Performing bulk actions on multiple tickets

This topic describes how to work with tickets and knowledge articles in bulk.

To perform bulk actions on tickets and knowledge articles in Universal Client (UC)

In the universal client, you can perform actions on multiple tickets or knowledge articles at the same time. For example, in the Ticket Console, you can change the assignee, update the status, and follow multiple tickets in a single action. Select the check box next to a ticket or knowledge article, or, to select all of the table's contents, select the check box at the top left of the table.  

When you select one or more items from the consoles, the following bulk actions appear:

• Assign—Assign one or more of the selected items to an individual. If you are selecting this action for tickets, the tickets that you select must all be of the same type; for example, all work orders or all incidents.
• Share—Share one or more of the selected items with members of a support group.
• Follow—Choose one or more items for which you want to receive updates in the Dashboard.
• Flag or unflag—Flag or unflag one or more of the selected items. 

The following bulk actions are available on the Ticket Console only:

• Link—Link tickets together, or link tickets to other records. For this action, the tickets you select must all be of the same type; for example, all work orders or all incidents.
• Launch in new tab—Opens each selected ticket in a new tab. You must ensure that you have enabled pop-ups in the browser settings. If the pop-ups are blocked, instead of displaying all the selected tickets in new tab, the system displays only one ticket that you selected first, in a new tab.
• Update status—Change the status of one or more tickets. For this action, the tickets you select must all be of the same type; for example, all work orders or all incidents.

After you perform a bulk action, the selected items remain selected so you can perform additional actions. Clear the check box in front of each item individually, or deselect all of the selected items.

To reassign multiple incidents in bulk

As the service desk manager, you must ensure that critical incidents are assigned so that they can be addressed and resolved in a timely manner. In talking with one of the service desk agents in your group, you determined that the agent is overloaded, and you need to transfer some of his high-priority tickets to another agent. You log on to the Smart IT universal client and open the Ticket Console to make the assignee changes.

1. You clear any active filters and add the appropriate custom filters to show all open tickets assigned to the overloaded agent. 
2. You select three of the highest priority incidents and click the bulk Assign action. 
3. In the Assign panel that slides into view, you select your group, choose the new assignee, and click Assign.
4. Because you plan to review the service agent's workload regularly, you save the filter settings as a preset.

To share multiple knowledge articles in bulk

As a service desk manager, you are looking for ways to help one of your support groups quickly resolve incidents related to a piece of infrastructure that has recently been reassigned to them. You decide to see if your knowledge base contains any knowledge articles that address the more common issues that arise. You log on to the Smart IT universal client and open the Knowledge Console to see what you can find.

1. You clear any active filters so that all of the knowledge articles are available in the console table, and then click the Filter icon to add a new filter.
2. From the list of available filters, you select Keywords, type the specific search term (router time out), and then press Enter.
   The filter removes all of the knowledge articles from the table, except for five.
3. You open each of the remaining knowledge articles and visually scan their contents.
   You realize that three of the articles relate directly to the router that the support group is having issues with, so you decide to share these articles with the group.
4. You click the check box beside the three articles, and then click the Share icon.
5. From the Share panel that slides into view, you select the support group, ensure that the names of all group members are selected, and then click Share.
   An email window opens, showing the addresses of the support group members, which have been automatically added to the To field. A system-generated subject line has also been added, and the body of the email contains links to the knowledge articles.
6. You add a brief paragraph to the email note, providing some context for the links, and then click Send.

To update ticket status in bulk from the Ticket Console

On the Ticket Console, you can update the status of multiple tickets in bulk if the tickets meet the following requirements:

• The tickets must be of the same ticket type.
• The tickets could be in the similar status or different status.
• Change request tickets must be in the similar status and must follow the same process flow.

In the following scenarios the link to update the status (the Update Status link) is unavailable, and you cannot update the status of the selected tickets:

• Change requests or release tickets are undergoing review. For example, the tickets are in Request for Authorization or Request for Change status.
• All or one of the selected tickets is in Closed status.
• A task is in Staged status.

To update the status of tickets in bulk, perform the following steps:

1. On the Ticket Console, select the check box associated with the tickets that you want to update.
2. Click the Update Status link.
3. On the Update Status pane, select the status you want to set and specify the details.
4. Click Save.

To update values in the required fields in bulk

On the tickets that you have selected to perform bulk updates, if all the tickets have value in a specific field that is marked as required, then while updating the status in the Update Status pane that field is not marked as required. For example, on the Ticket Console you select 5 problem investigation tickets. In all these tickets you have already specified value in the Target Date which is a required field. When you update their status in the Update Status pane, the Target Date field is not marked as required.

In another scenario, if one of the selected ticket does not have value in a specific required field, while other tickets have the value, then in the Update Status pane, the field is marked as required.

Whether a field is marked as required or not, you can still update the value. When you change the value, the older value is overridden with the new value.

To flag/unflag multiple tickets in bulk

To flag/unflag multiple tickets in bulk:

1. In the Ticket Console, select the tickets that you want to flag or unflag.
2. Click the Flag/Unflag icon.
   A drop down menu appears with Flag and Unflag options.
3. Select Flag or Unflag. 
   
4. Mention an activity note for this action:
   
5. Click Save.
   The selected tickets are flagged or unflagged based on your selection.