IFellow: MyFellow Bot Telegram-бот для Service Desk

Main article: IT Service Management (ITSM)

2023

Telegram bot authorization system updates for Service Desk

The Russian IT-The company iFellow specializing in development testing and maintenance, ON on August 31, 2023, announced the release of an update for - Telegramboat MyFellow Bot. The changes affected the system authorizations and links to requests. The innovations are based on feedback from product users and should improve the user experience in the MyFellow Bot interface, making the service more user-friendly.

During the experimental operation of the bot, it turned out that the authorization system through a personal access token is difficult to scale to a large number of users. It significantly increased the burden on technical support engineers who integrated MyFellow Bot into the corporate Jira Service Management system and configured its work. Token regularly had to release each user in his personal account in Jira, and then provide it to the bot. Instead, engineers could do this, but in the case of a multiple increase in the number of users, the procedure took a lot of time, since all actions were performed manually.

OAuth 2.0 authorization methods ­ ­ ­ and Basic Auth without modification are not suitable for service both in terms of user convenience and security. Therefore, iFellow specialists, having considered alternatives to the implementation of authorization methods, settled on organizing access to the bot through mail services.

The updated mechanism works as follows: the user enters the corporate email address in the bot interface, receives an access code for it, and after its introduction can use the service. Technical support engineers now need to check the internal Jira Service Management database for irrelevant corporate system addresses and delete mismatched ones.

This authorization method greatly facilitates access to MyFellow Bot for users and does not overload technical support employees with active scaling of the service.

Also in the release of MyFellow Bot, direct links to requests are implemented, information about which goes to the bot in the form of a link. If the corporate Jira Service Management has an application, or the ability to log into the system via a mobile phone, then users can directly go from the bot to the web interface of the request by clicking on the link. The function is valid for all messages in which the request key appears.

Based on customer feedback, we regularly update MyFellow Bot capabilities. This time we were faced with the task of improving the level of user experience, revising the access system and introducing useful functionality. Authorization is the first stage of communication between the bot, user and technical support engineer, and it should be not only safe, but also convenient, without serious restrictions. We completely changed the authorization system, eliminating the bottleneck when scaling the product, while maintaining the necessary level of security, commented Elizaveta Burdina, head of iFellow's grocery office.

As part of the release of the MyFellow Bot version, iFellow is launching a free test access promotion for the product within 3 months of its use. Any company with a corporate Jira Service Management system can participate in the promotion. There are no restrictions on the number of users. In addition to accessing the bot, participants will receive installation and use recommendations, as well as the necessary technical support for integration.

Such an action will help developers collect feedback on the updated functionality of the bot, evaluate the user experience and thereby improve the product if necessary.

MyFellow Bot is designed to organize operational technical support for the business and its employees. It integrates enterprise services and eliminates difficulties in communication between remote employees and Service Desk, organized on the basis of Jira Service Management. The bot helps solve technical and business requests in a single window format.

Expanding the capabilities of the Telegram bot for Service Desk

The Russian IT-A company iFellow specializing in development testing and maintenance ON announced on June 7, 2023, an update - Telegramboat MyFellow Bot, designed to organize operational technical support for the business and its employees. In the updated version of the solution, its capabilities have expanded significantly. Users have become available, two-factor authorization support for special types of fields in applications, the ability to coordinate requests directly in the Telegram interface, as well as configuration in the form of a plugin for. Jira The update pool is formed on the basis of feedback from product users - internal and external customers.

MyFellow Bot integrates enterprise services and eliminates the difficulties in communicating remote employees with Service Desk, organized on Jira Service Management. The bot helps to remotely solve various technical and business requests in a single window format. Through it, you can send applications for access to systems and knowledge bases, repair, configuration and provision of equipment, elimination of errors in the operation of internal software products, registration of passes, personnel and accounting certificates.

The out-of-the-box plug-in configuration for Jira now includes bot administration from the Jira Service Desk system. To use the application, you only need to install an already activated jar file. Next, the Jira administrator will be able to configure the bot itself in the system - activate, as well as determine the set of requests that will be available for use from the Telegram interface.

The most valuable feature in the updated version is the ability to coordinate requests directly from the chatbot interface. The responsible employee receives a notification and details of the request through the bot, and can reject it or approve it at the click of a button, as well as leave a comment, if necessary. In the corporate Jira system, the status of the application changes at this point.

The feature will be useful for working with remote offices with applications via mobile devices or for employees outside the corporate system. In addition, the implementation of technical support tasks through Telegram has a positive effect on the quality of the support service as a whole.

Support for special field types in the updated product allows you to send applications with a voluminous, complex description to the bot. For example, through the Telegram interface, you can now not only describe the request for the purchase of equipment in text, but also fill in additional attribute fields - dates, users (partners), support for a list of reference books. This increases the attention of business users to requests and speeds up their coordination and processing.

The two-factor authorization option removes the restriction on the use of MyFellow Bot only through the corporate mobile phone number, and also facilitates technical configuration - no longer requires verification of the user's mobile number through the corporate account system. Now it comes at the expense of the Jira tool.

Assessing the feedback of the bot audience, it was noted that the ability to simply send an application with the name and line of text is not enough, and coordination of requests for some business processes is also lacking. In addition, there were messages that not everyone is comfortable using the corporate phone number to enter Telegram and the bot itself. So important features and functionality appeared in the roadmap for product development. They will be appreciated by both ordinary MyFellow Bot users and technicians, commented Elizaveta Burdina, head of iFellow's product office.

Further product development will focus on improving fault tolerance and, safety data as well as the ability to manage request queues in cases of peak bot downloads.

Development of Telegram bot for Service Desk

The Russian IT-a company iFellow specializing in development testing and maintenance ON announced on January 16, 2023 the development of -, Telegramboat which allows organizing operational technical support for the company and employees. The bot interface is built on the functionality of systems. Service Desk

The solution will be useful for companies with large staff and an extensive branch network. The bot helps to remotely solve various technical and business requests in a single window format - send applications for access to systems and to the necessary information, repair and order equipment, eliminate errors in the operation of internal software products, issue passes, personnel and accounting certificates, etc.

The native and easy-to-use bot, developed on the basis of the functions and principles of the Jira Service Management web interface, improves and simplifies the internal interaction of employees, speeds up the work of technical support and significantly saves time for all participants in the process.

Telegraph -assistant it is integrated with the corporate Service Desk platform and upon receipt of a request from the user sends information to the system, where the performer can work with it. Notifications about the necessary clarifications, changes in the status of the request are also received by the customer through the bot interface.

Safety data provided by a special authentications user system. The chatbot can only be accessed using encrypted tokens. Login without them, it will not work. The system protection will be the same for, mobile web and desktop versions of Telegram.

In addition, the ability to coordinate and promote requests directly from the bot interface is being developed. Technical support engineers will be able to perform tasks also through Telegram and this will improve the quality of the service as a whole.

The solution will be delivered in two formats - boxed and in the form of a product core. In the first case, clients will be able to install and run a special plugin with a ready-made configuration in the system. It can be configured for enterprise tasks.

The second option is convenient in that the application can be integrated into any Service Desk system. The kernel will contain five typical technical requests at once, and the rest of the functions will be customized for specific processes that may differ significantly in different areas.

Business users, as a rule, are not interested in internal complex technical support systems and mechanisms for working with them. The result and speed of work are important to them. Therefore, it was decided to create a chat bot that closes the issues of communication between company employees and specialists from IT departments, human resources, accounting and other departments. No longer need to delve into how to apply in a particular system, understand complex interfaces and functions, connect to a corporate VPN. It is enough to write a bot and the question will be closed. Such solutions on the market exist in a custom form, under the peculiarities of the service in the company and security requirements. The company offers universal approaches to Service Desk, commented Elizaveta Burdina, head of iFellow's product office.