How do you run your helpdesk?

[ChrisS]

I can recommend GLPI been a success @ my school.

 

More than a helpdesk too! Asset management, knowledge base etc.

 

Can talk to Active Directory for auth so no new login credentials to remember.

 

I run it on a former curriculum server. Ununtu server edition is the OS.

[scottd]

We handle helpdesk availability in a few ways. First our helpdesk system, Web HelpDesk Software : bigWebDesk, will send an email to the assigned technician when a new ticket has been entered. Technicians then receive a page on their cell phone that they have a new work request. From any web browser they can access the help desk system and decide what action to take regardless of their location.

 

We also publish a number to staff as the primary contact for the help desk. What the staff doesn't know is that number is always forwarded to a cell phone that is designated as the help desk phone. If for some reason the help desk technician needs to be away and can not cover the cell phone then the phone is simply passed to the next available person.

 

So far its been a pretty solid system for us. Of course the center and primary reason for success being the help desk software itself. We have had other help desk software in the past but bigWebDesk has really changed how we communicate with the end user. Hope that helps and good luck.

[gshaw]

We use the Sharepoint Services IT Team Workspace to run an internal logging and knowledgebase system but let staff report problems by email \ phone \ knock on the door \ grab us in the corridor as they're happier doing it this way than another IT based system.

 

Works really well (now officially a SharePoint fanboy as a result ) plus the categories we set up show repeating patterns and the knowledgebase is a dream for those of us with fading short term memories

 

Personally anything that involves call reference numbers and anything along those lines I don't like to use as it removes the "personal touch" we try to give to our service... try to keep users individual and they end up a lot happier as a result

[grumpy_git]

We attempt to have someone in the office all the time, which isn't too much of an issue as there is usually someone in there anyway.

 

They can also call the office, radio us (in emergencies) or email a list which sends it to all of us. (Though some staff still email it to their 'favourite' technician, which generally means it takes far longer to get resolved).

[OllieC]

All emails sent to ict-support are made into tickets on the web-based helpdesk (kayako). Every classroom has a phone in it and we carry radios (Vertex Standard VX-230s), plenty of people still prefer to just come to us which is no problem.

 

We have a 52" plasma in the office that displays a list of tickets when it's not being used for other things.

Edited July 24, 2009 by OllieC

[Sylv3r]

All emails sent to ict-support are made into tickets on the web-based helpdesk (kayako). Every classroom has a phone in it and we carry radios, plenty of people still prefer to just come to us which is no problem.

 

We have a 52" plasma in the office that displays a list of tickets when it's not being used for other things.

 

Near enough identical here for us.

 

Staff e-mail helpdesk@..... which creates a ticket on our Kayako website which the technicians then receive an e-mail for. Staff are kept up-to-date via regular ticket updates until completion.

 

It allows me to see what jobs come in from staff and how they were resolved allowing me to get a bigger picture and come up with solutions so we are not constantly fire-fighting.

 

Staff know not to e-mail direct as issues are resolved much quicker via the helpdesk. We also take telephone requests in the office for emergency things. We get a lot of students wandering the school looking for passwords to be changed so will either give access to staff to change passwords are look into the self-password reset tool on here.

[IanT]

When I was the Network Manager at my last school we just had a simple white board and columns with are names in with the list of jobs needed doing etc.

 

Don't believe in any of the SLA rubbish in a school.

[OllieC]

Near enough identical here for us.

 

Staff e-mail helpdesk@..... which creates a ticket on our Kayako website which the technicians then receive an e-mail for. Staff are kept up-to-date via regular ticket updates until completion.

 

It allows me to see what jobs come in from staff and how they were resolved allowing me to get a bigger picture and come up with solutions so we are not constantly fire-fighting.

 

Staff know not to e-mail direct as issues are resolved much quicker via the helpdesk. We also take telephone requests in the office for emergency things. We get a lot of students wandering the school looking for passwords to be changed so will either give access to staff to change passwords are look into the self-password reset tool on here.

 

Ah yeh, staff can reset passwords too. =)

[mossj]

I've given thought to forwarding my phone (Cisco 7912) to my mobile as well.

 

Be aware you must ensure your mobile is turned on when twinned with your office phone, as if it s turned off your answerphone picks up stright away, and your normal phone will never ring (I now have a phone charger at work because of this 'quirk')

[GrumbleDook]

When I was the Network Manager at my last school we just had a simple white board and columns with are names in with the list of jobs needed doing etc.

 

Don't believe in any of the SLA rubbish in a school.

 

LO .. next you'll be saying that you should have any targets and just get things done when you feel like it ... after all, who needs to keep people informed.

[sparkeh]

At my 3 schools, users log their problems via Spiceworks helpdesk. When the system was implemented each Head told their staff to only go direct in an emergency, which is pretty much respected. People appreciate the updates as I can't always get to speak to people directly and obviously not in school all the time.

 

Interestingly there is one teacher who seems intent on not using the system and still grabs me in the corridor. She has repeatedly been told by management that nothing gets fixed until she uses the system but still...

 

Don't believe in any of the SLA rubbish in a school.

 

Interesting opinion. SLAs mean everyone knows where they stand. They can be actually be used in your favour, ie you don't get people on your back to get things done while you are still in the SLA timeframe for that type of job.

[networkingNut]

We currently use one or zero as our helpdesk software, which is hosted externally.We also have radios (Motorola TLKR T5). There is one for each of the technicians (3 in total including my manager) and also one at reception.

 

We also have a support email, which to my frustration most teachers/ admin staff dont use (no matter how may times you ask them to). They keep sending it to my line manager and then ask me if I received it. They then seem somewhat surprised when I say no.

 

I just think the whole department could be more productive if more use was made of the support email, the address of which is clearly visible in the staffroom.

 

If I am totally honest sometimes I feel like an odd job man. Staff members tend to talk to me via my line manager rather than to me direct. I get the impression they think that they will get it done quicker if they go to my manager although we all work from the same helpdesk.

 

/rant (apologies everyone)

 

nN

[Little-Miss]

Oh i get that....they dont get the answer they want from me ("I'll drop everything and do that for you now") so they go to my line manager who then comes to me and tells me the same thing.

[_techie_]

Oh i get that....they dont get the answer they want from me ("I'll drop everything and do that for you now") so they go to my line manager who then comes to me and tells me the same thing.

 

Yep been there...so infuriating. Also been there with the 'must have someone in the office at all times' malarky. Just gets me down eventually. Its not like I am swanning around school, lounging in the staffroom and drinking endless cups of coffee is it? (unlike some other members of staff).

[IanT]

LO .. next you'll be saying that you should have any targets and just get things done when you feel like it ... after all, who needs to keep people informed.

 

haha - Im not saying I didnt keep people updated, when I say I dont believe in SLA's, I mean once we got a job in, do it asap, and 90% jobs for teachers were done within 1 hr.

[K.C.Leblanc]

We have an Excel spreadsheet that teachers can add jobs to. We're changing this for MyLittleHelpdesk over the summer. Works for most departments. We have one department who militantly don't report everything properly, so they never get anything fixed.

[localzuk]

When I was the Network Manager at my last school we just had a simple white board and columns with are names in with the list of jobs needed doing etc.

 

Don't believe in any of the SLA rubbish in a school.

 

You'd need a pretty big board! I have one for my current job list, but at times I have had more than 50 jobs in my helpdesk as open or pending. Sticking that all on a board would be silly.

 

And an SLA is a brilliant thing in a school. You can use it to cover your back, it allows you to ensure things are getting done by order of importance and it allows you to see where your (or your team's) failings are.

[siuko]

Using Request Tracker here.

 

It was a little difficult to setup but its working great now with ldap.

 

I dont have it emailing me - its just used as a web based helpdesk.

[clarky2k3]

We have our intranet built on joomla and we have installed the MaQma Helpdesk component and it works really well. It has ticketing, FAQ and Knowledge base. The paid for version has a client application and a troubleshooter.

[matt40k]

I am interested to see how other schools run helpdesks (if they do at all).

 

The head of ICT here is pushing for one of us to always be at the 'helpdesk' (which is in a store room off an ICT suite with no windows) all morning. As there are only two of us this loses 50% of us out straight away. He also gets quite upset if one of us isn't there, which can be frustrating when you are busy.

 

How do you all work this?

 

Have you thought about asking reception to be your "helpdesk", if you give them your mobile number with strict instructions to only phone for emergencies everything else gets logged as normal. If you guys can't log calls, but only response to existing calls, they'll be forced to either go to reception or to the intranet.

 

Make sure you have a policy of you only response to logged calls.

[mac_shinobi]

Have you thought about asking reception to be your "helpdesk", if you give them your mobile number with strict instructions to only phone for emergencies everything else gets logged as normal. If you guys can't log calls, but only response to existing calls, they'll be forced to either go to reception or to the intranet.

 

Make sure you have a policy of you only response to logged calls.

 

Just do an online intranet helpdesk type system and if they dont log it - it doesnt get done.

 

simples ... tsk

 

make sure that you dont accept bits of paper with messages etc and just point them to online intranet system helpdesk

[matt40k]

I said reception as it covers the idea that your a one man band and you've gone out for lunch, then say, your core switch has failed.

[GrumbleDook]

haha - Im not saying I didnt keep people updated, when I say I dont believe in SLA's, I mean once we got a job in, do it asap, and 90% jobs for teachers were done within 1 hr.

 

Good for you ... not everyone can do that though for a variety of reasons.

 

The good thing about most *decent* helpdesk software is that they can do pretty good reports for you which, after 3-6 months of running, you use to create your SLA. It basically says "This is our normal running efficiency and we expect to keep it up. We can only do this by sticking to our rules about how things are logged, prioritised, planned for, funded and dealt with. If we don't keep it up there is probably a good reason for it and it is the job of the $Boss to manage this with other named people having key roles!"

 

Hmm ... ITIL in 3 sentences?

[srochford]

"

 

Hmm ... ITIL in 3 sentences?

 

I reckon you've got the gist of it which is pretty good! It took our trainer 3 days to cover the same stuff but I'd guess I slowed him down by telling him about the "real world" which upset him a bit :-)