a QuickAction to link a Parent record or group of records to an associated Child record. For example, link an Employee record to an Incident record.


2. Click the New button and select Search and Link from the list of options. The General dialog box opens for entering general information.


Click Next to continue. The Search and Link Configuration dialog box opens.

4. Complete the fields in the Search and Link Configuration dialog box.



a. From the Relationship drop-down list, select the type of record to link. Only Business Objects in an associates relationship with the Parent record are available. In this example, select IncidentOwnerEmployee from the drop-down list.

b. A filtering mechanism is displayed where you can select record subsets or specific records. In this example, you can filter Employee records.

Click Next to continue. The Save Behavior Configuration dialog box opens.

5. Complete the Save Behavior Configuration dialog box if necessary.

a. In the Save Object area, click the check box to automatically save changes to the database whenever this QuickAction is run against this record.

b. In the Hide QuickAction area, construct an expression for hiding the QuickAction.

c. In the Disable QuickAction area, construct an expression for disabling this QuickAction.


Defining Escalations

The Escalations page lets you define how Incidents, Assignments, and other items are escalated over time. An escalation is executed by the Escalation Engine when a triggering event occurs or condition exists. Factors affecting escalation schedules can include hours of operation and service level agreements.

Escalation configurations define the following:

The business object and field that the escalation is based on. An escalation is based on the status of a specified field in a business object’s form. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is based on the value of the Status field in the Incident business object form.

How form events are mapped to escalation clock activity. Because escalations are time-based, each has an escalation clock that you can configure to run, stop, reset, and so on based on the status of the specified form field. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is configured so that when the Incident Status field is set to Resolved, the escalation clock starts running.

The number and target duration of escalation levels, and what action is taken when the target duration is exceeded. After the escalation clock starts, it runs for a specified period of time at one or more stages, or escalation levels. Escalation levels are defined by thresholds that must be reached to trigger a call for additional resources to meet a service level target or customer expectation.

When the duration at any level is exceeded, the Escalation Engine takes an action that you specify. For example, the Incident Closing escalation is configured so that if the escalation clock runs for more than one day, the Auto Close action is executed. You can configure up to three escalation levels for each escalation. Each level can have its own target duration and action when the target duration is exceeded.



Exceptions to field status that the escalation is based on. You can specify that different escalation levels be based on form fields other than the field that the escalation was based on originally. For example, you could specify that Level 2 of the Incident Closing escalation be based on the value of the Priority field instead of the Status field (which the escalation was originally based on).

Create and Edit Escalations

1. In the Web administration interface under the Application Configuration tab, click Overview.

2. In the Automation Tools area located on the right side of the Overview page, click Escalation Schedules. A list of existing escalations displays.

To create a new escalation, click Add New. The New Escalation Settings dialog displays.

To edit an existing escalation:

• Click the escalation name. The escalation details page displays.

• Click the Edit Schedule icon. The Edit Escalation Settings dialog displays.

3. In the Business Object field, select a business object from the drop-down list.

4. Enter a unique name for the escalation schedule in the Schedule name field.

5. Select a Business Object field (for example, Status) whose value will control the escalation clock from the Escalation Clock is regulated by drop-down list. The table below the list populates with the available values for the field.

The default clock action for each value of the selected field is Run. If needed, you can set a clock action for individual values:

Reset and Run

Run

Completed

Obsolete

Pause

6. Optionally select the check box for the Keep a secondary (response) clock field and specify a controlling field (for example, RespondedBy). If you select this option, a secondary escalation clock is implemented. The secondary clock resets when the value of the field that you specify here changes. When the secondary clock has run for a duration that you specify in step c on page 229, (that is, when the specified field has remained unchanged for that amount of time) a QuickAction (also specified in step c on page 229) executes. A secondary clock is typically used to monitor response times.

7. In the When this escalation schedule replaces a schedule already in place field, select one of the following:



Recalculate the escalation clock value from the business object’s creation time. Select this option to continue using the record’s original creation time as the starting point for elapsed time calculations.

NOTE

With this option, if the new schedule reduces the Target Time from—for example— 10 days to five days, and if the current record was created six days ago, the schedule is considered breached as soon as it is implemented.

Reset the escalation clock to zero. Select this option to restart the escalation clock when the new schedule is implemented.

8. To employ a link field in an escalation watch, click the Link escalation watches directly to business object using the following link field check box and enter the name of a link field in the field provided. See “Types of Controls” on page 190 for more information about link fields.

9. Click Save to save the escalation schedule. The escalation is added to the list in the left panel and in the Escalation Schedules area.

10. Proceed to “Define Escalation Lifecycles” on page 228 and continue from there.

Delete an Existing Escalation

1. Access the list of existing escalations as described in the preceding section.

2. In the escalation list, click the delete (red X) icon for the escalation that you will delete.

3. Click Yes in the resulting dialog to confirm and complete the deletion.

Define Escalation Lifecycles

After an escalation is added, you can define its lifecycle by defining its escalation levels, which are the thresholds that must be reached to trigger a call for additional resources to meet a service level target or customer expectation.

CAUTION

Do not use the following procedure if the Service Level Management (SLM) module is available at your site. The following procedure describes how to define escalations only if the SLM module is not available. If the SLM module is available, define and manage escalations through Service Level Packages (SLPs) and Service Level Agreements (SLAs) as described in Chapter 7, “Service Level Management Configuration.”

To add escalation levels:

1. Select the escalation from the Escalation Schedules area (Application Configuration > Automation Tools > Escalation Schedules > Get Started).

2. Click the Set Thresholds button. The Escalation Parameters for: dialog opens.



3. Complete the Service Target and Breach tab in compliance with your requirements:

a. Click the Schedule is enabled check box to activate the Escalation schedule after the item has been saved. The rest of the dialog is enabled.

b. Complete the Service Target and Breach Action Parameters area:

• Target Time. Define the time limit used to track this escalation by entering values in the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields.

• Hours of Operation. From the drop-down list, select the business operating hours to be applied to this escalation.

• On breach, run action. From the drop-down list, select the QuickAction that executes if the escalation lifecycle exceeds the time limit defined above. See “Defining QuickActions” on page 219 for information about QuickActions.

c. If you configured a secondary clock in step 6 on page 227, complete the Response and Periodic Update Target area:

• If 'x' field value hasn't changed, while clock is running: Click this check box to schedule actions at intervals within the lifecycle, using the field selected in step 5 of “Create and Edit Escalations” on page 227.

• for: define the interval used to track this action in the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields.

• then run action: Select an action from the drop-down list.

4. Complete the Escalation Level 1, 2 and 3 tabs as needed. If the Service Desk cannot successfully meet a service-level target, the Incident is escalated to a second or even third tier of support.

a. Select the Set as Follows button to enable the Escalation Threshold and Action Parameters area.

b. In the Escalate at (%) field, enter the percentage of the escalation lifecycle to elapse before raising the escalation to the next level, or use the slider bar to set the percentage.

c. The i.e. at: field changes to reflect the change in hours and minutes in relation to the breach target interval (displayed in the out of target: field).

d. Select an action to execute when this interval is exceeded from the By running action drop-down list. Examples of actions include closing an Incident, reassigning an Incident, or sending an escalation or automated failure message.

e. Repeat these steps for each Escalation Level.

5. Click OK to save the Escalation schedule.

Set Exceptions

You can define exceptions to the escalation lifecycle based on field values within the escalation. Exceptions can be nested within other exceptions.



For example, the Incident Waiting for Customer escalation is based on the Incident Status field and is configured to send reminder email to the customer after 14 days and to close the Incident after 28 days if the customer does not respond to the request for information (Figure 130).

Figure 130 Incident Waiting for Customer (without exceptions)

To define an exception based on the Priority field so that the Incident remains open for a longer time if it has a Priority of 1, follow the directions in “Define Exceptions” on page 231. In this example:

The Priority field and a value of 1 are selected (Figure 131).

The exception is further configured (Figure 132) as described in “Set Exception Thresholds” on page 231 so that:

P1 Incidents remain open for 40 days instead of 28 days.

For P1 Incidents, the first reminder email is sent to the customer after 6 days instead of 14 days.

Figure 131 Exception based on a Priority value of 1



Figure 132 Incident Waiting for Customer (with Priority 1 exception)

Define Exceptions

To define an exception:

1. Select an escalation schedule from the list and click the Set Exceptions button. A dialog box opens for defining the exception.

2. Select a field from the field drop-down list. The available fields correspond to the Business Object associated with this escalation.

3. If viable, the Value area displays each member of the pick list associated with this field. Click one or more check boxes to select pick list items.

4. Select Save to save the exception. The Escalation Schedule changes to display each selected pick list item listed as an individual exception beneath the parent field.

To delete an exception from the database, select the exception and click the Delete Exceptions button.

Extend Exceptions

You can extend an exception with additional exception settings. To do so, select an exception from the list and follow the steps in “Set Exceptions” on page 229, selecting additional fields and values to build out very specific exception circumstances.

Set Exception Thresholds

You can customize exceptions by adding specific threshold settings as needed, or by populating the exception with thresholds inherited from the parent schedule.

To set additional exception thresholds:

1. Select an exception from the list and click the Set Thresholds button. The Escalation Parameters for: dialog box opens.

a. If the Schedule is enabled check box is not already checked, do so now to make the Escalation schedule active upon being saved. The rest of the dialog box is enabled.

b. In the Breach Action Settings area, click the Set as Follows radio button to assign a breach action. To use the parent exception’s breach action settings, click the Use action from upper level radio button.



c. In the Level Settings area, click the Use values from upper level radio button so that the escalation values from the parent exception are used here. Click the Set on Escalation Level tabs radio button to permit additional changes to the escalation values.

d. Complete the Service Target and Breach Action Parameters area:

• Target Time: Define the interval used to track this escalation by entering values in the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields.

• Hours of Operation: From the drop-down list, select the business operating hours to be applied to this escalation from the drop-down list.

• On breach, run Action: From the drop-down list, select the action to be performed if the escalation lifecycle exceeds the time defined above.

e. If the parent escalation contained an additional field schedule, complete the Response and Periodic Update area as needed:

• If 'x' field value hasn't changed, while clock is running: Click this check box to schedule actions at intervals within the lifecycle, using the field selected in step 5 of “Create and Edit Escalations” on page 227.

• for: define the interval used to track this action in the n the day (d), hour (h) and minute (m) fields.

• then run action: Select an action from the drop-down list.

2. Edit the settings on the Escalation Level 1, 2 and 3 tabs as needed.

Table 8 Select OK to save the exception. The Escalation Schedule changes to display each selected pick list item, listed as an additional exception tier beneath the parent field

Working with Saved Searches

A saved search is one that you might frequently run. By saving searches, you can quickly perform a search task without the need to manually enter all of the search parameters each time. You can add, edit, and delete a saved search. For detailed instructions, refer to the following topics:

“Access the Saved Searches Page” on page 232

“Adding a New Saved Search” on page 233

“Editing a Saved Search” on page 235

“Deleting a Saved Search” on page 235

Access the Saved Searches Page

To perform any of the save search procedures described here, you must first access the Saved Searches page:

1. Under the Application Configuration tab, click Automation Tools.



2. In the resulting page, click Get Started in the Saved Searches area (Figure 133).

Figure 133 Access the Saved Searches page

A list of saved searches organized by Business Object displays (Figure 134)

Figure 134 Saved search list

Adding a New Saved Search

Saved searches are preconfigured by user role in the product. You can also add your own customized searches to the list by creating your own search and then saving it to the Saved Searches list.



Saved searches that you add are available to your role if you have publishing permissions.

To add a new saved search:

1. Access the Saved Searches page.

2. Click an Add... link as follows:

a. Click Add New to create a saved search for a new Business Object. Select a Business Object from the resulting list.

b. Click Add to create a saved search for a Business Object for which there are already saved searches.

3. Enter the following information in the resulting form:

For Name, enter the name that displays on the Saved Searches list.

From the Publish action to menu, select the roles that this saved search is available to.

You might have permissions to publish it to only the roles that you belong to. The option to publish to other roles will appear grayed out.

From the Category menu, select where this saved search appears—Dashboard or Saved Search.

• Dashboard Saved Searches appear on the Home page as a grid.

• Saved Searches appear in the Saved Search menu on the user interface for which it is defined.

4. From the Default for roles menu, select the roles that this saved search is defaulted to.

You might have permissions to make it default only to the same roles you belong to. The option to default to other roles will appear grayed out.

5. Select any of the following options:

Add to Search Favorites. Select this option if you want to add the saved search to the Saved Search menu list.

Default (my). Select this option if you want this saved search as the default when you (the logged in user adding the saved search) open the user interface for which you are adding this saved search. This search will execute and the results appear in the grid for the user interface for which you are adding this saved search.

6. Enter or select your search functions.

Define parameters for your search using these components:

Specify the information to search. Select the Business Object that appears by default or a child object of that Business Object from the drop-down list.

Specify a field in the selected Business Object to search.

Select a modifier (for example, Owner Equal to CurrentLoginID).



Specify the embedded object to search. You can select only when the field you select is an embedded Business Object.

7. Click the plus button to add another row.

8. Select an operator: either AND or OR.

The AND operator displays a record if both the first condition and the second condition is true.

The OR operator displays a record if either the first condition or the second condition is true.

9. Continue to add expressions until your query is complete.

10. Click Preview to preview the search results based on the search criteria.

11. Click Save to save the search.

Editing a Saved Search

Any of the Saved Searches can be modified.

NOTE

The list of saved searches is specific to the user interface that is active when you access the list. If you want to view saved searches for a different user interface, open or switch to that user interface and then access the saved searches list.

To edit a saved search:

1. Access the Saved Searches page as described in “Access the Saved Searches Page” on page 232.

2. In the list of saved searches, click the Edit link for a saved search.

3. In the resulting list, click the edit (pencil) icon for the saved search that you will edit.

4. In the resulting form, edit any of the fields and search criteria as described in “Adding a New Saved Search” on page 233.

5. Click the Preview button to preview the search results based on the search criteria.

6. Click the Save button to save the search.

7. Click the Cancel button to cancel all changes and revert.

Deleting a Saved Search

Any of the saved searches can be deleted from the Saved Searches page. If you delete a global saved search, it is only deleted for the current user login, but still available to others.



NOTE

The list of Saved Searches is specific to the user interface that is active when you access the list. If you want to view Saved Searches for a different user interface, open or switch to that user interface and then access the Saved Searches list.

To delete a saved search:

1. Access the Saved Searches page as described in “Access the Saved Searches Page” on page 232.

2. In the list of saved searches, click the Edit link for the saved search that you want to delete.

3. In the resulting list, click the delete (red X) icon for the saved search that you are deleting.

4. Click Yes in the resulting dialog to delete the search.

Object Matching

While working in a Business Object, you can search other objects, records and Knowledge Base articles for keyword matches with the current object. Search results are ranked by how closely they match the search criteria, and are displayed in the Search results panel on the dashboard being used.

You can perform a full-field search that used the entire contents of a field as the search criteria, or a partial-field search that uses a portion of the field contents.

These and other object matching criteria are configured on a Business Object basis through the Object Matching page. Configuration procedures are described in “Working with Object Matching” on page 201.

To access the Object Matching page, select Automation Tools under the Application Configuration tab. In the resulting Automation Tools page, click Get Started in the Object Matching area.

Defining Dashboards

Dashboards are user-defined summary views of data taken from internal and external sources. Dashboards are constructed using one or more parts.

Your Home page displays your Dashboards. Dashboards consist of one or more parts. You can create dashboard parts for several different views of data and information. You can use the same dashboard part on multiple dashboard layouts.



The Dashboard Center manages your dashboards. You can find, create, edit, delete, and customize the layout of dashboards and dashboard parts from this page.

The Dashboard Center contains

A toolbar for saving the dashboard and for customizing the layout of dashboard parts

Accordion style tabs for creating and editing your dashboard and dashboard parts

A user interface for displaying and running dashboards before you save them to your Home tab.

To access the Dashboard Center:

1. Under the Application Configuration tab, click Dashboard. A list of existing dashboards displays. From here you can:

Open an existing dashboard for editing by clicking the edit (pencil) icon next to a dashboard name.

Create a new dashboard by clicking New Dashboard.

2. The Dashboard Center displays (Figure 135).

.

Figure 135 Dashboard Center (new dashboard)



Figure 136 Dashboard Center toolbar

Viewing Dashboards

You might have several dashboards available to you. However, only one can be displayed in the user interface at any given time. When you log in, the default dashboard for your role appears. You may then select another dashboard that is available to your role.

You can create a new dashboard and parts for the new dashboard. See “Creating Dashboards” on page 240.

Editing Dashboards

NOTE

Unless you are the application administrator, you can only edit those dashboards and the parts that you created.

To edit a dashboard and its parts:

1. Open the dashboard in the Dashboard Center as described in “To access the Dashboard Center:” on page 237.

2. Make your changes to the dashboard on the Dashboard Information tab.

For more information, see “Creating Dashboards” on page 240.

3. Make your changes to the dashboard parts using the Charts, Tables, Feeds, and Special Parts tabs.:

a. Click the Charts tab to add or remove charts:

• To add a chart, select a chart from the menu, then drag and drop it in the right pane.

• To remove a chart from the right pane, click the Remove button in the chart’s upper right corner.

Go back to the previous page

Save the dashboard

Add another column (or add another row)

Resize dashboard parts



• To edit a chart, click the edit (pencil) icon next to the chart name. See “Charts” on page 241 for more information.

b. Click the Tables tab to add or removed tables:

• To add an existing table to a dashboard, drag and drop it in the right pane.

• To create a new table, click the plus icon and define table parameters in the resulting Create New Table Dashboard Part dialog.

• To edit a table, click the edit (pencil) icon next to the table name.

• To remove a table from the right pane, click the Remove button in the table’s upper right corner.

• To delete a table from the Tables tab, highlight it and click the delete (red X) icon.

c. Click the Feeds tab to add or remove RSS feeds:

• To add an existing feed to a dashboard, drag and drop it in the right pane.

• To remove a feed from the right pane, click the Remove button in the feed’s upper right corner.

• To create a new feed, click the plus icon and define feed parameters in the resulting Create New RSS Feed Dashboard Part dialog.

• To edit a feed, click the edit (pencil) icon next to the feed name.

• To delete a table from the Tables tab, highlight it and click the delete (red X) icon.

d. Click the Special Parts tab to add or remove commands (in the form of link lists) that users can execute:

• To add an existing command to a dashboard, drag and drop it in the right pane.

• To remove a command from the right pane, click the Remove button in the command’s upper right corner.

• To create a new command, click the plus icon and define command parameters in the resulting Create New Command Link List Dashboard Part dialog. See “Commands (Link Lists)” on page 245 for more information.

• To edit a command, click the edit (pencil) icon next to the command name.

• To delete a command from the Special Parts tab, highlight it and click the delete (red X) icon.

4. To change the layout, see “Defining Dashboard Layout” on page 240.

You can also arrange parts in the right pane by dragging and dropping them from the left pane across the rows or columns in the right pane.

5. Click Save to save your changes to the dashboard.



Defining Dashboard Layout

You can do the following to the dashboard’s layout:

Add or remove columns or rows

Resize the display of dashboard parts

To add or remove columns or rows:

1. Open the dashboard for editing in the Dashboard Center as described in “To access the Dashboard Center:” on page 237.

2. From the Dashboard Center toolbar, click

In the right pane, a column appears on the right of any existing columns. You can create a maximum of 5 columns. If you chose the row layout, a new row appears at the bottom of the rows you already have.

NOTE

If you change the layout from column to row or from row to column, you will need to resize the dashboard parts that are displayed to fit within your desired layout.

3. To remove a column or row, click the remove button in the top left corner of a column or row.

4. Click Save.

To resize dashboard parts:


2. From the Dashboard Center toolbar, click

In the right pane, colored lines appear at the outer edges of each dashboard part.

3. Move your mouse pointer over the lines until you see the resize handles, then click and grab the handles to resize the parts.

4. Click Save.

Creating Dashboards

Dashboards consist of one or more parts. Create dashboard parts for several different views of data and information. You can use the same dashboard part on multiple dashboard layouts.

You can define several dashboards, however only the default dashboard appears in the user interface when you log in.



To create a Dashboard:

1. Access the Dashboard Center as described in “To access the Dashboard Center:” on page 237.

2. Click New Dashboard.

3. From the Layout menu, select Column or Row.

4. For Name, enter a unique name for the dashboard part.

5. For Description, enter some details describing the part you are creating.

6. For Category, categorize in which collection or group the dashboard part will be.


Add to My Dashboards—Makes the dashboard available to your role for selection.

Set as Default to MySelf—Sets the dashboard part as the default dashboard that displays on your Home tab when you log in to your role.

8. From the Publish to menu, select the role to which this dashboard part will be available.

The menu options are dependent upon your role. You might only see one available role selection.

9. For Addins, see “Adding Alert and Search to your Home Page” on page 243.

Alerts—Adds an alert bar to your Home page.

Search—Adds a search field to your Home page.

10. You can drag or drop any of the following dashboard parts that have already been created in the right pane or you can create the following dashboard parts:

Charts

Tables

Feeds

Special Parts (user commands in the form of link lists)

11. Click Save.

Charts

Use this dashboard part in a dashboard to create a chart based on data from your system. Unlike other dashboard parts, define charts using a wizard. The Chart Wizard is used to create various types of charts based on data in your database. The wizard creates and edits charts.



To create a chart:

NOTE

While creating charts, you can click Refresh to view its appearance before saving.

1. In the Dashboard center, click the Charts tab.

2. To add a new chart, click the plus icon

The Chart Wizard opens.

3. In the Standard tab, define the following:

a. Chart Title—Type a descriptive title for the chart.

b. From the Type menu, select the type of chart you want to display.

The following are the types of charts you can create:

c. From the Object menu, select the business object for which you want to create a chart.

d. (Optional) For Header, type a title for the chart.

e. (Optional) For Footer, type a footnote for the chart.

f. Check the Show Legend check box if you want the legend of values to appear.

g. For the Aggregate by menu, select Count, Sum, or Average.

h. For the Group By menu, select a field from the object you selected.

i. For the Order By menu, select whether the chart will display its data by the Aggregate by field or by the Group By field by selecting Aggregation Field or Group By Field.

j. Select if the data should display in Ascending (lowest to highest) or Descending (highest to lowest) order.

k. For the Results menu, select the number of items you want to display—All, Top, or Bottom.

If you select Top or Bottom, select a number, which means that the top or bottom <selected number> of matches will display.

l. (For stacked vertical charts only.) Select another field from the selected object from the Group By menu.

m. (For stacked vertical charts only.) Select an option—Ascending or Descending—to display this second field from the Order menu.

• Horizontal Bar • Vertical Bar

• Line • Pie

• Pivot Table • (Grouped) Stacked Horizontal Bar

• (Grouped) Stacked Vertical Bar • Grouped Horizontal Bar

• Grouped Vertical Bar • Grouped Line



4. Click the Drill Downs tab.

a. If you want to be able to double-click the dashboard part and filter the search results to open the parent business object from the specified business object, specify values for the fields in the same way as you specified values for the fields on the Standard tab.

b. If you do so, click the plus icon to add more fields.

c. Specify Table for the Type menu. (Even if you do not specify a drill down option, select Table from the Type menu.)

5. Click the Advanced tab, and define if this dashboard part is part of a saved search.

a. From the Filter Using Saved Search menu, select an existing saved search against which this chart is to run.

b. From the Runtime Filters menu, select an object against which to search during runtime.

6. Click Save.

Adding Alert and Search to your Home Page

You have the option to add an Alert bar and a universal Search field to your Home page (Figure 137).

Adding the Alert bar allows you to see updated Alert messages on your Home page

Adding the Search field allows you to search and view FAQs and Announcements.

Figure 137 Alert and search areas on a Home page

To add Alert and Search:


2. Click the Dashboard Information tab if it is not open.

3. Under Addins, do one or both of the following:

Select Alerts if you want the Alert bar to appear.

Alert Bar

Search field



Select Search if you want the Search field to appear. See Viewing Announcements and FAQs.

4. Click Save.

Viewing Announcements and FAQs

See “Adding Alert and Search to your Home Page” on page 243. After these add-ins have been enabled, you can view Announcements and FAQs from Self Service.

NOTE

Your application administrator might also need to make the Search tab available for your role, if it is not already. See Making Top Level Tabs Available to Users

To view Announcements and FAQs:

1. From your Home Page or the Search tab, enter a keyword to search from the title of an announcement or FAQ.

2. You can select FAQ or Announcement by clicking the drop-down to filter your search and then click the Search icon, or click the Search icon to search from both categories.

If you searched from your Home Page, the Search tab appears with a list of your search results.

3. Click the title click of an item to view it.

Creating an Announcement or FAQ


2. Click the Feeds tab.

3. To add a new announcement or FAQ, click the plus icon.

The Create New RSS Feed Dashboard Part dialog box appears.

4. For Name, type a name for the new feed.

5. For Description, enter the details for this new feed.

6. For URL, type the Web address of the feed provider.

7. For Action on DoubleClick, select the Business Object that the feed affects.

8. Click Preview to view your new feed.

9. Click Save.



Commands (Link Lists)

To create commands in the form of a link list:


2. Click the Special Parts tab.

3. To create a new command, click the plus icon

The Create New Command Link List Dashboard Part dialog box appears.

4. For Name, type a name for the new command.

5. For Description, enter the details for the new command.

6. In the Dashboardparts field, select the dashboard part that the link list is based on.

7. In the Parameters field, type an expression (for example, {“count”:4}) to configure or constrain the command list.

8. In the Top Icon field, select the icon that displays in the command list heading.

9. In the Button Text field, type the text that displays in the command list heading.

10. In the Link Text field, type the text that is used for the link at the bottom of the dashboard part (beneath the main link list).

11. In the Commandlist Icon field, select the icon that displays next to each item in the link list.

12. Click Preview to view your new feed.

13. Click Save.

Deleting Dashboards

You can delete a dashboard if you no longer use it.

NOTE

Unless you are the application administrator, you can only delete a dashboard that you created.

To delete a dashboard:

1. On the main Dashboard page’s list of dashboards, click the delete (red X) icon next to the dashboard to delete.

2. Click Yes to confirm the deletion.



Working with the License Server

Click the License Server tab located under the Application Configuration tab to review licensing information about your ITSM and other FrontRange product licenses.

Defining Default Branding

Use the Default Branding page to select options for branding to project your company identity within the Self Service module.

1. To access the Default Branding page, click the Default Branding tab located under the Application Configuration tab.

2. Under Default Branding Options, select which buttons to include together with a logo in the branding area.

3. In the Logo area, click Change Logo to open a dialog box for selecting a graphic file to display upon logging into the Self Service module. Select an image and click Open. The image cannot be greater than 10 kB.

4. Use the Top Links area to optionally define external links located at the top of the Self Service pages. For example, you can direct customers to pages to download software updates or to access an external knowledge base.

a. Click the plus icon to add a table row for defining a top link. Then complete the table row:

• Title. Enter a display name for the link.

• URL. Enter a valid URL to be used as the link target.

• New Window. Click this check box to display the link in a new browser window.

• Pass Single Sign-On Info. Click this check box to pass on single sign-on information if working within a secured environment.

5. Use the Bottom Links area to define any external links visible at the bottom of the Self Service Pages. For example, you can direct customers to pages to download software updates or to access an external knowledge base.

a. Click the plus button to add a table row for defining a top link. Then complete the table row:

• Title. Enter a display name for the link.

• URL. Enter a valid URL to be used as the link target.

• New Window. Click this check box to display the link in a new browser window.

• Pass Single Sign-On Info. Click this check box to pass on single sign-on information if working within a secured environment.

6. Click Save.



Defining Hours of Operation (HOP)

The Hours of Operation (HOP) settings provide a calendar to define your company’s operational calendar including daily hours and schedules. For example, these settings can determine a technician’s response time to an incident or execute a business rule that escalates a call that has been open for a number of hours.

Add exceptions, such as holidays or days when the office is closed, to the calendar.

Using Calendars

The Hours of Operation page includes links for displaying these calendars:

24 x 7. Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for each week of the current year with 24-hour service.

Weekly HOP. Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for select weeks of the current year with defined hours of 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Weekly 8x4. Displays a calendar indicating hours of operation for select weeks of the current year with defined hours of 8:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday.

Exceptions to the schedule are displayed in a table at the bottom of the page.

Click Edit to display a dialog box for managing business hours. Use the Forward and Back buttons to view the schedule for other years. For details about configuring hours of operation, see “Configure Hours of Operation Settings” on page 26.

Defining Organization Charts

Use an organizational unit hierarchy to apply structure to your organization. Creating a parent-child structure of organization units can prove useful for data segregation and organizational security.

An organizational unit is stored as a Business Object (Org Unit), which can be modified by Administrators and seen on a view-only basis by others depending on their role. By default, all new employees are added to the Default organizational unit.

Use the hierarchy structure to manage permissions between tiers. For example, a member of a Service Desk Manager management-level tier could be allowed to view the Incidents assigned to all Service Desk Analysts who are in a lower tier.



Viewing Organization Charts

On the Overview tab (located under the Settings tab), click the Organization Chart link in the Organization area (Figure 138).

Figure 138 Access the Organization Chart page

The organization chart displays as a series of folders containing subordinate units. Open the tree to view the expanded structure.

Adding an Organizational Unit1. On the Organization Chart page, click the Edit Org Units button. The Org Unit

interface displays, with existing organizational units displayed in grid format.

2. Click the New Organizational Unit toolbar button. The Organization Unit form displays.

3. Complete the Details tab on the Organization Unit form:

a. Enter a unique name for this unit in the Name field.

b. By default, the Owner field is populated by the Administrator Admin role. To permit another role owner to modify this unit (perhaps to restructure parent-child relationships), use the drop-down list to locate the role.

c. Click the Deleted check box to remove this unit from the hierarchy. It will remain stored in the database. To reactivate this role, uncheck this box.



d. Select a parent organization unit from the Parent OU field. Parent OUs are displayed as folders in the tree display.

e. In the Full Directory Path field, enter the directory file structure that contains the details of the organizational unit.

4. If necessary, add to your organizational unit hierarchy by linking units in the Child OU tab.

a. Click the Child OU tab to display its grid.

b. Click the Link button. A dialog displays for locating organizational units.

c. Construct a search for specific units or scroll the displayed list to locate a unit to link.

d. Upon locating the desired unit, select it and click the Add button to complete the link. The unit is added to the grid on the Child OU tab.

You also can use the New Organizational Unit toolbar button to create new units quickly.

5. Click the Save button to save this organizational unit to the database.

Supporting Tabs

After being saved, Service Level Agreements can be linked to this organizational unit as part of creating a Service Level Agreement subscription and viewed on the SLA Subscription tab. This is a one-to-one link; that is, one subscription can be linked to one organizational unit. Additional subscriptions can be created and linked to the unit.

After the organizational unit has been saved, use the Audit History tab to track member access and actions within the system.

Working with Audit History

As an administrative tool, the audit history being viewed is for metadata changes. It does not show actual record changes.

On the Overview tab (located under the Settings tab), click the Audit History link in the Organization area (Figure 139).



Figure 139 Access the Audit History page

Use one or more of the filters in the following table to customize the audit history display.

Click Search to generate the new audit history. Click Reset to return to the default view.

Defining Global Constants

Use the Global Constants page to manage values for reference throughout an ITSM installation.

Entity Enter the metadata object name as stored in the database.

Min. DateEnter a range for the audit history filter by adding a date. By default, the audit history displays changes recorded in the last 30 days.

Max. Date Enter a range for the audit history filter by adding a date.

Author Select an employee name from the drop‐down list.

OperationSelect an operation performed on this Business Object or record (All, Insert, Update Delete).

Type Select an Self Service metadata set from the drop‐down list.



A common use of a global constant is the ListenerEmailAddress constant – once initialized with an appropriate value, this constant can be used in filed places such as the From Address field in the Send Email QuickAction. When users receive an incoming message from the service desk, you can reply to that email address, and the message will then be processed by the Email Listener.

To access the Global Constants page, click the Global Constants link on the System tab (located under the Settings tab; Figure 140).

Figure 140 Access the Global Constants page

To add a global constant:

1. Click the Add button. A new table row is added to the list.

2. Enter a unique name for the constant in the Name cell.

3. Enter a value for the constant in the Value cell.

4. Select a type category for this constant from the drop-down list in the Type cell:

Text

Number

Logical

5. Enter a description for this constant in the Description cell.

6. Click the Save button to save your changes.



Defining Localization Settings

Localization support is provided for your ITSM system. See Appendix A, “Configure Localization,” for more information.

Defining Roles

A user’s access to the Business Objects in ITSM is governed by roles. Roles control the application pages, called workspaces, which are available to the user upon logging in. Each role has its own workspace definition, which you specify as part of the overall configuration for a role.

Workspaces are the main work areas in ITSM Self Service. You can use one of the default workspaces supplied in ITSM Self Service, or define custom workspaces by selecting screen elements, including the primary Business Object and primary object layout display. In ITSM Self Service, workspace options are grouped within top-level tabs at the top of the browser window. Users select which workspace to view by clicking its supporting tab.

Use the Roles Module to view and customize the ITSM Self Service default roles, and also to define new roles. When you configure or create a role, you can specify the following parameters:

Role details such as display colors, logos, display name, and available links and buttons (see “Defining Role Details” on page 254).

Top level tab details such as tab name, visibility, and layout (see “Adding Top-Level Tabs” on page 255).

Object permissions (add, view, edit, delete; see “Define Object Permissions” on page 256).

Publish permissions for QuickActions, searches, and dashboards (see “System Permissions” on page 258).

Permission to grant role access to other users (see “System Permissions” on page 258).

NOTE

Common user management tasks such as those described in the following sections are performed through the Web administration interface. More advanced tasks, such as configuring the Service Provider team, creating teams, certain role-to-team mappings, and other tasks are done through ITSM Application Administrator as described in the Foundation Administrator Guide.



CAUTION

A user named InternalServices is provided by default to support the workflow and escalation engines. This user is configured to have only the Admin role. Do not delete this user, enable it with other roles, or delete it from the Admin role. Doing so will disable the workflow and escalation features.

Browsing Available Roles

In the Application Designer, click the Roles tab (located under the User and Security Management tab) to display a list of available roles in table format. By default, ITSM Self Service includes these roles:

Administrators. Access and configure all Self Service features.

Service Owner. Define services, request offerings, and subscriptions that are available from the Services tab or the Service Catalog.

Business Unit Manager. View Incidents and Service Requests for all members of the business unit and choose which request offerings the business unit subscribes to.

Self Service. Use Self Service as described in the ITSM Self Service User Guide.

The table in the Roles page summarizes each role with the following columns:

Role Name: The name of the role as stored within the Business Object.

Display Name: The name of the role as displayed in the ITSM interface and in pick lists.

Tabs: A list of the available tabs (workspaces) available for display for users assigned to this role. Pause your cursor over a table cell to display a complete popup list of tabs.

Click on a link in the Role Name column to view the full list of properties assigned to a particular role, and to edit them if necessary.

Creating and Editing Roles

Creating a new role requires the completion of the following pages within the Roles Module:

1. Role Details

2. Top Level Tabs

3. Object Permissions

4. Publish Permissions

5. Permission to Grant Roles



If you are editing an existing role, you can complete any of these pages individually.

Access the Role Details Page

In the Application Designer Roles page:

To define new role, click Add New.

To edit an existing role, click the role name.

The Role Details page displays. You can now create or edit a role as described in the following sections.

Defining Role Details

Use the Role Details page to define the role name, basic display elements of the application window when performing tasks in a workspace, and to add external links to database sources.

1. Access the Role Details page as described in the preceding section.

2. If you are editing an existing role, go to step 3.

If you are creating a new role, click the New Role link. When the page changes to permit editing, give the role a unique name. This name is stored in the Business Object.

3. Click the Display Name link. When the page changes to permit editing, give the role a unique name to be displayed in ITSM.

4. Define the window options to be displayed on pages associated with this role by clicking one or more of the following check boxes to display items on the page:

Logout Button: Displays a Logout button.

Change Password: Displays a Change Password link.

Edit Own Profile Button: Displays a link allowing the user profile to be edited.

New Window Button: Displays a button used for opening a new window.

Select Workspace Button: Displays a button used to display alternate workspaces for this role.

Help Link: Displays a link to ITSM online help system. Specify the path to the top level page of the online help system (for example, /SelfServiceConfigurationGuide/index.html).

5. Select a color scheme to use on pages associated with this role. The test interface adjacent to these radio buttons changes colors to reflect the changes in color scheme.

6. To change default branding, select the Overwrite default branding options with the options listed below check box. and use the Branding Options section as described in “Managing Users” on page 259.

7. Click the Save link.



You are now ready to add top level tabs.

Adding Top-Level Tabs

In ITSM Self Service, the top-level tabs show the workspaces available to the user upon logging in. Workspaces, displayed as additional tabs at the top of the ITSM Self Service page, combine forms for recording information for your company, the Dashboards which display the compiled metrics, and their controls.

For example, a Business Unit Manager can view a Home tab containing several dashboards displaying metrics for Incidents and Service Requests for all members of the business unit.

Click the link for an existing workspace to open its Edit page. Here, you can customize the settings to your company needs. You also can create a new custom tab.

To add a top-level tab:

1. In the Application Designer Roles page (located under the User and Security Management tab), click a role name.

2. In the resulting page, click Top Level Tabs.

3. In the Top Level Tabs page, click the Add New Tab link. The Add New Tab page opens.

4. A default list of workspace types is displayed. Click a workspace type to open a page for adding basic tab information.

NOTE

To add a tab for a workspace type that is not displayed in the default list of workspace types (such as Incident), select Object Workspace from the list. In the resulting dialog, set the Object and Layout fields to the settings that you want the new workspace to be based on. For example, set both fields to Incident to create a new Incident tab and workspace (see step 9).

5. Click the NewTab link. When the page changes, give the new tab a display name.

6. Click the The Tab Is Available check box as necessary.

7. Click the The Tab Is Initially Visible check box to display the tab by default when you open the workspace. You can define the workspace to display multiple tabs.

8. Click the The Tab Can Be Closed By User check box to permit the user to close the tab in the workspace. This is useful for managing complex workspaces.

9. Define the tab object’s Workspace configuration. This varies according to the workspace selected, but can include:

Search Tags. Specify keywords to search for when running a search.

Enable Issues Templates.



Object. Use the drop-down list to select a Business Object to link to this workspace.

Configure Edit. Configure the object’s view in Edit mode. In the configuration dialog:

• Select Single Form to specify the form that is displayed when the object is opened for editing. Also specify whether object matching is enabled. If object matching is enabled, configure it as described in the ITSM Foundation Administrator Guide.

• Select Multiple Forms to specify different forms depending on the object’s related object. Click the plus button at add more forms.

Configure View. Configure the object’s view in View mode. Available options are the same as those for Configure Edit.

NOTE

When selecting an object type, you must select a corresponding layout, or the workspace will not be displayed.

10. Click the Save or Add This Tablink to save the settings.

You are now ready to define Object Permissions.

Define Object Permissions

Use the Object Permissions page to specify a role’s view and read access rights for Business Objects. Unlike regular object permissions, the Object Permissions page allows you to apply data-segregation security constraints. You can specify security rights based on the data and relations within the Business Object and within the Business Object of the current user.

For example, members assigned to the Administrators role may be able to view and modify data in any record, while members of the Self Service role may not be able to view private information in a record.

The Object Permissions page contains a complete list of Business Objects in the ITSM database.


2. In the resulting page, click Object Permissions. A list of object permissions displays.

3. Click one or more of the following check boxes to enable and disable rights for entire objects:

Add. Add data to a selected Business Object.

View. View data in a selected Business Object.

Edit. Manipulate data in a selected Business Object.



Delete. Delete data in a selected Business Object.

For more specific rights, you can click an object name in the table to expand the object and set rights for specific Business Object components.

4. Click the Edit link in the Access column for a Business Object to open a page for defining advanced security criteria. The access configuration page opens, displaying the cases which have been defined for this Business Object or component.

For example, you can create a definition to make an Incident view-only upon being closed.

The match can be based on literal, validated, or numeric input. You also can specify a match when the field is empty.

You can match against:

Your own Profile.Employee Business Object.

Multiple objects (one-to-many relations of Profile.Employee).

A hierarchy of objects (relation to a hierarchical object).

If you define multiple cases, the object-matching logic uses the case with the widest application in the event of a conflict.

When roles with access cases are combined, their access cases are combined. If one role has unrestricted access (no cases) for an object, the cases are not combined, and the merged role maintains its unrestricted access to the object.

a. Click the plus sign to add a form for creating a new case.

b. Select a view/update option from the drop-down list:

• Update and View: Allows the role holder to view and update the case (default).

• View: Renders the case view-only to this role holder.

c. Select one or more operators to constrain from the drop-down list. This can include:

• Profile.Employee link

• Hierarchy or Object link (Profile.Employee should have relationships of the same type)

• Validated field

• String field

• Numeric field

• Relationship (to Profile.Employee objects)

When a link or relationship is selected, the Object Permissions page presents more advanced option choices. You can match against:

• the related Business Object

• your own Profile.Employee Business Object

• multiple objects (one-to-many relations of the Profile.Employee)



• against a hierarchy of objects (relation to a hierarchical object)

d. Select a negation (such as is/is not) from the drop-down list.

e. If needed, select another negation (Empty/Equal to) value from the drop-down list.

f. If you have selected Equal to, enter a value for use in matching in the field provided.

In some cases, you can extend matching values to the list of values in the logged-in user’s referred hierarchy, under the value you have referred. To do so, click the logged-in user's subordinates check box.

In some cases, the target employee reference will be matched against the logged-on user and that user's subordinate hierarchy. The subordinate hierarchy is determined by the ReportingTo reference of the Profile.Employee object

5. Click the Save link to save the settings.

You are now ready to Publish Permissions.

Examples

To allow a user to view his created Incidents through their life cycles for tracking purposes:

1. On the Roles page listing available roles, click the Service Desk Analyst link.

2. On the Object Permissions page, click the Edit link in the Access column for Incident.

3. The Service Desk accessing Incident page opens. Click the plus sign to add a table row for adding a case.

4. Select View from the drop-down list.

5. Select Owner as the first operator to constrain from the drop-down list.

6. From the next drop-down list, select is as the first negation.

7. From the next drop-down list, select equal to as the second negation.

8. From the next drop-down list, select the user’s name as a matching value.

9. Save your changes.

System Permissions

Use the System Permissions page to assign default permissions for sharing items with other roles. By publishing permissions, you can define dashboards, QuickActions, or searches within one role and allow assigned users to share them with another role.


2. In the resulting page, click System Permissions. The System Permissions page displays.



3. In the Quick Actions area, select whether this role can create, edit, and/or delete Quick Actions.

4. In the Publishing area, select a Permission type from the Allow publishing drop-down list:

QuickActions

Dashboards

Searches

Reports

5. Select an existing role from the to drop-down list.

6. Click the Plus sign to add more permissions.


You are now ready to define Permissions to Grant Roles.

Permissions to Grant Roles

Use the Permissions to Grant Roles page to assign the ability to link a role to another user. For example, a Business Unit Manager may need the ability to assign supporting roles (such as Self Service) within the business unit. These roles are assigned in the Employee form.

1. In the Application Designer Roles page, click a role name.

2. In the resulting page, click Permissions to Grant Roles. The Permissions to Grant Roles page displays.

3. Click the check box for each role that you want to enable permission-granting capability for.

4. If needed, click the This role can log into administration tool check box to permit users with this role to log into the Administration module. For example, a management-level employee may need the rights to edit a form or layout. In this case, additional restrictions will need to be applied to this role.


Managing Users

A user is an employee of a customer who uses the Self Service service. Users are provided with an account defining login access and available roles. In addition, users must be assigned at least one role in order to log into the system.

User accounts include general information (logon and role information) and extended information (personal information).



NOTE

To add a large number of users that exist in Active Directory, use the LDAP Active Directory Import tool. For details, see Synchronizing LDAP Records.

CAUTION

A user named InternalServices is provided by default to support the workflow and escalation engines. This user is configured to have only the Admin role. Do not delete this user, enable it with other roles, or delete it from the Admin role. Doing so will disable the workflow and escalation features.

Adding Employees

This section describes how to manually add employees (user accounts) to your system. This information is stored as part of the Employee.Profile Business Object.

General Steps For Adding Employees

1. Add employees who are managers.

Add all employees who are also managers to your system by following the steps outlined in Adding New Employees.

NOTE

This must be done before adding teams so that when the new team records are created they can be saved to the manager employee profiles.

2. Add employees who are team members.

Using teams to group your employees facilitates the assignment process for Incidents, Problems and Changes. When a new assignment is created, it is assigned to a team. If a user is not a part of a team, that user will not appear in the Assignee drop-down lists associated any of the teams included in the Assignment Team drop-down.

Add employees to teams by following the steps outlined in Adding New Employees, using the Team field in the Detail tab of the Employee Profile page to specify team membership.

Adding New Employees

The Manage Users and Groups tab (accessed by clicking the Users tab under the User and Security Management tab), displays a list of defined users. Select a user in the table to display summary details at the bottom of the page. Follow these steps to add an employee:



1. Click the New Employee toolbar button. An Employee Profile form displays.

2. Complete the fields in the Employee Profile form.

Field Description Comment

Profile

Prefix Specifies the employee's name prefix (Mr., Mrs.)

These properties vary depending on the information your company chooses to track.

Employee information is stored in the StandardEmployee Business Object. Edit this object to track information to capture about each employee in your system.

First Name Specifies the employee's first name.

Last Name Specifies the employee's last name.

Middle Specifies the employee's middle name.

Suffix Specifies the employee's name suffix (Jr., III).

Login ID

Specifies the name Self Service uses to identify the employee (for example, CTracker).

If you use internal authentication to log employees into Self Service, this identification is also used as the official Login ID.

If you use internal authentication, the Login ID is limited to 30 characters. If the employee is using NT authentication, the limit does not apply.

A Login ID should be meaningful, such as a role in the system (Admin) or a first initial/last name (CTracker).

IVR PIN CodePIN code assigned to employees of certain IPCM applications.

This code is frequently the last four digits of an employee Social Security number.



Enable Internal Auth

Allows the Self Service application to perform Login Authentication for this employee.

If checked, internal authentication is available for the employee. Otherwise, it is disabled.

Local Authentication requires employees to type an application-specific login ID and password when accessing the application. Type a password for the login, then retype the password to confirm; the ID automatically fills from the login ID defined previously.

LDAP authentication verifies employee login information for employees imported using the LDAP Active Directory integration. Employees type their Active Directory employee name ([domain name]/[employee ID]) and password to log on to Self Service.

To use LDAP authentication, you must specify the LDAP server path to authenticate against as well as the employee name and password required to access that server (if applicable); specify this information in the LDAPInfo.xml configuration file located in the Messaging folder of your application installation directory.

Internal Auth Password

Specifies the unique password the employee types when logging into the application.

Enable External Auth

Enables or disables OS Authentication

Applications are able to use either Microsoft SQL authentication and Microsoft Windows NT authentication. Microsoft recommends using NT authentication with SQL deployments.

Login for External Auth

Specifies the Microsoft Windows ID Self Service uses to log on the employee.

DisabledCheck this box to disable the employee from logging into the system.




Contact Information

Email Primary email address for this employee.

Primary Phone Primary phone number for this employee.

Address Street address for this employee.

City City for the employee address.

State State for the employee address.

Country Country for the employee address.

Zip Zip code for the employee address.

Location Information

Manager Specifies the employee’s reporting manager.

Organization Unit

Specifies the employee Organization Unit, if any.

Select an Organization Unit from the drop-down menu, or select None if this employee will not be assigned to any Business Units.

DepartmentSpecifies the employee work department (for example, Support).

TeamSpecifies the team to which the employee belongs (for example, Support).

TitleSpecifies the employee job title (for example, Support Representative).

VIPClick this check box to designate this employee as a VIP.

Cost Center

Specifies the employee Cost Center or Business Unit, if any.

Select a Cost Center from the drop-down menu, or select None if this employee will not be assigned to any Business Units.

Location

Employee’s physical work location, such as a building number or city for distributed organizations.

Floor Floor number for the employee.

Room Room number for the employee.




3. Click Save to save the main Employee profile form. The new user is added to the table in the User Manager.

4. The Employee Profile page includes several supporting tabs. Use the following tabs to manage this employee account:

Roles. See “Adding Roles to Employee Accounts” on page 264.

Contact Group. See “Linking Users to Contact Groups” on page 265.

Journal. See “Working with Activity History” on page 265.

Attachment. See “Working with Attachments” on page 266.

Editing Employees

Use the Manage Users and Groups tab to modify the employee account properties, which control how the employee can access and use the application.

1. Select the employee whose account you want to edit.

2. Edit the employee fields and tabs as needed.

3. Click Save. Your changes are saved in the system.

Deleting Employees

Remove the employee account from the system using the Employee List View page.

1. Select the employee account to delete.

2. Click Delete. A prompt displays asking you to confirm the action.

3. Click Yes to confirm the delete action.

Adding Roles to Employee Accounts

Use the Roles tab (located under the User and Security Management tab) to manage the roles associated with this account. You can link multiple roles to the account. Upon logging in, the employee can select a role from the list defined on this tab.

To add roles for an employee account:

1. From the Roles tab, click the Link button.

2. A dialog box appears with a list of existing roles. Select a role from the list.

Hired On Hiring date for this employee.

Terminated On Termination Date for

Terminated Date Termination date for the employee.




3. Click the Select button. The role is added to the Roles tab. Repeat steps 2-3 for each role being assigned to this employee account.


Linking Users to Contact Groups

Use the Groups tab (located under the User and Security Management tab) to manage the contact groups associated with this employee account. A contact group is made of one or more employees who are approvers, decision-makers in the approval process. Common ITSM workflows requiring approvals include Change Requests and Knowledge Management.

Managers, supervisors, and senior personnel are typical members of contact groups.

To link a contact group to an employee record:

1. From the Contact Group tab, click the Link button. A list of existing contact groups displays.

2. Select a contact group from the list, or click the Add button to create a new contact group.

3. Click the Select button. The contact group is added to the tab.


Working with Activity History

Use the Activity History tab on an Employee Profile page to manage communication and investigation actions associated with this Employee record. The Journal Business Object is used to display and manage notes and email messages linked to the parent Business Object. These entries vary in relation to their use within a Business Object.

For example, Activity History entries are created within Incidents to record customer interactions. When investigating a Problem, Activity History entries are used to track workarounds and troubleshooting activities.

To add an Activity History entry:

1. From the Activity History tab, click the New Activity History button. A dialog opens where you can record entry details.

2. Complete the template form as needed and click OK. The Journal entry is added to the table.

To link an activity as an Activity History entry:

1. From the Activity History tab, click the Link button. A list of existing Journal entries appears.

2. Select an entry from the list, or click the Add button to create a new activity.



3. Click the Select button. The activity is added to the tab.


Working with Attachments

Use the Attachment tab on an Employee Profile page to manage any attachments stored with this Employee record.

To add an attachment to an Employee record:

1. Click the New Attachment button.

2. A Windows dialog box opens allowing you to browse for the attachment. Select the attachment and click Open.

The attachment is added to the Attachment tab.


Creating Contact Groups1. Access the Contact Groups page by clicking the Groups tab under the User and

Security Management tab.

2. To add a new contact group, click the New Contact Group button. To edit an existing group, double-click an entry in the contact group list. The Contact Group form displays.

3. Complete the fields in the Contact Group form:

a. Enter a unique group name in the Name field.

b. Optionally enter a brief description in the Description field.

c. Add or delete group members by linking or unlinking them in the Member tab:

• To add a new member to the group, click the Link button. In the resulting Search form, locate the user to add, highlight the user in the list, and click Select.

• To delete a member from the group, highlight the member name in the list of current members and click the Unlink button.

4. Click the Save toolbar button.

Creating Standard User Teams

Use the Teams tab (located under the User and Security Management tab) to create standard user teams. Teams are pools of employees who can be assigned tasks within



Self Service, such as Advisory or Review boards. An employee cannot be assigned a task without being part of a team.

To add a new Team:

1. Click the Teams tab located under the User and Security Management tab. A list of all standard user teams displays.

2. Click the New Standard User Team button.

A blank Standard User Team form displays.

3. Complete the fields in the Standard User Team form:

a. Enter a unique team name in the Team field.

b. In the Team Email field, enter the name of the email group which relays messages to each team member.

c. In the Manager field, enter the name of the team manager being added, or use the search feature to locate an existing team manager.

d. In the Team Manager Email field, enter the email address for the team manager.

4. Click the Save button. The list is updated and the team is displayed in the list.

Set up Surveys

The Survey module provides the means to measure customer satisfaction through the use of customer surveys. Surveys are published via the web, and distributed using email capabilities.

Three types of surveys can be created:

Post-Transaction. This survey type is event-driven, enabling you to send a survey triggered by the conclusion of a specified event, such as after every 5th call received. The sending of post-transaction surveys is automated.

On-Demand. This survey type is used to survey the entire customer base (or some specified segment of customers) on a periodic basis, generally quarterly or biannually.

Periodic. The same parameters as the On-Demand survey, however, unlike the On-Demand survey, which can be submitted only once, the Periodic survey can be completed and submitted multiple times by the respondent.

Process Overview

Follow this process for creating and sending surveys, then viewing the survey results:



Create a Survey (page 268). Configure the survey properties (including type, style, messages, etc.) and add survey questions.

Work with Surveys (page 270). Copy, edit, delete, export, and import a survey.

View Survey Status (page 268). View a list of all surveys and survey information, such as survey type, expiration date, etc.

Create a Survey1. Click the Survey tab to access the Survey module (Figure 141).

Figure 141 Access the Survey module

2. Click the Create a new survey link.

3. On the Create Survey page:

Survey title - Type a name for the survey. This name will display as a header on each page of the survey.

Survey type:

• on-demand

• post-transaction

• periodic

Logo (URL) - Use this field to display your company logo on the survey by inserting the logo local Web server path or public URL. (examples: local Survey web server path = ../templates/images/logo.png or public URL = http://www.mycompany.com/logo-small.gif)

Style - Select the color style you would like to apply to the survey.

NOTE

If you want to use a style sheet that you created, store the .css file at: C:\Program Files (x86)\FrontRange Solutions\Service Management\ITSMSurvey\templates\styles\schemas. The file name (without the extension) appears as a Style name in the Style drop-down list.

Description - Type a description (optional) for the survey, which will appear as a tool tip when you move your mouse over a survey title on the Survey List page.



Welcome message - Type a message that will display on the Welcome page of the survey.

Thank you message - Type a message that will display when the survey is submitted.

NOTE

If the respondent tries to resubmit a Post-Transaction or On-Demand survey, the Thank you message will display as a reminder that the survey was already submitted.

Suspend message - If you need to suspend a survey for any reason, type the message that will display, explaining that the survey has been suspended.

Expired on - Type an expiration date or click the calendar icon to the right of the field to select an expiration date; if the respondent tries to submit the survey on or after the expiration date, the expiration message will display.

Expiration message - Type a message that will display if the respondent attempts to submit a survey on or after the expiration date.

4. Click Save.

5. Click the Add question link.

a. In the Question type drop-down list, select the question format:

• text - The respondent can enter a short, one-line answer.

• essay - The respondent can enter a long answer; this is essentially a comments field.

• radio button - The respondent can only select a single answer from a set of answers displayed as radio buttons.

• check box - The respondent can select multiple answers, displayed as check boxes.

b. Type the question in the Question field.

c. Select the Answer required check box to prevent the respondent from skipping the question.

d. In the Question category drop-down list, select the category that the question is placed into.

e. For the check box and radio button options, type the response options in the Answers text box. Each line in the answer box represents an answer option, so press Enter to start a new line for each response.

f. Select the Last answer contains text box check box to provide a short answer field as a final response option (for example, an Other option).

g. Click Save.

h. Repeat the above steps to add as many questions as needed.



6. Click Preview to view the survey. The navigator at the top left of the page provides links enabling you to:

View the welcome message

View the various survey pages

View the thank you message

Return to the survey editor

7. To retrieve the URL that you will use in the Business Process Rule or AutoTask to send the survey, return to the survey editor and click the survey properties link. You will be pasting this URL into the Business Process Rule used to send Post-Transaction surveys or the Send a Message AutoTask used to send On-Demand surveys. You first need to edit the red text portion of the link:

&customer_id=xxxxxxx (on-demand or periodic survey) or &call_id=xxxxxxx (post-transaction survey) - The value to insert in place of the x’s should be the specific customer ID or call ID.

8. Copy the URL in the Survey public URL field.

Work with Surveys

After a survey has been created, you can:

Edit a Survey

Import a Survey

Export a Survey

Copy a Survey

Delete a Survey

Edit a Survey

NOTE

You cannot edit a survey after responses have been received for that survey. If you clear the responses, you can then edit the survey.

1. On the Survey List page, click the name of the survey you want to edit.

2. The Survey opens.

To edit a question on the page, click the edit link (to the right of the question).

To change the order of the questions, click the sort link (to the right of the question); select the question, then use the move up or move down buttons to reposition the question.

To delete a question from the survey, click the remove link (to the right of the question), then click OK to confirm the deletion.



To change the page order, click the sort link (to the right of the page break), then select the page or page break to reposition using the move up or move down buttons.

To remove a page break, click the remove link (to the right of the page break).

3. To add a question click the add question link at the top of the page

4. To edit the survey properties (survey type, welcome message, etc.), click the survey properties link.

The following links are also available in survey editor:

copy survey - Click to copy the open survey.

delete survey - Click to delete the open survey.

NOTE

If the survey has responses, you will not see the delete survey link. You must first delete the responses from the database by clicking the clear link on the Survey List page.

preview - Click to see a preview of the open survey.

survey list - Return to the Survey List page.

Export a Survey

On the Survey List page, click the Export configuration link. The configuration file (in XML format) is saved in My Documents\Downloads.

A shortcut to the exported file is located in the lower left corner of the screen. Click the shortcut to open the file for viewing and editing.

A link to a page containing all downloaded files (including exported configurations) is located in the bottom right corner of the screen. Click the link to open the list of downloads. From the list you can go to a downloaded file, remove one file at a time from the list, or clear all files from the list.

Import a Survey

NOTE

You can only import a survey previously exported from the Survey module. However, you cannot import the previously exported survey if it is still on the database unless you either select the Generate new survey ID check box or delete the survey from the database.

1. On the Survey List page, click the Import survey link.

2. In the File to import field type the path for the file or click Browse to locate the XML survey file.



3. Select the Generate new survey ID check box if you do not want the imported survey to be associated with its prior survey ID. This means that the imported survey will no longer be linked to the Business rule or AutoTask that was originally used to send out the survey.

4. Click Import.

Copy a Survey

1. On the Survey List page, click the name of the survey you want to copy.

2. The survey opens.

3. To copy the survey, click the copy survey link at the top of the page.

4. The Source survey field confirms the survey you are copying.

5. In the New survey title field, type a name for the new survey.

6. In the New survey description field, type a description (optional) for the new survey; the description will appear as a tool tip when you move your mouse over a survey title on the Survey List page.

7. Click Copy. The new survey opens.

8. Make any needed changes to the questions and survey properties.

Delete a Survey

You cannot delete a survey that has responses without first clicking the clear link on the Survey List page to delete the response data from the database.

When you delete a survey from the database, all data related to that survey is also deleted.

1. On the Survey List page, click the name of the survey you want to delete.

2. The Survey opens.

3. To delete the survey, click the delete survey link at the top of the page.

4. Click OK to confirm the deletion.

View Survey Status

On the Survey List page, you can see a list of all surveys, including the following survey information:

Survey type.

Expiration date (if any) and if the survey has expired.

The number of responses received. Click the clear link to delete from the database the response data for the survey.



Whether the survey has been suspended - stopped indicates that the survey has been suspended; started indicates that the survey has been restarted.

You can also initiate actions on the Survey List page:

Export a Survey. Click the Export configuration link.

Stop. Click to suspend a survey.

Start. Click to restart a survey after it has been suspended.

Create a Survey. Click the Create a new survey link.

Import a Survey. Click the Import survey link.

logout. Click to log off.

help. Click to open the online help

Troubleshooting

This section describes troubleshooting procedures that you can perform through the Web administration interface.

Metadata Transfer Between Web Admin and Smart Client

Perform the following steps if:

Metadata changes in the Smart Client are not taking effect.

Changes made in the Web administration interface do not take effect in the Smart Client.

1. Restart IIS.

2. Remove the server cache on the Self Service system:

a. Browse to Application Cache page on the Self Service system (http://server_name/selfservice/maintenance/cache.aspx).

b. In the Application Cache page:

• Click Remove old versions.

• Click Clear.

3. Use your browser’s administration tool to clear the browser cache.


Chapter 9

Knowledge Management Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the following features of the Knowledge Management module:

Approvers (see page 276). Modify default approval groups, create new approval groups, and specify individual approvers.

Approval sequence and criteria (see page 280). Specify the order in which different types of approval (technical, business, and presentation) occur. Specify how many votes from an approval group are required to approve or deny an article.

Notification (see page 281). Specify the timing, content, sender, and recipient of notification email that is sent during the approval process.

Approval voting deadlines (see page 283). Specify how long approvers have to vote on an article.

Collections and approval routing (see page 283). Create new article collections. Specify the type of approval (technical, business, or presentation) required for each article collection.

Configure Approvers and Approval Workflows

The Knowledge Management module provides an approval workflow for each knowledge article type:

Article Type Workflow Name Business ObjectDocument Document Knowledge

Approval WorkflowFRS_Knowledge.Document

Error Message Error Message Approval Workflow

FRS_Knowledge.ErrorMessage

Issue and Resolution Issue Resolution Approval Workflow

FRS_Knowledge.IssueResolution

Patch Patch Knowledge Approval Workflow

FRS_Knowledge.Patch

Q & A Q and A Knowledge Approval Workflow

FRS_Knowledge.QandA

Reference Reference Knowledge Approval Workflow

FRS_Knowledge.Reference


Chapter 9: Knowledge Management Configuration

Workflows consist mostly of Get Approval and Notification blocks that define who the approvers are, approval sequence and criteria, who receives notification during the approval process, and voting deadlines. You can change any of these settings to customize the approval process as described in the following sections.

Approvers

Approvers can be configured on a group or individual basis.

Groups

By default, approvers are configured using these contact groups:

Knowledge Business Approval Group

Knowledge Technical Approval Group

Knowledge Presentation Approval Group

For example, if a knowledge article requires business approval (see “Configure Collections and Approval Routing” on page 283 for more information about specifying the type of approval required for an article), all of the members of the Knowledge Business Approval Group group are notified when the article is ready for review by one or more group members. You can specify who reviews articles by adding or removing users to or from this group. See “Change Membership in a Default Approval Group” on page 276 for details about reconfiguring default approval groups.

You can also create a new approval group and then reconfigure an approval workflow to use the new group instead of a default group. See “Create New Approval Groups” on page 278 for more information.

Individuals

Approval workflows can also be configured to specify one or more individual approvers rather than an approval group. Under this scenario, approval is required from each specified individual. See “Configure Individual Approvers” on page 279 for more information.

Change Membership in a Default Approval Group

To add or remove group members:

1. Log in to Self Service:

a. Open your Web browser to the following URL:


The Self Service login dialog displays (Figure 142).




b. Enter your login ID and password, select a platform, and then click Login. When the list of available roles displays, select Administrators and then click Continue.

The Self Service home page displays.

2. From the Self Service home page, access the Web administration interface by selecting Settings > Configure Application (Figure 143).


The Web administration interface opens in the Application Configuration tab (Figure 144):



Figure 144 Web administration interface (Application Configuration tab)

3. Click the User and Security Management tab. On the resulting page, under the Groups area click the knowledge approval group that you want to edit (for example, Knowledge Business Approval Group).

4. To add a user to the group, click the Link icon under the Member tab. Use the resulting search form to find the user, and then highlight the user in the list and click Select.

5. To delete a member from the group, highlight the user in the list under the Member tab and click the Unlink icon.

6. Click the Save icon on the Contact Group page to save the contact group record.

Create New Approval Groups

You can also create a new approval group and then reconfigure an approval workflow to use the new group instead of a default approval group.

1. Access the Web administration interface User and Security Management tab as described in step 1 through step 3 in “Change Membership in a Default Approval Group” on page 276.

2. Under the Groups area, click Add Group.

3. Fill in the resulting Contact Group form as described in “Creating Contact Groups” on page 266.

4. Reconfigure one or more approval workflows to use the new contact group:

a. Access the approval workflow that you will reconfigure as described in “Approval Sequence and Criteria” on page 280.



b. Double-click the Get Approval block that will use the new approval group. (Approval workflows typically have three Get Approval blocks; one each for technical, presentation, and business approval). The block properties dialog displays (Figure 145).

Figure 145 Workflow block properties dialog

c. In the Approvers area, use the drop-down list in the From a Group field to select the new contact group.

d. Click Save followed by OK to save the new workflow version.

e. Return to the version list for this workflow and publish the new version.

Configure Individual Approvers

Get Approval workflow blocks can specify individual approvers rather than approval groups.

NOTE

Only one individual approver can be specified in a Get Approval block. To specify multiple individual approvers, you must use multiple Get Approval blocks.

To specify an individual approver:

1. Access the approval workflow that will use individual reviewers as described in “Configure Approval Sequence” on page 280.



2. Double-click the Get Approval block that you will reconfigure.

3. In the block properties dialog Approvers area, select From a User and use the drop-down lists in the group and user fields to select an individual approver.

4. Click Save followed by OK to save the new workflow version.

5. Return to the version list for this workflow and publish the new version.

Approval Sequence and Criteria

Approval sequence and criteria are controlled by the order and settings of the Get Approval blocks in the knowledge approval workflows. The following sections describe how to configure approval sequence and criteria.

Configure Approval Sequence

By default, the Get Approval blocks in all of the provided knowledge approval workflows are arranged in this sequence:

1. Technical approval.

2. Presentation approval.

3. Business approval.

NOTE

All three types of approval are not always required for an article. The collection that you place an article into determines which types of approval are required. See “Configure Collections and Approval Routing” on page 283 for details about that process.

To change the approval sequence in a workflow:

1. Access the Web administration interface as described in step 1 and step 2 in “Change Membership in a Default Approval Group” on page 276.

2. Under the Application Configuration tab, click the Business Objects tab.

3. In the resulting page, click the View Workflows button on the right side of the screen. A list of all workflows displays.

4. Click the knowledge workflow that you want to edit (for example, Document Knowledge Approval Workflow). A list of all versions of that workflow displays. The currently published version is highlighted in green.

5. Click the edit (pencil) icon for the currently published version. The workflow opens for editing in the Workflow Designer.

6. Change the order of Get Approval blocks and other blocks as necessary. See “Defining Workflows” on page 204 for details about creating and moving blocks.





Configure Approval Criteria

Approval criteria are controlled by the Approval/Denial Criteria area in the Get Approval block properties dialog (Figure 145). Criteria that you can configure are:

Approve if all approved. The article is approved if every member of the approval group approves it.

Approve if any approved. The article is approved if one member of the approval group approves it.

Approve if at least N% approved. The article is approved if the specified percentage of approval group members approve it.

Deny if any rejected. The article is rejected if one member of the approval group rejects it.

Deny if at least N% rejected. The article is rejected if the specified percentage of approval group members reject it.

To set the approval criteria for an article type:

1. Open the knowledge workflow for an article type as described in step 1 through step 5 in “Configure Approval Sequence” on page 280.


3. In the block properties dialog Approval/Denial Criteria area, select one of the approval methods described in the bulleted list above.

4. Click the Workflow Designer Save button.

Notification

Notification by email occurs at two general stages in a knowledge approval workflow:

Approvers are notified when an article is ready for them to review.

An article’s owner is notified of article status after it is reviewed or after a review deadline expires.

The following sections describe these notifications in detail.

Approver Notification to Review an Article

The Send Notification for Knowledge QuickAction (affiliated with the FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking business object) sends email to approvers when an article is ready for them to review. By default, this notification is sent to $(OwnerEmail).

To reconfigure this QuickAction:

1. Access the Web administration interface as described in step 1 and step 2 in “Change Membership in a Default Approval Group” on page 276.



2. Under the Application Configuration tab, click Quick Actions under the Automation Tools area on the right side of the screen.

3. In the resulting list of business objects, scroll to FRS_ApprovalVoteTracking and click the Grid Quick Actions link in the third column.

4. In the resulting list of QuickActions, double-click Send Notification for Knowledge and reconfigure it as necessary as described in “Defining QuickActions” on page 219.

5. Click Save.

To specify that another QuickAction be used:

1. Open a knowledge workflow as described in step 1 through step 5 in “Configure Approval Sequence” on page 280.


3. In the block properties dialog Approval Notification QuickAction area, use the drop-down list to select another QuickAction.

4. Click the Workflow Designer Save button.

Owner Notification of Article Status

Notification blocks in the knowledge workflows are configured to send the following notifications to an article owner after an article is reviewed or if a review deadline expires:

Failed Technical Review. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the article failed technical review.

Failed Presentation Review. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the article failed presentation review.

Failed Business Review. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the article failed business review.

Technical Review Deadline. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the deadline for technical review expired and that the article must be resubmitted for approval.

Presentation Review Deadline. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the deadline for presentation review expired and that the article must be resubmitted for approval.

Business Review Deadline. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the deadline for business review expired and that the article must be resubmitted for approval.

Notification to Owner. Notifies the article owner ($(OwnerEmail)) that the article was approved.



To change or create new notifications:


2. Double-click the Notification block that you will reconfigure.

3. Use the resulting block properties dialog to configure the notification as described in “Notification” on page 213.



Voting Deadlines

Voting deadlines for article approvers are configured through Get Approval workflow blocks. Deadlines can be based on a duration (in days, hours, and minutes) or on the date in a field that you specify.

To configure a voting deadline:



3. In the block properties dialog Approval Voting Deadline area, either:

Select Field and use the drop-down list to specify a field name, or

Select Duration and specify the duration length in the provided fields (the duration clock starts when the Get Approval workflow block is triggered; the deadline is reached when the duration ends).



Configure Collections and Approval RoutingThe routing of an article to approval teams during the approval process is determined by the collection (also called repository) that you place the article into. For example, if an article is placed in the IT Knowledge collection, it will be routed by default to the Presentation Approval and Technical Approval teams. When the article author specifies the IT Knowledge collection in the Collection field in an article form, the Approvals area autofills to show this routing (Figure 146).



Figure 146 Approval routing determined by collection choice

Default approval routings are as follows:

To create or modify a collection and its approval routing:

1. In the main ITSM tool bar, select Tools > Business Object Maintenance.

2. In the resulting Select Business Object dialog, select Knowledge Repositories and click OK.

3. In the resulting Object Maintenance page, open a new or existing collection for editing:

Click New to open a new collection.

Double-click an existing collection (listed in the Repositories column) to open it.

4. Use the Knowledge Repository form to:

Name or rename the collection.

NOTE

If you rename an existing collection, the old name is retained for articles currently in the collection. However, the old name is not available as a choice for new articles.

Select or deselect the types of approval required for articles in the collection.

5. Click the Knowledge Repository Save button.

CollectionApproval Team

Business Presentation Technical

Company Policy & Procedure X X

Customer Knowledge X X X

Internal Knowledge X

IT Knowledge X X

Service Desk X


Chapter 10

Release Configuration

This chapter describes how to configure the Release module for your company or organization. Only those configuration tasks that are specific to the Release module are described here. Configuration tasks for other modules or for the ITSM application in general are described elsewhere in this document. Cross references to those topics are included throughout this chapter.


Milestone Task and Checklist Configuration

Milestone Approval Configuration


Dashboard

Forms and Grids

Release Templates

Release Calendar


Release Management is responsible for designing, testing, and installing predefined Changes in the live environment. It is also used to distribute and manage the rollout of software and hardware across the entire IT infrastructure. While Change Management manages the process of Change, Release Management manages the deployment of those Configuration Items (CIs) that are implemented by Change Management.

Proper software and hardware control makes sure that licensed, tested, and version-certified software and hardware is available for use in the organization.

Release Management uses Milestones to plan and increment the Release process. Predefined Milestones have been created for Releases, with the option to manually create new or additional Milestones for particular Releases. Predefined approval workflows have been created as well for Release Milestones. These Milestones are generated by selecting one of the many templates available.


Chapter 10: Release Configuration

Configure Milestone Workflow for Task and Checklist

It may be necessary to add or remove Task and Checklist items to pre-configured Release Milestone workflows for your organization:

1. Access the ITSM Self Service by opening a Web browser to the following URL:



3. Click Business Objects (located under the Application Configuration tab).

4. Click View Workflows, then scroll down to the Milestone section.

5. Click the workflow to configure.

6. Scroll down to the bottom of the Release Milestone list and click on the edit icon of the green highlighted workflow. (Un-highlighted workflows are previous workflows.) The Release Milestone Workflow screen will appear.

a. To to add or remove a workflow block:

• To add a Task, see “Add a Task” on page 287.

• To add a Checklist, see “Add a Checklist Item” on page 288.

• To remove a block, click the Remove x in the block’s upper right corner.



Add a Task1. Drag and drop the Task block and place the block in an open area within the

diagram. See “Defining Workflows” on page 204 for details about creating and moving blocks.

2. To configure the task properties, double-click on the newly added Task box to open the Task Block Properties edit window.

3. Enter a task object title in the Title field.

4. Enter a summary description of the task in the Task Summary field.

5. Enter a detailed description of the task in the Task Details field.

6. Select a team to assign this task in the Team field menu, then select a specific assignee for this task, if needed, from the Assignee (Optional) field menu.

7. Click a radio button to select a Priority for this task:



Field: Select a field type for this task priority from the drop-down list. Its numeric value determines the task priority.

Value: Select a numeric value for this task from the drop-down list. A value of 1 is the highest priority.

8. Select a marker for the task timeout interval from the Accept Timeout Date drop-down list. This includes all date/time fields available for the Business Object, such as Created On: and Modified On.

9. Click a radio button to define the Due Date:


Duration: Click this radio button to define the due date according to the interval defined in the days, hours (Hrs) and minutes (Mins) fields.

10. Click Save button to save your changes.

11. Join the new task to workflow. For more information, see “Join” on page 212.

12. Click Save to save your workflow.

Add a Checklist Item1. Drag and drop the Insert Child Object block and place the block in an open area

within the diagram. See “Using the Workflow Designer” on page 205 for details about creating and moving blocks.



2. To configure the checklist properties, double-click on the newly added Insert Child Object box to open the Insert Child Object Block Properties edit window.

3. Enter a checklist object title in the Title field.

4. Click to the right of Select Child Object Type and choose ReleaseMilestoneContainsChecklist field from the Target Object Fields drop-down list.

5. Edit the Target Object Fields table as needed. For more information, see “Insert Child Object” on page 207.

6. Click the Overwrite check box to overwrite default values for the Description and type in the name of the checklist.

7. Click Save button to save your changes.

8. Join the new checklist to workflow. For more information, see “Join” on page 212.

9. Click Save to save your workflow.



Configure Milestone Approval Workflow

Some organizations may require a different workflow from the pre-configured Release Milestone Approval workflows. Perform the following steps to configure the Release Approval Workflow for your organization:

1. Access the ITSM Self Service by opening a Web browser to the following URL:



3. Click Business Objects (located under the Application Configuration tab).

4. Click View Workflows, then scroll down to the Milestone section.

5. Click Approval for Release Milestone.

NOTE

Approval for Release Milestone is the generic Release Milestone Workflow. Other Milestone Workflows that can be configured are: Build and Test Release Milestone, Deployment Milestone, Early Life Support Milestone, Release Review and Closure Milestone, Release and Deployment Planning Milestone, Service Testing and Pilot Milestone.



6. Scroll down to the bottom of the Approval for Release Milestone list and click on the edit icon of the green highlighted workflow. (Un-highlighted workflows are previous workflows.) The Release Milestone Approval Workflow screen will appear.

7. Change the order of Get Approval blocks and other blocks as necessary. See “Defining Workflows” on page 204 for details about creating and moving blocks.

8. To configure the approval criteria double-click on the Get Approval box to open the Get Approval Block Properties edit window.

9. Edit the approval settings as necessary.

Approvers—Select the radio button “Context BO Related” to allow approvers to be generated directly from the specific Release Details screen. To specify a group or individual select one of the other radio buttons.



NOTE

For information on adding/configuring approvers and groups, see “Approvers” on page 276.

Approval Notification QuickAction—Denotes which contact group will be notified.

Approval / Denial Criteria—Select amount of approvers must approve (or deny) the Release Milestone:

• Approve if all approved. The article is approved if every member of the approval group approves it.

• Approve if any approved. The article is approved if one member of the approval group approves it.

• Approve if at least N% approved. The article is approved if the specified percentage of approval group members approve it.

• Deny if any rejected. The article is rejected if one member of the approval group rejects it.

• Deny if at least N% rejected. The article is rejected if the specified percentage of approval group members reject it.

Approval Voting Deadline—Deadline designated as the deadline for approvers to vote.

10. Click Save when completed.

NOTE

If the system determines that there is not enough time to Approval (according to the settings) before the Approval board meeting, the approval will automatically roll over to the next Approval board meeting.




This section defines the panels, grids and layouts associated with the Release module.

Dashboard

The Release Dashboard is the first screen that appears after the user clicks Release from the main ITSM menu. The Dashboard displays important overall Release information and allows the user to access specific Releases and view the Release Calendar. For user information on using the Release Dashboard, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 147 Release Dashboard


The Release Dashboard default settings are as follows:

Table 9 Release Dashboard Default Settings

Dashboard Layout Parts

Release ‐ Release Module Tabbed Part Release ‐ Release by: Release ‐ Release Link ListTab Type Status

All Releases

Release Module MultiView Grid Pie Chart Column Chart Emergency Releases

Releases Scheduled This Week

Releases Scheduled This Month

Active Releases Past their Target Dates

Emergency Releases

Emergency Releases All Active Releases

All Releases

Release Calendar

ReleaseCalendar GridDBReleaseGrid

GridReleaseProject




NOTE

This section defines how to customize Release Dashboard. For a detailed description and procedure for editing, adding and deleting Dashboards in general, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 148 Dashboard Layout and Release Dashboard

The default Release Dashboard is based on two items:

Dashboard Layout—The Release Dashboard is divided up into four quadrants, with each quadrant displaying detail that is generated from the Dashboard part. To configure the layout, see “Configure Release Dashboard Layout” on page 294.

Dashboard Parts—Objects or other items that are displayed on a particular quadrant that has been defined by the Dashboard Layout. To configure parts, see the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Configure Release Dashboard Layout

Layout is accessible from the Dashboard Center. To open the Dashboard Center and configure the Release Dashboard, perform the following:


From the ITSM Smart Client, select Tools > Dashboards > Dashboard Center from the main application menu bar.

From the FRS Application Administrator, select Definition Set > New Definition Set > Definitions > Dashboards.

The Dashboard Center screen displays. It contains a set of organizational tabs and menus.



2. Select Release from the Associated with: list. The area for available templates populates with all of the Release dashboards.

Figure 149 Release dashboards in the Dashboard Center

3. Click a dashboard listed or select the click the Edit icon for a dashboard. The Edit Release Dashboard editor displays.

Figure 150 Edit Dashboard - General

NOTE

For detailed instructions and information on editing Dashboards and Dashboard Parts, see “Dashboards” on page 47 in the ITSM User Guide and as well as “Dashboards” in the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Forms and Grids

Forms are graphical displays that can be customized to present and capture field information. Grids are customizable tabular displays for viewing multiple records simultaneously. Layout, as in Dashboards, is a screen (Form UI of an object) that is divided up into more than one quadrant with each displaying related objects. For information on understanding how forms and grids work and editing forms and grids,



see “Forms and Grids” on page 295, and the “Forms” and “Grids” sections in the Foundation Administrator Guide.

Figure 151 Release Details Form

Figure 152 Release Grid

Release module Form and Grid fields are described and defined in the ITSM User Guide.

CAUTION

Editing or removing forms and grids that are directly and indirectly associated with the Release Module may have an effect on other modules.



t

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ry

n

The table below defines the Forms (Panels) and Grids (as well as Layout or combination of Panels) directly and indirectly associated with the Release Module:

Release Form and Grid Objects

The table below defines the Forms (Panels) and Grids (and Layout) associated with tabs:

Associated Objects Related to Release

Master Business Object Panels Grid Layout

Release Project ReleaseProjectSubClosing

ReleaseProject.Brief

ReleaseProject

ReleaseHeader

ReleaseProject

DBReleaseGrid

ReleaseProject

SearchReleaseLayou

Deployment Package FRS_ReleasePackage

Release Milestone ReleaseMilestone

ReleaseMilestoneHeader

ReleaseMilestone.Brief

ReleaseMilestone ReleaseMilestone


Change ChangeHeaderChangeChange.Brief

ChangeCABHomepageChangeChange

SearchChangeLayouChange

Activity History JournalJournal.Email

Journal.NotesJournal.VoiceActivity

JournalNotesCategoJournalNotesSource

Announcement Announcement

Task TaskTask.Assignment

Task.PurchaseRequestTaskOffering

CI CICI.AccessPointCI.BatchJobCI.ClusterCI.ContractCI.DatabaseCI.DocumentCI.EnterpriseApplicationCI.FAXCI.FirewallCI.GeneratorCI.HubCI.Middleware

CI.MobileDeviceCI.MonitorCI.PeripheralDeviceCI.PrinterCI.ProductivityAppCI.RackCI.RouterCI.SANCI.ScannerCI.ServerCI.ServiceCI.SwitchCI.System

CI.UPSCI.VideoConferenceCI.VirtualServerCI.VirtualWorkstatioCI.VOIPCI.WorkstationCIDiscoveryMapCILevelCILevelCriteriaCIRoleCIServiceMapCITypedLinkCILink

Problem Problem






Release Templates

Release templates are designed to speed data entry in commonly completed Release form fields. A template contains predefined content for one or more fields. When a user applies a template to a form, the predefined content is transferred into the form, and the user does not have to fill in the predefined areas manually.

NOTE

Standard Releases are all based on and can only be created from Release templates.

You can reconfigure existing templates or create new templates as described in “Templates in the Smart Client” on page 131 of the Foundation Administrator Guide. You can have any number of Release templates.


The following sections describe the default Release templates that are included with ITSM.

Office 2010 Deployment

This template is used to deploy Microsoft Office 2010 in Microsoft Windows 7 systems.

Field Setting

Name Windows 7 Migration

Alias Windows 7 Migration

Type of Release Major

Urgency Medium

Impact Medium

Status Draft

Owner Administrator Admin

Related Records (See “Default Milestones” on page 300.)



Standard Release Template

Use this template as a basis for Releases. To edit this template or create additional templates, see “Templates” on page 113 in the ITSM User Guide.

Windows 7 Migration

This template is used to upgrade operating systems to Microsoft Windows 7.

Field Setting

Name Standard Release

Alias Standard Release Template

Type of Release Minor

Urgency Medium

Impact Medium

Status Draft



Field Setting

Name Windows 7 Migration

Alias Windows 7 Migration


Urgency Medium

Impact Medium

Status Draft





Windows Server 2008 Security Patch Deployment

This template is used to deploy security patches for Microsoft Windows Server 2008 systems.

Default Milestones

Each Release template included with ITSM also contain the following Milestones:

Release and Deployment Planning

Build and Test Release

Service Testing and Pilot

Deployment Preparation

Deployment

Early Life Support

Release Review and Closure


You can edit, create, and delete Release templates in the following ways:


From the Templates tab in the Smart Client Release workspace.

See “Templates in the Smart Client” on page 131 of the Foundation Administrator Guide for configuration procedure details.

Field Setting

Name Windows Server 2008 Security Patch Deployment

Alias Windows Server 2008 Security Patch Deployment


Urgency Medium

Impact High

Status Draft





Release Calendar

Once a Release has been created it will appear on the Release Calendar along with milestones related to the Release and Deployment Packages. The Release Calendar may also show all of the Releases divided into tasks in addition to other information derived from a variety of fields. For user information on adding Releases and filtering the Release Calendar, see the ITSM User Guide.

Figure 153 Release Calendar

Configure Release Calendar

To configure Release Calendar properties perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator). Right-click ReleaseProject or ReleaseMilestone and select Edit Business Object in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane, The Business Object Editor will appear, displaying the defined properties on several tabs. Click the Calendaring tab.

NOTE

“ReleaseMilestone” contains two calendars: ReleaseMilestone and MilestoneCalendar.



2. Follow all the steps in “Calendaring Tab” on page 53 from the Foundation Administrator Guide in order to configure the Release Calendar.

Figure 154 Calendaring Tab in Business Object Editor

Configure Change and Release Link and Association

When Change and Release records are created, linked or associated with one another the data is pulled or pushed from one record to the other to configure the link and association of these records perform one or both of the procedures below:

Configure Change and Release Link

When Change records are created within the Release module or existing Changes are linked to a Release the Release Schedule dates are copied over to the new Change record and all CIs associated with the Change record are linked to the Release. To configure the link between these records:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Change by clicking on the + to the left of Change, then expand Fields in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.

2. Right-click ReleaseLink4Unlink, and select Edit Field. The Change.ReleaseLink4Unlink screen will appear, displaying the link between Change and Release will appear, displaying defined field properties on several tabs.



3. Click the Autofill tab. This tab displays what items will automatically fill the field with values derived from another Business Object field. In this case the “Change - Copy CI to Release” script defines that the dates from the Release will be pulled and linked to the Change schedule.

4. To configure the Autofill data, click Change - Copy CI to Release located below Fill with value:. The Script Properties window will appear. Make the appropriate changes to the script, then click OK to save those changes and close the window.

5. Click Validate. FRS Application Administrator checks your changes and posts possible problems.

6. Click Apply. The changes are "temporarily" added to your system. To permanently apply them, commit the Definition Set.

Configure Release and Change Association

When Release records are created within the Change module or existing Releases are linked to a Change from a Change record within the Change module the Change Schedule dates are copied to the Implementation Schedule dates of the Release. To configure the association between these records:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand Change by clicking on the + to the left of Change, then expand Relationships in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.

2. Right-click ChangeAssociatedReleaseProject, and select Edit Relationship. The ChangeAssociatedReleaseProject screen will appear, displaying the link between Change and Release will appear, displaying defined relationship properties on several tabs.



3. Click the Push Data tab. This tab displays how values are passed to Child records from a Parent record or system data. In this case planned implementation start/end and scheduled start/end dates will be pushed from the Change record to the Release.

4. To configure the Push Data, click on the pull-down menu under Left and Right Value and choose a different field to populate in the child record.

5. Click Validate. FRS Application Administrator checks your changes and posts possible problems.

6. Click Apply. The changes are "temporarily" added to your system. To permanently apply them, commit the Definition Set.

Configure Release Project or Milestone Calendar Display Fields and Filters

To access the Change Calendar display fields and filters perform the following:

1. Access the Business Object Editor (FRS Application Administrator) and expand ReleaseMilestone or ReleaseProject by clicking on the + to the left of Change, then expand Displays in the Business Definition Editor Navigation pane.



2. Right-click ReleaseMilestone(Calendar) or ReleaseProject(Calendar), and select Edit Calendar. The Release Milestone or Release Project Calendar Forms screen will appear, displaying the Release (Milestone or Project) Calendar Title, Display Fields and Filter items to configure.

Figure 155 Release Calendar Forms Screen

3. To rename the Calendar Title, click on the Calendar Title: text box and type in a new title.

Figure 156 Set Release Calendar Title



4. The Release Milestone Calendar displays the following fields derived from the Release Details and Milestone Details screens:

Release Project Calendar fields from the Release Details screen:

• Subject—Title/Summary of the Release located in the Project Name text box of the Release Details portion of the screen.

• Type of Release—Classification type (such as Emergency, Major or Minor) chosen in the Type drop-down list located in the Classification portion of the screen.

Release Milestone Calendar fields from the Milestone Details screen:

• Subject—Milestone type chosen in the Subject drop-down list located in the Milestone Details portion of the screen.



• Status—Release Milestone status (such as Pending, Active, Cancelled, Overdue or Completed) chosen in the Status drop-down list located in the Milestone Management portion of the screen.

• Release Number—Release number that the Milestone is a part of above Status.

NOTE

MilestoneCalendar(Calendar) contains two additional fields: StartDate and CompletionDate which allow users to fill in the Start and Completion dates for the Milestone.

To add a field item (or related field), click on the Add Field (or Add Related Field) button.

Figure 157 Add Field

The new field will appear at the bottom of the fields.

To delete a field item, click on the red x that appears to the right of the item.

5. Releases that are displayed on the calendar can be filtered to show only Releases (or Milestones) that contain particular criteria from the Details screen:



Release Project Calendar field filters are pre-configured for the following drop-down lists:

• Type of Release

• Urgency

• Impact

• Priority

Release Milestone Calendar field filters are pre-configured for the following drop-down lists:

• Status

• Subject

NOTE

MilestoneCalendar(Calendar) contains an additional filter used for “Owner” selection.

As with Display Field to add a filter item, click on the Add Field button located below the filters. The new filter will appear at the bottom of the filters.To delete a filter, click on the red x that appears to the right of the item.


Appendix A

Configure Localization

Overview

Localization provides the capability to display the ITSM interface in a language- and culture-specific way. Support is provided for non-English languages as well as for different cultures within a language — such as French (France) and French (Canada).

NOTE

The terms culture and locale are used interchangeably in this appendix.

The localization features provided with ITSM enable end users to select the language or culture of their choice, and system administrators to configure the appearance and behavior of the user interface for each locale. Configuration can be performed for both the Smart Client and Self Service (including the Service Catalog), although the features that you can configure differ between the Smart Client and Self Service (see “Localizing the Smart Client vs. Self Service” for more information).

This appendix describes how to:

Select the displayed locale during or shortly after ITSM login.

Manage localization settings, including:

Which locales are available for a user to select.

The default currency symbol used in Self Service.

Translation strings used for each locale in Self Service.

NOTES

The default translation strings provided with ITSM for any given language are the same for all cultures within that language. For example, the translation strings are the same for French (France) and French (Canada). Culture differences within a language involve only the formats used for date, time, number, and so on.

You can manually edit the translation strings for any non-English locale to customize them as necessary.


Appendix A: Configure Localization

Localizing the Smart Client vs. Self Service

There are several differences between localization in the Smart Client and Self Service:

When logging into the Smart Client, an end-user specifies the language (such as French, German, and so on) that is used in the Smart Client interface. The Smart Client locale settings — such as date, time, and number formats used for different cultures within a language such as French (France) and French (Canada) — are inherited from the operating system environment and are not selectable by an end-user.

In Self Service, an end-user can select both the language and the locale used in the user interface. This selection is made in the Web administration interface as described in “Self Service” on page 311.

Localization settings performed in the Application Administrator affect only the Smart Client.

Localization settings performed in the Web administration interface affect only Self Service and the Service Catalog.

Unsupported Features

This section describes unsupported localization features. Unless otherwise noted, this information applies to both the Smart Client and Self Service.

The text strings used for English locales are read-only. You cannot use the Self Service translation tool (as described in “Translation Strings” on page 314) to edit English terms.

When using the Self Service translation tool, you can edit existing translation strings but you cannot add new translation strings.

You cannot configure the user interface to use more than one currency symbol at a time.

In Self Service, locale-specific formats for date, time, and number are implemented automatically when you select a locale. Those formats cannot be customized.

Select the Displayed Locale

When you change to a new locale:

The translation strings for the new locale that are stored in the ITSM database are implemented.

Strings that do not have a translation for the new locale are displayed in English. To create a translation for a string, see “Use the Translation Tool” on page 315.

Date and time formats specific to the new locale are implemented automatically.



The following sections describe how to select locales in the Smart Client and Self Service.

Smart Client

Select the Smart Client language in the Language field in the Smart Client login dialog.

Self Service

Change the Self Service locale after logging in to Self Service:

1. In the Self Service home page, select Settings > Change Locale (Figure 158).

Figure 158 Change locales in Self Service

2. In the resulting Select Locale dialog, select a locale and click OK.

Self Service reloads and the new locale strings and formats are implemented.

Manage Language and Localization Settings

Language an localization settings let you manage the following aspects of the ITSM user interface. Unless otherwise noted, you can control these settings in both the Smart Client and Self Service.

Which languages (in the Smart Client) and locales (in Self Service) are available for a user to select. See “Available Languages and Locales” on page 312.

The default currency symbol used in Self Service. See “Currency Symbol” on page 314.

The translation strings used for each locale in Self Service. You can:

Specify which user interface areas will use customized translation strings.

Specify which languages to customize.

Edit translation strings.

Import or export a translation string spreadsheet.



See “Translation Strings” on page 314 for more information about performing these tasks.

Available Languages and Locales

ITSM provides a default set of languages and locales, all of which are available after ITSM is installed.

In the Smart Client, languages are selected as described in “Smart Client” on page 311.

In Self Service, locales are selected as described in “Self Service” on page 311.

The following sections describe how to delete languages and locales so that they are not available for users to select, and how to add them back as necessary.

Smart Client

Perform the following steps to specify which languages are available for a user to select when logging into the Smart Client.

1. Log in to the ITSM Application Administrator and select Multi Language Settings.

2. In the resulting page, select Enabled Languages.

3. Use the Enable/Disable Languages dialog to:

Select which languages are available for use in the Smart Client interface. These are the languages displayed in the Language field in the ITSM login dialog.

Select which language is used by default.

Self Service

Perform the following steps to specify which locales are available for a user to select after logging into Self Service.

1. From the Web Administration main page, select Localization Tools from the Settings tab (Figure 159).



Figure 159 Access localization tools

2. Use the resulting Localization page (Figure 160) to delete and add locales:

Click a locale’s Delete button to remove it from the list of available locales that a user can choose from.

To add a deleted locale back to the list, click Add New and select the locale to add.

Figure 160 Delete and add locales



CAUTION

If you delete all of the cultures for a given language — for example, French (Canada) and French (France) — all translations and other customizations that you made for that language are deleted. When you add the culture back, the default (non-customized) version is restored, and you must manually enter your customizations again. Before deleting a culture, it is recommended that you back up its translation strings by exporting them to a spreadsheet as described in “Import or Export a Translation String Spreadsheet” on page 316. You can then use the spreadsheet to restore the customizations.

Currency Symbol

The currency symbol used throughout Self Service is defined in:C:\Program Files (x86)\FrontRange Solutions\Service Management\selfservice\Web.config

To change the currency symbol, add or change the following setting in Web.config:<add key="CurrencySign" value="${0}"></add>

For example, to change the symbol from a leading dollar sign with no space ($xxx) to a trailing Euro symbol with one space (xxx €), change the setting as follows:<add key="CurrencySign" value="{0} €"></add>

NOTE

Localization using multiple currency symbols is not supported. Currency localization is limited to just the one currency symbol that is configured in Web.config. For example, if the currency symbol is set to Euros in Web.config, all currencies are displayed in Euros even if a user selects non-Euro based locale such as French (Canada).

Translation Strings

ITSM provides a translation tool that lets you customize the text strings used in Self Service and the Service Catalog for each supported locale. You can use the translation tool to:

Specify which user interface areas will use customized translation strings.

Customize a language by editing translation strings.

Import or export a spreadsheet containing some or all of a language’s translation strings.



CAUTION

Do not attempt to add translation strings by importing a spreadsheet that you have added rows or columns to. See “Import or Export a Translation String Spreadsheet” on page 316 for more information.

The following section describes how to use the translation tool.

Use the Translation Tool

1. Access the translation tool by selecting Translation Tool in the Localization page (Figure 160). The translation tool displays (Figure 161).

Figure 161 Translation tool (Manage Strings form)

2. Use the Translate, Name, and Area fields to specify which area’s translation strings to view and customize. Depending on your choices, the field below Area might allow you to further refine your criteria. For example, to display and customize the translation strings used in all Incident fields, you would select:

Translate: Business Object

Name: Incident

Area: Fields

Fields: All

Or, to display and customize the translation string used in the Request Offerings top level tab associated with the Administrators role, you would select:

Translate: Role

Name: Administrators

Area: Top Level Tabs



Top Level Tabs: Request Offerings

3. Use the From and To fields to select which languages to translate from and to.

4. Use the Autofill suggested existent translation check box to specify whether to display just the currently implemented translation strings or all implemented and non-implemented strings when you perform a search.

If you select this check box, the display area will show the implemented translation strings and all other translation strings in the database that are associated with the original-language term.

If you do not select this check box, just the currently implemented translation strings will be displayed.

5. Click Search. The translation strings matching the criteria from the preceding steps display.

6. Edit the displayed translation strings as necessary:

a. In the third column, click a string to open it for editing.

b. Type or select a new string in the field that opens (Figure 162).

Figure 162 Edit a translation string

c. Press Enter to record (but not save) the change. Changed strings that are not yet saved are marked for reference.

d. Change additional strings as necessary. To revert to the original set of strings prior to saving your changes, click Revert.

7. Click Save. The translation string changes that you made are implemented in the user interface.

8. Optionally export the translation strings to a spreadsheet as described in “Import or Export a Translation String Spreadsheet” on page 316.

Import or Export a Translation String Spreadsheet

Use the Import from Excel and Export to Excel buttons to manage strings in an Excel spreadsheet. This feature is useful if:

You have customized translation strings and need to back them up or restore them.

You need to have strings translated by an outside source.



CAUTION

When editing an exported translation string spreadsheet in Excel, edit the strings in the right-most column only. Making changes in other columns could result in database inconsistencies when you import the spreadsheet.

Also, do not add rows to the database. Adding rows could result in database inconsistencies when you import the spreadsheet.

Import from a Spreadsheet

1. Click Import from Excel.

2. In the resulting dialog, navigate to the spreadsheet, select it, and click Open. The translation tool imports the strings in the spreadsheet and displays import status when finished.

3. Click Search in the translation tool to update the list to show the imported translation strings.

Export to a Spreadsheet

1. Save any unsaved changes. You cannot export to a spreadsheet if there are unsaved changes.

2. Select check boxes in the Properties column to specify which strings to export.

3. Click Export to Excel.

Depending on your browser’s configuration, either a spreadsheet is created in the browser’s default download folder or you are prompted to specify a folder.

After the spreadsheet is exported, you can open it and modify the translations strings in the right-most column as necessary.

NOTE

To change the default export folder location, edit your browser’s default download folder setting.
