Service Desk choice. Rules of the lazy system administrator

The system administrator, especially in not the really big company, as a rule – multiarmed Shiva, Jack of all trades. To him to have to resolve issues of the most different level of complexity and character from change of a cartridge before virtualization of server space. You should not forget that small and especially medium-sized companies have a number of features in development of IT, in particular:

• IT infrastructure in such companies forms gradually, for an appreciable length of time, and, as a rule, breakthroughs. Always significant changes need to be carried out urgently moreover and in the conditions of the limited budget. As a result today many system administrators in such companies face confusion in network, lack of documentation or effects of non-optimal solutions.
• If the company heads for growth, then business is focused on development of basic processes (sales, marketing, production, etc.) and is even ready to pay for acquisition of CRM and other applied systems, at the same time leaving need of IT employees for tools for automation of activity outside a zone of the interests.
• Service of users happens in the small and medium companies by the principle "who the last asked – that and the first in queue". At the same time it is impossible to prove need of hiring of IT specialists or change of an obsolete equipment – just there are no convincing data on loading of IT.

In such situation the bad administrator "chucks in" uninteresting addresses, and the good administrator looks for an exit. The widespread statement – "the correct system administrator – the lazy system administrator" is confirmed by practice when, measures which are taken by the good administrator for maintenance of own working capacity come down to two directions:

1. To throw off everything that is possible (and slightly more) on younger companions (enikeyshchk, engineers, etc.)

2. Remained – to automate, having kept a role of the detached onlooker and guru on a case of terrible force majeure.

Today the most widespread direction of automation of activity of IT specialists in small and medium-sized companies is automation of technical support service - Service Desk implementation. The big variety of such systems is presented at the market. How to make a choice? Following the basic principle of the lazy administrator "work so that not to work!", it is necessary to look for the solution allowing to exempt as much as possible the system administrator from transactions devourers of time.

Shift problems to shoulders of others

Very often in the small and medium companies accomplishment of requests of users borrows from 30% to 50% of working time of the system administrator. What it is possible to shift to shoulders of others if it is about problem solving of users? 

Let's begin with the address of users to IT. Order taking in itself – uncommon case. According to the request "nothing works for me" difficult to a descent to begin to work. It is necessary to ask the mass of the specifying questions at least approximately to find out where and what does not work? Formulation of a problem of the user – one of the most "nervous" tasks of the system administrator. It is possible to shift primary diagnostics of a problem and it is necessary on automation system shoulders. 

Surely look for a system with the simple and convenient Web interface via which users will be able independently to register requests and to trace a current status of processing of the requests. 

The good Web interface will give additional opportunities at least for the instruction that broke – always simpler to select from the list of the offered options, than to compose formulations most. And still will provide more equal rhythm of work of system administrators (not each 5 minutes are ringing).

After the problem is formulated and registered, there is a question – what with it to do?

Proceeding from the fact that up to 80% of requests with which users in IT department – standard address repeating, it is obvious that in the company there is a fulfilled solution of these problems. To save the system administrator from infinite repetition of the same actions, it is necessary just to transfer once these standard solutions of standard problems to "companions on workshop" and users. Then any employee of IT service will be able to process such requests, and users will be able to resolve a part of issues in general independently. 

Such tool as the knowledge base, and with convenient means of search – absolutely necessary attribute for the selected Service Desk system.   

Simple existence of functionality of the knowledge base in our life not strongly saves. Filling of the knowledge base – not the most priority occupation for IT employees behind all daily routine is normal. And without it and the functionality of the knowledge base, in fact, is not necessary.

A system should provide tools for process control of filling of the knowledge base: i.e., quickly to obtain information on that how many articles appeared in the knowledge base, who their author who and how many times used articles at the solution of requests lately, etc.   

Automate everything that you can

After we could "fight" from 80% of standard requests, we have another 20%. It is a little, however, under the known law, they take 80% of working time! Let's look and what can be automated for processing of such requests?

Let's begin with diagnostics of the reasons of faults. Most often according to requests first of all it is necessary to look that for the PC at the user whether it in network, what at it is available to software, etc. 

It means that the Service Desk system allowing to find quickly such information and to carry out primary diagnostics of a workplace of the user far off will be ideal.   

Often a lot of time leaves on search of the accompanying information connected with IT infrastructure. And not only at diagnostics of the reason of a problem, but also at selection of possible solutions, there is a mass of questions - ok, with the PC of problems there is no problem in network, maybe? this user through what port is connected to the server? what network equipment affects operability of mail in this workplace?

The in more detail a system allows to describe IT infrastructure, the more information will be provided to the system administrator at once, so, the less he should make actions. And if at the same time there are graphic means of information representation (floor-by-floor plans, schemes of network, etc.) – such solution does not have the price. 

Other problem of IT provoking a large number of addresses of users and high labor input of their service – a huge variety in IT infrastructure. PC of different producers and various configurations; network equipment with absolutely different characteristics, but the most terrible is a variety of the software set in workplaces. Lack of standardization, both in work processes, and in the used tools – a direct path to growth of work in geometrical progression. Both testing of new versions, and diagnostics of the reasons of failures rests against check of tens of possible combinations of software, the equipment, settings. Therefore a banner of the most advanced companies – standardization of IT infrastructure. 

So, the functionality is necessary for accounting and management of software, control of installation of the software standard set in workplaces of users.   

Way of standardization difficult not only technically, but also organizationally. Therefore it is important to have full control over what occurs in IT infrastructure. 

The mechanism of operational notifications about unauthorized changes (installation / removal of software; disappearance of a mouse, the monitor, printer, etc.) – the irreplaceable assistant to IT service in just fight for standardization of IT infrastructure.

One more important moment – the Service Desk systems implement under a banner of improvement of quality of IT for users. It means not only reduction of time of troubleshooting, but also reduction of quantity of these malfunctions! Of course, the analysis of failures, their specifics – what is reached through automatic registration, classification of requests collecting of statistics - an important part of such movement. However it is possible to prevent many failures in the presence of very simple, but timely information – the disk space comes to an end; the switch port fused; the battery at the UPS comes to an end. 

Monitoring of operability of such very simple things – and a method to save itself from overtime work on recovery of servers, and an argument for benefit of quality improvement of IT for business! 

Hard choice: what can you for five kopeks?

Rules of the game in the small companies in the Russian market in the majority assume that business goes for investments into IT very reluctantly. It is obvious that the financial question becomes a cornerstone when choosing the automation system of activity of IT. But not only this limiter complicates the choice.

There are many narrowly targeted systems of the class Service Desk. Such systems allow to register and route requests, often contain both the knowledge base, and the Web interface. However to not numerous IT departments of the small and medium companies, which each employee – Jack of all trades, it very little. It is required that a system could help not only when processing requests of users, but also with other activities of IT which strongly affect quality of IT service. It both planning of changes, and monitoring of the crucial equipment, and configuration management of IT infrastructure, software, etc. It would seem – and here the Service Desk systems?

And while the choice of the Service Desk system – a good opportunity for IT service to receive the versatile complex tool solving at once several problems of system administrators. It is simple to look it is desirable a little more widely and to look not for Service Desk-систему, but the ITSM system allowing both to automate a support service and to manage IT infrastructure configurations (the settled name of such functionality came from <abbr>ITIL</abbr> – Configuration Management Database, CMDB) and to monitor a status of the critical IT equipment.

Not so there is a lot of such complete solutions in the Russian market expected the limited budget of the small and medium companies. But it is possible to find – surprisingly, but it is enough to enter a request "ITSM system" in the search system.

• Club.CNews source

Author's version of article of A. Kryuchkova "Service Desk Choice. Rules of the lazy system administrator". The editorial version is published in the magazine System administrator No. 12 (97) December, 2010