Spiceworks Helpdesk

[APMerry]

I'm trying to setup a small primary with some kind of ticketing system and specifically want one that's not cloud based. I've setup Spiceworks Helpdesk using their Ubuntu image, but I'm struggling to get emails to pull through from office365. I believe the issue is with filtering. I've set the IP as unauthenticated in smoothwall, updates are able to be downloaded but I can't ping any website.

 

I've done a tone of googling but nothing I've tried has worked. Has anyone used the same setup of Spiceworks HD and Smoothwall and got emails to pull through from Office365? I'm a Linux newbie, but I've managed to upgrade it to 20.04.4 and the site loads okay internally. I'm stuck at the last hurdle.

 

Any advice would be much appreciated.

[georgeescott]

Why no cloud helpdesk? Makes it easy for users to access from anywhere, less setup/maintenance for you and Spiceworks Cloud is completely free.

 

I'm struggling to get emails to pull through from office365

What do you mean by "pull through"? Emails sent from Spiceworks helpdesk to your mailbox aren't received, or emails from a user to Spiceworks aren't logged as a ticket?

[APMerry]

Why no cloud helpdesk? Makes it easy for users to access from anywhere, less setup/maintenance for you and Spiceworks Cloud is completely free.

 

 

What do you mean by "pull through"? Emails sent from Spiceworks helpdesk to your mailbox aren't received, or emails from a user to Spiceworks aren't logged as a ticket?

 

I've been asked to keep it local. I mean I've set an email address as the incoming mail address, but mails sent to that address aren't coming in as tickets.

[pete]

Ask "you're using Office 365, why is it a problem that the ticketing system is in the cloud too?"

 

--

 

I know that doesn't solve what you've been asked to do, but you're creating unnecessary technical debt when there are better options.

[techy32]

All the way cloud helpdesk. Make your life easier.

[paulkerton]

I've been asked to keep it local.

Again, why?

[APMerry]

Again, why?

 

I think mainly because of where the data stored on the helpdesk is stored.

[jmak]

At the risk of being unhelpful, if most of the tickets are going to be raised over O365 email, the helpdesk information will already be in the cloud.

[Roberto]

I'm trying to setup a small primary with some kind of ticketing system and specifically want one that's not cloud based. I've setup Spiceworks Helpdesk using their Ubuntu image, but I'm struggling to get emails to pull through from office365.

 

... is this one of those glitches in the matrix that 1990s Keanu Reeves movies warned me about

[georgeescott]

I think mainly because of where the data stored on the helpdesk is stored.

 

They’re fully GDPR compliant: https://community.spiceworks.com/gdpr-faq.

 

What concern is there about where the data is stored?

[FN-GM]

Again, why?

 

I’m not trying to be funny but this isn’t what the OP is asking assistance with.

[foofighterjim]

One possible issue could be if this version of Spiceworks supports modern auth and if modern auth is enabled on your O365 tenancy. I know the remaining Windows version of Spiceworks doesn’t support modern auth and is no longer being developed, in addition to this, MS will be discontinuing legacy auth in October so trying to work around this is not worth the effort.

[paulkerton]

I’m not trying to be funny but this isn’t what the OP is asking assistance with.

Not trying, but still achieving.

 

The point is that the IT team are clearly being given orders, rather than also being a critical friend. If managment want to be King Canute when it comes to technology, then experts should point out the futility of that. They should also challenge the false thinking that a tiny little primary school server probably stuck in a cupboard in a classroom is any safer than massive infrastructure in the cloud maintained by experts who are running it 24/7.

 

Who has the better cyber security? Google Cloud/AWS/Azure or St Winnifreds in the Field who have a roll of 80?

 

Also, now Spiceworks has gone cloud and remained free, how long are we expecting the local hosted version to remain available?

Edited August 6, 2022 by paulkerton

[FN-GM]

Not trying, but still achieving.

 

The point is that the IT team are clearly being given orders, rather than also being a critical friend. If managment want to be King Canute when it comes to technology, then experts should point out the futility of that. They should also challenge the false thinking that a tiny little primary school server probably stuck in a cupboard in a classroom is any safer than massive infrastructure in the cloud maintained by experts who are running it 24/7.

 

Who has the better cyber security? Google Cloud/AWS/Azure or St Winnifreds in the Field who have a roll of 80?

 

Also, now Spiceworks has gone cloud and remained free, how long are we expecting the local hosted version to remain available?

 

That isn’t up to us to push that agenda. You don’t know what is going on in the background. The OP is asking a technical question. Nothing else.

[APMerry]

They’re fully GDPR compliant: https://community.spiceworks.com/gdpr-faq.

 

What concern is there about where the data is stored?

 

Thanks, didn't realise this.

[gaz350b]

As someone has already said Spice works doesn’t work with modern auth.

On-site is also end of life. Their cloud version doesn’t cut it imo.

 

I would move to something that does support modern auth. We migrated to fresh desk for this very reason (from spice works).

[computer_expert]

As someone has already said Spice works doesn’t work with modern auth.

On-site is also end of life. Their cloud version doesn’t cut it imo.

 

I would move to something that does support modern auth. We migrated to fresh desk for this very reason (from spice works).

 

I've been forced to use spiceworks cloud after doing a POC of freshdesk (and finding freshdesk better in almost every way). I can't get my head around an IT company that says the work on MFA isn't imminent as of 2 months ago

 

Either way, this won't help the OP.

 

@APMerry, what do the log files in /var/log/tron/sidekiq/current say after you try sending an email from spiceworks? you may need to search those files for smtp and look at the lines before/after.

 

You'd also have to check to see if the mail daemon bits on the spiceworks image can speak with tls settings that office 365 requires(/demands) as I can only find references to end of life versions of ubuntu and help desk server.

[APMerry]

Thanks for all the responses. The comments about moving to a cloud solution are totally right, but unhelpful. Thanks for the people trying to help, I did ended up convincing them to use freshdesk.

 

Cheers.

[paulkerton]

The comments about moving to a cloud solution are totally right, but unhelpful.

It's unhelpful pointing out that you should be arguing, entirely reasonably that keeping a solution on-site is asinine in 2022, and yet you ended up with a cloud solution... Sounds helpful to me...

[gaz350b]

Reason we are saying don’t use the on-site version. It’s not being developed, doesn’t support office 365 modern auth and support will eventually be fully pulled.

 

The cloud version is a total rewrite and we found it rubbish and I can’t even remember if it supported modern auth.

 

So basically all those saying use the on-site version and get it working are suggesting to use something that is a potential security issue going forward especially as you would need to turn on legacy authentication (insecure) to get the on-site version working.

 

Spice works has a weird authentication method to login. Not even sure if it’s local even in the local version! What if they disable this… you now have to migrate to another help desk.don’t do work twice when their are better alternatives out there now.

[foofighterjim]

.The cloud version is a total rewrite and we found it rubbish and I can’t even remember if it supported modern auth.

 

It doesn’t, their workaround is to use their mail server, which means users emailing jobs to an external address. This is why we moved to a competitor that does support modern auth.

[Wubbalubbadub]

That isn’t up to us to push that agenda. You don’t know what is going on in the background. The OP is asking a technical question. Nothing else.

Also nothing wrong with a bit of free speech.. this is a public forum... No harm in people wanting to ask for a bit more background to a problem or asking why a more popular solution doesnt work for them.

 

Microsoft would have you copying and pasting via some weird menu option... We would say Ctrl C and Ctrl V.. same outcome.. just a more effective route..

 

Sometimes people don't know other options exist!

In this case.. them posts pushing cloud gave the OP a bit more confidence and ammunition to convince the school to go cloud.. that's exactly what this forum is about if you ask me!

[FN-GM]

Also nothing wrong with a bit of free speech.. this is a public forum... No harm in people wanting to ask for a bit more background to a problem or asking why a more popular solution doesnt work for them.

 

Microsoft would have you copying and pasting via some weird menu option... We would say Ctrl C and Ctrl V.. same outcome.. just a more effective route..

 

Sometimes people don't know other options exist!

In this case.. them posts pushing cloud gave the OP a bit more confidence and ammunition to convince the school to go cloud.. that's exactly what this forum is about if you ask me!

 

If you’re talking in real life and someone is ignoring what you’re saying and pushing their own agenda it would be seen as rude.

[elsiegee40]

Just to clarify, this is a public forum, but there is no automatic right to freedom of speech. The rules of engagement are set by the forum’s owner @Dos_Box.

 

Where possible we ask that the question asked is what is answered, but that doesn’t mean alternative suggestions cannot be made.

 

First and foremost though we ask that discussion is kept polite, professional and friendly. Many EduGeeks are all too aware that their setup isn’t ideal and have many battle scars from trying to get things changed. Being forthright with them about things that they cannot change, for whatever reason, doesn’t help them solve the immediate problem.

 

If you have a problem with the way someone has answered a post, please report it rather than have a public argument.

 

Now please keep discussion in this thread to the that in the opening post and stick to the topic.

 

Further discussion on the rights and wrongs of the setup will be removed. If you wish to challenge the moderation decision, contact Dos_Box and don’t do it here.

Edited August 12, 2022 by elsiegee40

[leegcvcc]

I used Spiceworks cloud provision a while ago now, which at the time seemed a godsend as I already support 5 other on-site spiceworks servers and there wasn't a need for a lot of customisation for this department. I found their mailservers really unreliable and it caused me more issues trying to see where email delays actually were, and all the time it was their end. Probably fine though if you don't need quick responses to tickets and can sit out a delay until they sort their queues out!