Configuring rules for automated impact analysis of change requests

As a change administrator, create automation rules to auto-initiate impact analysis in change requests based on certain actions. Rule-based automated impact analysis identifies the impact of change requests early, helping to reduce the downtime for the users. Because you do not have to manually run the impact analysis and perform impact association for multiple CIs, this feature saves your time and increases efficiency.
The automated impact analysis rule runs on change requests that have associated CIs. Automated impact analysis runs each time a change request transitions to a status configured in the rule, even after multiple status resets. 
When you transition a change request to a status defined in the rule, BMC Helix ITSM performs the following actions:

• Initiates automated impact analysis
• Blocks further status transitions while the automated impact analysis is in progress
• Displays the list of impacted configuration items(CI) or associates the CIs with the change requests
• Sets the impact level of the change request
• Updates the activity note
• Updates the status of the change request if either All impacted services or All impacted CIs and services is selected in the Auto-relate CIs post-impact analysis field of the automation rule.
   

BMC Helix ITSM updates the impact value of a change request only if the calculated impact value is higher than the existing one.
​​​​​​For example, you mark the impact of a change request as Minor. After the automated impact analysis, BMC Helix ITSM calculated the impact value as Moderate. As Moderate is higher than Minor, the change request's impact value is set to Moderate. However, change requests created from the backend that meet the automated impact analysis rule criteria are set with the previous status.
BMC Helix ITSM updates the change request's impact value. If the analysis affects priority, it is also updated.

You can track the results of the automated impact analysis in the Activity note and the banner of the change requests. While an automated impact analysis is running, a banner appears on the change request. Click Show more on the banner to track the progress of the automated impact analysis.

To access the automation rules, in Innovation Studio, in ITSM Application, click Settings, and then click Change Management, and then click Impact Analysis Rules. The automation rules are displayed in the following image:

You can enable additional columns from the Visible columns filter. Click a rule to view its configuration
Click Filter to narrow your search for finding rules based on column names.

Viewing the service classes

You can use service classes to understand the components of a business service for impact analysis and management. You can add the service classes managed by your organization to BMC Helix ITSM and run the impact analysis exclusively on these service classes. 

To access the service classes, in Innovation Studio, in ITSM Application, click Settings, and then click Change Management, and then click Service Class Configuration. The service classes are displayed in the following image:

You can enable additional columns from the Visible columns filter. Click a rule to view its configuration
Click Filter to narrow your search for finding rules based on column names.

Before you begin

• You must have the Change Config permission to create rules for automated impact analysis.
• Ensure that you have associated CIs with the change request before an automated impact analysis is performed.

Points to consider for creating an automated rule

• Multiple rules with the same name cannot exist within a company; each rule must have a unique name.
• Multiple rules cannot share the same trigger status and precedence within a company.
• In PWA, new change requests are set to the Draft status by default. However, while creating a change request in Mid Tier, you can set it to the Pending, Canceled, Request for authorization, or Draft status.
• If an automated impact analysis rule matches a specific status, you cannot create a change request directly from Mid Tier in that status. Instead, create the request in the previous status. Then, update it to the rule-configured status for the impact analysis to run automatically.
• When both an automated impact analysis rule and an approval mapping are configured for the same status, BMC Helix ITSM first runs the impact analysis. After completion, it applies the approval mapping, incorporating the analysis details.

To create an automation rule for impact analysis

1. In Innovation Studio, in ITSM Application, click Settings, and then click Change Management, and then click Impact Analysis Rules.
   
2. Click + Rule.
   The Create rule for impact analysis form is displayed.
   
3. Enter the general details of the rule:
   1. Enter a unique name of the rule.
   2. From the Company list, select the location company to which the automation rule applies.
      Note: If you select - Global - from the Company list, you cannot assign values to the following fields in the Build expression window of Qualification:
      • Region
      • Site
      • Sitegroup
   3. From the Rule status list, select a value to enable or disable the rule.
   4. In Trigger status, select the status of the change request.
      When you transition a change request to this status, BMC Helix ITSM initiates the impact analysis.
      If an automated impact analysis rule is configured for the Scheduled for Approval status, the analysis runs when a change request is updated to that status. During the analysis, the Impact field in the change request cannot be modified. However, after the analysis, BMC Helix ITSM updates the Impact field based on the configured rule.
   5. Assign a Precedence value to the rule.
      A higher number implies a higher precedence. When multiple rules of the same trigger status exist for the same company, BMC Helix ITSM runs the rule with the higher precedence value. 
4. In Qualification, click Build expression.
   Note: Build expression is enabled only after you select a Company.
   BMC Helix ITSM uses the qualification criteria to select the relevant change requests to perform impact analysis.
   1. Enter an expression for the criteria by using Fields, Operators and Value.
      For example, 'Class' = "Normal" AND 'Priority' = "High"
   2. Click Apply.
      Note:
      • Build expression is enabled only after you select a Company.
      • The Apply button is not enabled if your expression contains syntax errors.
      • If you select - Global - from the Company list, you cannot assign values to the following fields in the Build expression window of Qualification:
        • Region
        • Site
        • Sitegroup
5. Define the actions after the impact analysis is complete:
   1. Select a value from the Auto-relate CIs post impact analysis list:

      Value	Description
      No	Displays the list of the impacted CIs after the impact analysis without performing any associations. If you select this value, the Association options and Impact calculation options fields are disabled, and BMC Helix ITSM does not update the status of the change request.
      All impacted services	Calculates the impact only on the configured services under the service class configuration. Based on the impact analysis results, BMC Helix ITSM associates those impacted services with the change request. No other services or CIs are considered or associated. After the Automated impact analysis is complete, BMC Helix ITSM updates the status of the change request. View example The configured service class is Business service. However, based on the automated impact analysis, if the impacted services are Business service, Hardware service, and Software service, BMC Helix ITSM will associate only the CIs relevant to Business service. For more details about services, see Viewing service class.
      All impacted CIs and services	Based on the automatic impact analysis, all impacted configuration items and services are associated with the change request. After the Automated impact analysis is complete, BMC Helix ITSM updates the status of the change request.

   2. Select a value from the Association options list:

      Value	Description
      Additive	After performing the impact analysis, BMC Helix ITSM adds new impact associations to the change request without deleting the existing impact associations. BMC Helix ITSM does not add an impact association if it already exists.
      Delete existing and create new	BMC Helix ITSM deletes the existing impact associations in a change request, and creates new associations based on the automatic impact analysis.

   3. Select a value from the Impact calculation options list:

      Value	Description
      Based on service CI impact value	BMC Helix ITSM evaluates the highest impact value of all the services impacted by the change request. If this value exceeds the existing impact value, BMC Helix ITSM updates the impact value in the change request. View example A change request's existing impact value is "Minor". BMC Helix ITSM performed the impact analysis and found 10 services impacted by it. The highest impact value amongst the 10 CIs is found to be "Moderate". As the evaluated impact value exceeds the existing value, BMC Helix ITSM updates the change request with "Moderate" impact.
      Based on impacted CI count	When you select this value, you must associate a range (Minimum value and Maximum value) of the number of impacted CIs with impact levels. BMC Helix ITSM considers the range of the number of impacted CIs to evaluate the impact value. However, BMC Helix ITSM updates the impact value only if it is higher than the existing impact value of the change request.  Minimum CI count of the Minor impact level is disabled. The default value is 0 for the Minor impact level. Minimum CI count for the next impact level row automatically derives its value from the previous row's Maximum CI count value. Maximum CI count of the Extensive impact level is disabled. It does not have a default value. The Maximum CI count value must be greater than the Minimum CI count value. View example of impact calculation You define "Minor" impact with a Minimum value of 0 and a Maximum value of 10. You define "Moderate" impact with a Minimum value of 11 and a Maximum value of 20. The change request's existing impact value is "Minor." BMC Helix ITSM performed an impact analysis and found 12 impacted CIs. It refers to the association table and finds the impact level defined for 12 impacted CIs. Based on the value range you defined, 12 impacted CIs are defined under "Moderate" impact, which exceeds the existing impact value. Therefore, BMC Helix ITSM assigns "Moderate" impact value to the change request.
      Custom process	Select this value to calculate the impact based on a custom logic that is configured in BMC Helix Innovation Studio. Select the Process name that is configured in BMC Helix Innovation Studio. Refer to the Sample Change Impact Calculation Process value to create a custom process. You can create a process in BMC Helix Innovation Studio to define a logic for impact calculation. To know more about processes, see Defining the application business logic through processes.

       

6. Click Save.
   After the impact analysis is completed, based on the configured impact calculation options, BMC Helix ITSM performs the CI associations, updates the status of the change request, and adds an activity note.
   The newly created automation rule is added to the Rule-Based Configuration page.
   If the automated impact analysis fails, BMC Helix ITSM adds an Activity note. In such cases, we recommend running the analysis manually.
7. (Optional) To disable or enable a rule, select the rule and click Enable or Disable.
   If you select multiple rules with different statuses, you cannot enable or disable them at once.
8. (Optional) To delete an automation rule, select the rule that you want to delete and click Delete.
9. (Optional) To export rules, select the rules that you want to export and perform one of the following actions:
   • Click Export > Export all rows to export all rules in the table.
   • Click Export > Export selected row to export the selected rules.

View the supported fields for creating a qualification

• Change Reason
• Class
• Operational Categorization Tier 1
• Operational Categorization Tier 2
• Operational Categorization Tier 3
• Priority
• Product Categorization Tier 1
• Product Categorization Tier 2
• Product Categorization Tier 3
• Product Name
• Region
• Risk Level
• Site
• Site group

To add service class configuration

1. In Innovation Studio, in ITSM Application, click Settings, and then click Change Management, and then click Service Class Configuration.
   
2. Click + Service class.
   
3. From the Class name list, select the class you want to add, on which the impact analysis will be run.
   You cannot create two service classes with an identical name.
4. Click Save.
   The newly added service class is listed in the Enabled status.
5. (Optional) To enable or disable a service class, select the service class and click Enable or Disable.
6. (Optional) To delete a service class, select a service class, and click Delete.
   You cannot delete or disable the BMC_BusinessService service class from the table.
7. (Optional) To export a service class, select the service classes that you want to export and perform one of the actions:
   • Click Export > Export all rows to export all rules in the table.
   • Click Export > Export selected row to export the selected rules.