Navigating the ticket console
The Ticket Console displays a list of tickets. By filtering and sorting the list, you can locate items that match your criteria, such as open incidents assigned to your group. From the Ticket Console, you can also take a specific action on several items at the same time (bulk actions), such as changing the status or assignee.
To view details of a ticket, click or tap the item in the list. When you click an item in the Ticket Console with the Shift key pressed, the details of that ticket is displayed on a new browser tab.
In the Ticket Console, the ticket priority is indicated by the following colors in the Priority column:
Ticket priority | Color in the Priority column |
|---|---|
Critical | Red |
High | Orange |
Medium | Yellow |
Low | Green |
To filter and sort items
By default, the consoles show the open tickets assigned to you (or managed by you). In the universal client and tablets, counts of items assigned to you (My Tickets), along with tickets in other categories, are shown above the lists of tickets. These counts apply to the tickets currently displayed, so the numbers can change when you apply a filter. Click or tap a count to show only the tickets you want to see in the table (for example, Critical Tickets).
You can sort a console table by tapping or clicking one of the column headings (tablets and universal client), or by selecting a sorting option from a menu (phones).
You can apply a minimum of two filters to a console table; for example, to show only certain types of tickets with a particular status. In the Ticket Console, when you filter by the type of ticket, such as Change or Incident, the rest of the available filters dynamically change so that only the filters appropriate for that ticket type (or type) are listed. For example, if you select Incident, the filters for Change Manager, Change Class, and so on are not displayed.
To search for specific tickets on the Console, you can select multiple filters and click Apply. The system displays the result according to the filters that you specified. When selecting filters if you select Cancel, the system cancels your selection and displays the result according to the filters that were previously applied. Note that you must select minimum two filters for the system to display the result. If you have set preset, and additionally specified filters, the system displays the result as per the preset and filters. To clear all the filters, click the Clear Filters option. The system now displays the result according to the default preset. The Apply button will remain disabled if you clear the filters and again select the same filters.
In the Ticket Console, the ticket statistics are not displayed by default. When you click the Show Ticket Statistics button, you can view the number of tickets assigned to you, critical tickets, tickets that need attention, new tickets, open tickets, and all tickets.
In the Ticket Console, if you click Security Tickets, the filter of Security Incident is applied. Additionally, the Security Incident option is selected under Filter > Incident Type. This option is displayed only if the administrator has configured the required settings. For more information, see Configuring-settings-for-managing-security-incidents.
You get an additional and quicker ticket search capability in the Ticket Console. After adding the filters in the Ticket Console, you can narrow down the search result further by entering a keyword in a search box. The keyword is highlighted in the search result and this is not case sensitive. If your search keyword contains wildcard, then the keyword is not highlighted in the search result. The keyword search is done on the Summary, Description, and Display ID columns. This quick text search cannot be saved as a Preset. Wildcard is allowed only after you enter three or more characters. You can enter a minimum of 3 and a maximum of 100 characters in the search box. The search result is displayed based on the database collation level.
To work with columns in Ticket Console
In the universal client, you can select columns to show in a console, such as the Assignee or Status columns. Click the menu that appears below the ticket counts to display the Change and Order Columns panel.
For example, from Available Columns in the Ticket Console, select Columns that Apply to All Tickets, or choose one or more ticket types (such as Change or Incident) to show the available columns for that ticket type. Add columns by double-clicking each column name, or by dragging columns from Available Columns to Visible Columns. Arrange the order in Visible Columns by dragging.
Apply a filter on custom column only if that custom column is added in the visible column list. In edit preset blade, if user removes a custom column from the visible column list then all the filters which were already applied on that custom column will be removed after saving the preset.
To create preset filters
The Ticket Console includes pre-defined set of filters, called a preset. When you choose a preset from the list, the filters are applied to the console. (See number 2 in the following figure.) The Ticket Console has the following out-of-the-box presets:
- My Security Tickets
- Security filter includes All Incident type as Security & Assigned Group: My Support Groups.
- If you select this option, the Security Incident option is selected under Filter > Incident Type. Additionally, the Security Tickets option on the console displays the number of security tickets in the Ticket Console.
- When you open any security ticket, the
icon is displayed. This icon distinguishes the security tickets from regular tickets.
- My Assigned Tickets (default)
- Applies the All Open and Assignee:Me filters to the console.
- My Groups Assigned Tickets
- Applies the All Open and Assigned Group:My Support Groups filters to the console.
From the universal client, you can also create custom presets. Custom presets allow you to save different filter selections, visible columns, or both, depending on the different perspectives you need for each of your roles in the organization. For example, if you are both a change approver and a service desk manager, you can save different preset perspectives for each role, and then quickly toggle between them. (See numbers 1 and 2 in the following figure.) You can delete presets that you created that are no longer needed by hovering the mouse over the name and clicking the x.
From the universal client, you can choose any preset as your default. In addition, you can now edit any of your custom presets. (See number 2 in the following figure.) Your default preset is displayed every time you log in from the universal client or from your mobile device. After you edit a preset or change the default, your changes are displayed immediately in the universal client. For mobile clients, you must log in again to see the updates.
Also in the universal client, you can click Refresh to see the latest list of results based on your current filters and column configurations. (See number 3 in the following figure.)
To display custom status reasons in the Ticket Console
On UC, the custom status reason specified for ticket status is displayed in the Ticket Console under the Status Reason column. The custom status reason only appears if the administrator has added the custom status reason to all the corresponding ticket forms in . In the following table, forms that must be updated are listed as per ticket types:
Ticket type | Read form | Create form | Master console form | Status reason form |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Incident | HPD:Help Desk | HPD:IncidentInterface_Create | SMT:UnionSmartIT_TicketConsole | SYS:Status Reason Menu Items |
Work order | WOI:WorkOrder | WOI:WorkOrderInterface_Create | ||
Problem Investigation | PBM:Problem Investigation | NA | ||
Known Error | PBM:Known Error | NA | ||
Change request | CHG:Infrastructure Change | CHG:ChangeInterface_Create | ||
Task | TMS:Task | TMS:SummaryData |
Example
For incident tickets, you can add the Custom Reason 1 (ID - 33000) to the following forms:
- HPD:Help Desk form - Add Status_Reason_Hidden to any view panel for example, the Category panel, and then add Custom Reason 1 (ID - 33000) to the Status_Reason_Hidden field.
- HPD:IncidentInterface_Create form - Add Custom Reason 1 (ID - 33000) to the Status Reason field.
- INT:HPDSLM:HelpDesk_SLM_Join_Outer to show this custom reason in .
- SMT:UnionSmartIT_TicketConsole form - Add Custom Reason 1 (ID - 33000) to the ConsolidatedStatusReason field.
- Rebuild the View of , by performing Build/Rebuild database Union Structure from the SHR:Union_ConfigurationConsole form.
- clear the server cache to reflect the changes.
- Add the Status Reason Column in the Ticket Console.
If the same custom status reason is used across multiple ticket types, their ID must be same across those ticket types. In other words, no two ticket types should have two different custom status reasons having same ID, because as part of consolidation on the Ticket Console, the system cannot distinguish them without having different IDs.
Status reasons with same ID in multiple ticket types are considered as a consolidated value that is shown on the Ticket Console across those multiple ticket types. The ID must not be used for another status reason of any other ticket type. To add same custom status reason to multiple ticket types, use the same ID. For example, in classic mid-tier interface, the Admin adds Custom Status Reason 1 with the ID - 33000 to incident, work order, and change request ticket. In , when a service desk agent specifies Custom Status Reason 1 for incident, work order, and change request tickets, on the Ticket Console, Custom Status Reason 1 can be seen under the Status Reason column. In another instance, Admin adds Custom Status Reason 2 with the ID - 34000 to incident ticket type. When this custom status reason is selected for an incident, it is also seen under the Status Reason column.
To view the ticket activity and updates to the tickets
The Activity tab displays the events or activities related to the ticket. Activity feeds are the record of updates made to any ticket, asset, or knowledge article in . The activity feed displays the type of activity that was performed, the name of the user who made the update, and the time when the update is done. Every ticket and resource has its own activity feed. You can access activity feeds on the Universal Client (UC), Apple iOS, and Google Android devices.
Activity feeds provide a quick view of all that has been done to tickets and resources. You can track how the ticket progressed, and also add your notes to it. For more information, see Activity feed overview.
The Updates feed gives you a quick view of the events that have happened to the tickets that you work on or follow, especially when other users have done any updates. Similarly, the Updates feed shows updates done on articles, assets, and help you keep track of SLAs. The Updates feed also shows broadcasts and outages that might impact your work. For more information, see Updates feed overview.
Instructions for classic interfaces
View instructions for Mid Tier
Incident Management consoles overview
The following consoles provide access to all or a part of
:
- Requester console
- Overview console
console
The following illustration shows how these consoles integrate with
and other applications.
Requester console
From the Requester console, IT users can submit incident requests directly to
. The integration with the Requester console:
- Uses the Requester console to define incident requests.
- Updates incident request information using the Work Info record.
- Includes an interface from the incident request to the request that is stored in the Requester console.
- Updates the status of the request to the appropriate status, and makes Work Info entries visible.
Overview console
Using the Overview console, service desk workers who fulfill many different roles can view incident requests that are assigned to them through
, and additional work assignments that come to them through other applications with which
integrates:
- :
console
The
console is the main console for
. It provides service desk workers with a single point from which they can generate incident requests, monitor the progress of incident requests as they move through their lifecycle, and record work that was performed while solving the incident request.
integrates with (see Home) . (For information about this integration, see Creating requests from fulfillment applications .) When is installed, the Request Entry console replaces the Requester Console. See Configuring incident rules for information about configuring
to generate a service request every time that an incident request is created.
Users can view service request details from the Request Entry console in . You can also view service request details from the Incident Management Console by choosing Functions > View REQ<number>. For more information, see Viewing details of a service request associated with a work order .
uses the Cost module to track costs associated with incidents. The integration uses the common cost creation dialog box that the Cost module provides. Fields on the Incident Request form integrate with Cost module forms to show cost data related to an incident.
Functional areas of the
console
Functional area | Purpose |
|---|---|
console header | |
Plus sign | Adds a new record. |
Magnifying glass | Opens the Search feature. |
Breadcrumb bar | Contains links to related records that you opened from the current incident request. For more information about the Breadcrumb bar, see Managing your work by using Ticket Console from the documentation. |
Breadcrumb navigation controls |
|
Refresh | Updates the data in the tables. |
Search | Used with to let you search across multiple forms for records that match a key term. For more information about using this search, see Searching for tickets, assets, resources, and people in BMC Helix ITSM from the documentation. |
| The Show, Filter By, and By Role fields combine to control which incident request records appear in the Incidents table.
|
Navigation pane | |
View Broadcast or New Broadcast | Opens the broadcast dialog box where you can view, create, modify, and delete broadcasts. When there are unread broadcast messages, this area displays the message New Broadcast, along with new messages. When there are new broadcast messages, the area also turns red. If you open the console with no new broadcast messages, but the View Broadcast link is red, open the Application Preferences dialog box and make sure that a Console View preference has been selected. For information about how to view and select the Console View preference, see Selecting your application preferences. |
Counts | Contains incident request metrics. The numbers relate to the selection in the Show field. For example, if the Show field contains Submitted by me, the metrics that appear in this area show the open, unassigned, unacknowledged, and breached incidents that were submitted by you. The count categories are:
Important:
|
Functions | Use the following links in this area to perform the actions described:
|
Applications | Contains links to other BMC applications, consoles, and modules. The contents of this area depend on what other applications and so on are installed. Click the double-greater-than (>>) sign to open or close this panel. |
Incidents table | Lists the incident request records according to the company selected in the Show field and the Filter By field. To view the incident record in detail, double-click the incident request in the Incidents table. Fields on the form display the incident status and other information related to the incident. System administrators can set permission in the Applications Permission Model to view the incident request. For more information, see Applying system settings. |
Create | Generates a new incident request record. |
Create for Company (for Hub and Spoke installations) | Generates a new incident request record after asking you to identify the company you are creating the record for. |
View | Shows the incident request record that is selected in the Incidents table. |
Prints the selected record in the Watch List and the Incidents table. | |
Process Overview | Opens a high-level diagram of the Incident Management process. |
Service Context | Opens the Service Context Summary view for the record selected in the console table. The Service Context button is available only when a business service CI is associated with the incident record. If a business service CI is associated with the incident record, the CI name appears in the Service column of the Incident table. For more information about Service Context, see Enabling and configuring Service Context for BMC Helix ITSM applications. |
Quick Actions | Select an action from the menu. You can perform the following quick actions:
|
Preferences | Click Preferences to open a menu from which you can add or remove columns from the table, set the rate at which the application refreshes the table contents, or restore the default table preferences. |
Detail and Tasks | Details — When selected, contains detailed information about the record selected in the Incidents table. To see Incident Details when the Tasks table is showing, click Show Details. The Create, View, and Report icons relate to the work information notes that appear in the table. Tasks — When selected, lets you view tasks associated with the incident request record selected in the Incidents table. To see Tasks when Details is showing, click Show Tasks. |
Problem Management consoles overview
The following consoles provide access to all or a part of
:
console
- Overview console
The
console is the main console for the application. It provides problem coordinators and specialists with a single point from which they can create known error entries. It also provides a place from which they can monitor the progress of problem investigations as the investigation moves through its lifecycle, and record work that was performed during the investigation.
Using the Overview console, specialists can view problem investigations that were assigned to them through the
application. The specialist role is fulfilled by all IT employees and long-term contractors, except Service Desk Analysts and IT Operators. Specialists can also view work that was assigned to them through the other applications with which
integrates:
- :
The following table describes the functional areas of the
console.
console functional areas
Functional area | Purpose |
|---|---|
console header | |
Plus sign | Adds a new record. |
Magnifying glass | Opens the Search feature. |
Breadcrumb bar | A navigation aid that contains links to related records that you opened from the current problem investigation. For more information about the Breadcrumb bar, see Managing your work by using Ticket Console in the documentation. |
Breadcrumb navigation controls |
|
Refresh | Updates the data in the tables. |
Search | If you have installed, the Global search feature lets you search across multiple forms for records that match a key term. For more information about this feature, see Searching for tickets, assets, resources, and people in BMC Helix ITSM in the documentation. |
Show | The Show, Filter By, and By Role fields combine to control which problem investigation records appear in the Problem table.
|
Navigation pane | |
View Broadcast, or New Broadcast | Click this link to open the broadcast dialog box, from where you can view, create, modify, and delete broadcasts. When there are unread broadcast messages, this area displays a New Broadcast message along with the number of new messages. When there are new broadcast messages, the area also turns red. For more information about broadcasting messages, see Broadcasting-messages-to-users. If you open the console with no new broadcast messages, but the View Broadcast link is red, open the Application Preferences dialog box and make sure that a Console View preference has been selected. For information about how to view and select Console View preferences, see Selecting your application preferences. |
Counts | This area shows the number of open, unassigned, and unacknowledged problem investigations and the number of open known errors according to the selection in the Show field. The count categories are:
|
Functions | Use the links in this area to do the following actions:
|
Applications | Contains links to other BMC applications, consoles, and modules. The contents of this area depend on what other applications are installed. Click the double greater-than sign (>>) to open or close this panel. |
Problems table | Displays high-level details about the records that match the criteria specified in the Company and Assigned To fields, or that were found by the most recently completed search. |
Create | Opens a dialog box from which you can create a problem investigation and known error record. |
Create for Company | Opens a selection list from which you select the company you are creating the record for. You then select to create a problem investigation and known error record. |
View | Opens the problem investigation and known error record selected in the Problems table. |
Prints the details of the problem investigation and known error record selected in the Problems table. | |
Process overview | Opens a high-level diagram of the problem management process. |
Service Context | Opens the Service Context Summary view for the record selected in the console table. The Service Context button is available only when a business service CI is associated with the problem investigation. (The CI name appears in the Service column of the Problems table.) For more information about Service Context, see Viewing CI and service relationships in the Service Context. |
Preferences | Opens a menu from which you can add or remove columns from the table, set the rate at which the application refreshes the table contents, and restore the default table preferences. |
Details and Tasks | Details—When selected, contains detailed information about the record selected in the Problems table. To see Details when the Tasks table is showing, click Show Details. The Create, View, and Report icons relate to work information notes. You can sort the table by clicking any of the column headings, except Notes. The table does not sort on the Notes column. Tasks—When selected, displays tasks associated with the record that is selected in the Problems table. To see Tasks when Details is showing, click Show Tasks. |
To manage work information entries
By using work information entries, you can keep notes about the work that you perform on the related record or pass information to colleagues also working on the record. For example, you might want to add a note that a particular CI was deployed, and include the date. You can add work information records directly from the console table, or by opening the record form.
You can view multiple Work Info entries at the same time by clicking the History icon. When you click this icon, the system displays a pop-up window with the Notes field entries arranged with the most recent entry at the top (a date and timestamp is also visible with each entry).
If you have Incident Viewer or Problem Viewer permissions, you can add and modify Work Info entries; however, you cannot create or modify incident requests, problem investigations, or known errors.
To add work information in a record
- From the console table, open the incident request, problem investigation, or known error.
- To add new work information, under the Add Work Info details section on the Work Detail tab, enter the following information:
- Notes—Enter the details of your work information record.
- Attachment—Click
to add attachments related to the work information. You can add up to three files.
- Click More Details to select the work information type and add more attachments as needed.
From the Work Info Type list, select the type of work information to add.
- In the Attachment fields, add any additional attachments required for the work information. You can add up to three files.
Select whether to lock the work log.
If you select Yes, you cannot modify the work log after you save it.
- From the View Access list, specify the level of access to the work entry:
- Select Internal if you want only users with application permissions for
or
to see the entry.
Select Public if you want everyone with access to the system to see the entry, including requesters.
The information in this note applies to environments that also run .
When a work note is created in an incident that originated from the console and is marked as Public, the work note also appears in the request's activity log in the Request Entry console of . If the work note is updated, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is placed in a new entry in the request's activity log.The View Access setting is a shared component in . You can change the view access level for Problem Investigation and Known Error records to Public. However, this does not have any effect.
If the work note in the incident request is updated and the Assignee marks it as Internal, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is not displayed.
- Select Internal if you want only users with application permissions for
- Click Add.
The Save operation adds your entry to the work history.
To modify work information record
- Open the
console.
- Select an incident.
- From the Details and Task pane, select the work information record that you want to modify and click View.
- In the Incident Work Info window:
- Update the required fields.
- To remove an attachment, click the delete icon (
) for that attachment. - Click Save.
- To view a report of selected activities that you performed against this record, select the records from the work info table and click report
.- Adding or modifying the work information of a ticket or a work order does not update the last modified date of a ticket or a work order for the following applications:
- When you select a value for the Impact or Urgency fields and it results in a change in the value of the Priority field, the system automatically adds a new entry under the Work Detail tab when you save the information.
- Adding or modifying the work information of a ticket or a work order does not update the last modified date of a ticket or a work order for the following applications:
To add work information entries from the console table
- From the console, select the record to which you need to add a work information entry.
- At the bottom of the console, open the Detail area by clicking Show Detail.
- Click Create.
- Enter the work information details in the Work Info dialog box.
- To add an attachment to the record, right-click in the attachment table and select Add from the menu that appears.
Select whether to lock the work log.
If you select Yes, you cannot modify the work log after you save it.
- Choose the type of view access:
- Internal—Select this access if you do not want the customer to see the work information entry on the Requester console or the console.
- Public—Select this access if you want the customer to see the work information entry.
When a work note is created in a request that originated from the console and is marked as Public, the work note also appears in the request's activity log in the Request Entry console of . If the work note is updated, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is placed in a new entry in the request's activity log. If the work note is updated and the Assignee marks it as Internal, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is not displayed.
- Click Save.
- To see a report of selected work information entries, select one or more entries, and click Report.
To modify a work information entry from the console
If the work information entry is not locked, you can modify any field on it.
- From the Incident or Problem console, select the incident request or problem investigation record.
- At the bottom of the console, click Show Detail to open the Detail area.
- From the list of work information entries, select the work information record that you want to update.
- Click View.
Make the required modification as described in the following table:
Modification
Action
To update the note
Click inside the Notes field and type the changes.
To add an attachment
Right-click in the attachment table and select Add from the menu that appears, and then follow the onscreen instructions.
Attachments to work information entries created in are not transferred with information sent to a backend application, such as an incident, a change request, or a work order. You can access the attachments only from the service request.To lock the entry
From the Locked list, select Yes. If you select Yes, the work information entry cannot be modified after you save it.
To change the view access level
From the View Access list, select Internal or Public.
Select Internal if you want only users with application permissions for
or
to see the entry.
Select Public if you want everyone with access to the system to see the entry, including requesters.
In environments that also run , when a work note with the Public access level is created in an incident that originated with the console, the work note also appears in the request's activity log in the Request Entry console of . If the work note is updated, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is placed in a new entry in the request's activity log.
The View Access setting is a shared component in . You can change the view access level for Problem Investigation and Known Error records to Public. However, this does not have any effect.
If the work note is updated and the Assignee marks it as Internal, the original work note remains in the request's activity log, but the updated information is not displayed.
- Click Save.
If you save the incident or problem investigation record without making any changes to the work information record, the values in the Modified Date and Last Modified by fields of the work information record are updated.
To modify a work information entry from an open ticket
- Open the incident request or problem investigation record.
- On the Work Details tab, double-click the work information entry that you want to update.
The Notes field updates to contain the work info text and the More Details area expands to reveal the hidden fields. - Make the required changes.
If you need to remove an attachment, click the Eraser icon beside the associated Attachment field. - Click Save.
If you save the incident or problem investigation record without making any changes to the work information record, the values in Modified Date and Last Modified by fields of the work information record are updated.