OTRS is a complete set of open source IT service management solutions developed on the basis of ITIL V3[2], a globally recognized IT service management standard.
OTRS takes work orders and configuration items ( assets ) as the center, and realizes incident management, problem management, service request management, change management, release management, CMDB , knowledge management, service and service through the configuration of work order attributes, permissions and circulation. Level Agreements ( SLAs ), and customer-specific business processes.
Features
Work order management
The OTRS system can support multi-channel submission of work orders: email, WeChat, webpage, telephone, monitoring system. Automatically can automatically filter, automatically classify and automatically assign work orders according to predetermined rules.
1. Work order recording and processing
The fields recorded in the work order can be customized and expanded according to business needs, and each operation of the work order can be customized through configuration. Through permission control, work orders can be transferred according to predetermined business processes.
2. Service and SLA
OTRS supports service and SLA management, and sets the response time, update time, and resolution time limit for different services and SLAs. When the work order processing exceeds the predetermined time limit, the work order will be upgraded according to the set rules.
3. Work order notification
OTRS can flexibly customize the trigger conditions of work order notifications. All work order update events can trigger work order notifications. The recipient, content and form of each work order notification can be customized according to business process requirements.
4. Integration with Knowledge Base and CMDB
OTRS is an integrated IT service management tool. You can directly search the FAQ on various operation pages of work order creation and processing, and refer to the content in the FAQ. Tickets can be associated with the CMDB.
asset Management
An important concept in ITIL, CMDB (Configuration Management Database) covers all components related to service delivery, including: hardware, software, licenses, contracts, personnel, and so on. As long as all objects related to service delivery can be managed under configuration management. Each of these components is a configuration item. The most important thing in configuration management is all hardware and software assets used for service delivery, so the concept of asset management is also used in natural language description to refer to this part of configuration management.
OTRS is a set of integrated IT service management tools. Its biggest feature is that it integrates all aspects of IT service management, work orders, configuration items, and knowledge bases.
1. Customize configuration item properties by category
According to the category of configuration items, such as: PC, server, database, switch, ..., OTRS supports configuring different attribute fields. The value of the attribute field can support single value, multiple value, and nesting.
2. Multiple entries to establish the association between work orders and configuration items
- When a work order is created, select a configuration item under the name of the repair applicant, and the created work order will be automatically associated with this configuration item.
- On the details page of a configuration item, you can automatically create a ticket for the configuration item by clicking the Create Ticket button.
3. Monitoring alarm related configuration items
- When receiving the monitoring alarm email, automatically parse the configuration item information in the alarm information, associate the alarm work order with the configuration item, and set the configuration item to the fault state.
4. Relationship between configuration items
The relationship between various categories of configuration items can be customized: associated, connected, belonging to, running on, …. The relationship between configuration items can clearly and accurately reflect which other configuration items are affected when a configuration item fails.
5. Configuration item version information
The past, current, and future planned status of a configuration item is recorded in the CMDB. Every modification record of a configuration item is saved in OTRS, and difference comparison between versions is supported.
6. Configuration item data import & export
OTRS supports batch import and export of configuration item data in CMDB through files. Import and export templates can define the corresponding relationship between the fields to be exported and imported through configuration.
Third Party System Integration
OTRS supports integration with a variety of third-party tools to implement a complete tool system within an IT service organization. The integration capability covers the current mainstream integration methods: LDAP protocol [3], Web Services, mail, and realizes various application scenarios.
1. Integration with telephone system CTI
In the environment where the CTI[4] system has been deployed, the integration of OTRS and CTI can realize the automatic creation of a work order page on the desktop of the agent receiving the call, and the calling number is automatically brought into the form. If the user has previously created tickets, the corresponding information will be displayed on the page.
If the service personnel need to contact the user by phone when processing the work order, they can directly call the user through the agent phone by clicking the link in the work order information.
2. Integrate with Active Directory ( AD ) domain [5] or other directory services that support the LDAP protocol
In large organizations, OTRS can be integrated with the AD domain to obtain service personnel and user account information from the AD domain, and users can log in to OTRS directly using the account and password in the AD domain. OTRS can automatically read user information from the AD domain, and can automatically assign corresponding user roles and permissions according to the organization in the AD domain.
In addition to AD domains, OTRS can also integrate with other directory services that support the LDAP protocol to achieve the above functions.
3. Integration with monitoring via email system
The monitoring system [6] can automatically create work orders by sending alert emails to OTRS, associated with configuration items. OTRS can automatically parse the configuration item information in the alarm information, associate the alarm work order with the configuration item, and set the configuration item to the fault state.
OTRS has a powerful email analysis function. Other third-party systems can create specified types of work orders and automatically dispatch and process the work orders by sending emails in the agreed format to OTRS.
4. SSO single sign-on [7]
If you have already deployed a Portal system that supports single sign-on, OTRS can be integrated with it and access OTRS from Portal without logging in again. Through Portal's Token authentication mechanism, OTRS can complete user identity authentication through communication with the Portal server and guide users to directly enter the OTRS system page.
5. Integration of Basic Web Services [8]
OTRS supports communication with third-party systems through the Web Services interface, which can realize the application scenario of OTRS as a provider and a requester. OTRS can actively call the third-party system to trigger its actions, and can also query the information of the third-party system to obtain data; the third-party system can trigger OTRS actions by calling the Web Services interface provided by OTRS, such as creating and processing work orders, and can also query Information in the OTRS system.
KPI large screen display
The key data in the OTRS system can be displayed in real time through the KPI[9] exhibition for monitoring centers, leadership, and service teams to provide real-time information.
1. Key Statistics
- Total number of tickets: The total number of all tickets contained in the OTRS system.
- Completed: The total number of work orders in the OTRS system with a status of closed type.
- Incomplete: The total number of tickets in the OTRS system with a status other than Closed type.
- Escalated Tickets: The total number of tickets currently in an escalated state in the OTRS system.
- Today's New Tickets: The total number of tickets created today.
- New Tickets This Week: The total number of tickets created this week.
2. Trend chart
- Ticket trend in the last 7 days: The number of newly created and closed tickets in the past 7 days.
- Work order trend in the last 24 hours: The number of newly created and closed work orders per hour in the past 24 hours.
3. Classification statistics
- Work order classification statistics: the proportion of different types of work orders in the system.
4. System monitoring
- System memory consumption: the real-time status of memory consumption of the server where the OTRS system is located.
WeChat integration
OTRS WeChat integration is a functional plug-in developed for mobile scene applications. It makes full use of the message, call, photo, scan code, and positioning functions of mobile devices. It uses message interaction and WeChat page methods to achieve: create and process work orders, and work order WeChat notifications , query the knowledge base, scan the code to query and process assets, scan the code to bill and other applications.
CMDB (Asset)
- Scan code query
Query configuration item information, associated knowledge base, and associated work orders by scanning the QR code
- Create tickets from configuration items
Create tickets from configuration items (assets), automatically associated
- Edit configuration item information
Edit configuration item (asset) information according to permissions, and customize shortcut operations, such as: warehousing, warehousing, sending to stores, etc.
work order
- Create and process tickets
Support message, page mode, support uploading pictures
- Work order notification
Create Notification, Update Notification, Close Notification, Satisfaction Survey Notification
- Create and handle page customizations
Field content, options, associations, validation rules, information prompts
- Scan the code to create a work order
Configure a QR code for the work order template, scan the code to create a work order according to the template
- Query work order
Query My Tickets, Working Tickets, Upgrade Tickets, Custom Search Criteria Query, Custom Search Templates
knowledge base
- Knowledge base query
Query the knowledge base through text messages, and the query results are returned as graphic messages
- Browse knowledge base content
According to the permission settings, support service personnel and users to browse the corresponding content of knowledge.
solution
In-company IT services
For multi-store application scenarios, service engineers are jointly completed by the company's internal service team and outsourced service providers, and on-site service is required in many scenarios. Use OTRS to realize the collaborative interaction of store users, call centers, monitoring centers, remote service teams, and field service teams.
1. User submits a question
Users can submit questions via email, WeChat, phone, or user interface. The IT service desk assigns the issue to the appropriate project team for processing according to the assignment rules.
If an outsourced service provider is required to assist in processing, the work order can be directly transferred to the outsourced service provider. Through permission control, outsourcing service providers can only see the work orders assigned to them.
2. Monitor alarms
The monitoring center finds an abnormal situation and sends an alarm email to OTRS. OTRS automatically creates a work order, associates the corresponding assets, and can automatically assign the work order according to the rules.
3. Inspection and asset inventory
The IT service team can conduct regular inspection and inventory of the content in the configuration management database according to the company's requirements. All inspections and inventories are recorded in the system.
4. Satisfaction survey
When a ticket is closed, OTRS automatically triggers a satisfaction survey. Get user feedback on IT services through a customized satisfaction questionnaire.
5. Knowledge accumulation
The experience summary formed in the process of work order processing can be recorded in the knowledge base and associated with the work order; at the same time, knowledge related to a configuration item can also be associated with the corresponding configuration item, which is convenient when searching for a configuration item. Check the corresponding knowledge.
6. SLA timing for the whole service
In all aspects of work order processing, the service time will be timed according to SLA rules. If it times out, the work order will be escalated and the corresponding management layer will be notified.
7. Statement
Through the rich report templates of OTRS, the data that needs to be counted can be easily exported. Reports can be configured with corresponding filter conditions to precisely analyze specific categories of work orders. Reports can be manually exported or run automatically through scheduled tasks.
The KPI large-screen display can display the current service operation and maintenance delivery situation in real time in the collective office area, demonstration area, monitoring room, and leadership office area.
High Availability Deployment Solutions
There are high availability requirements for the OTRS system in key business areas, and it is necessary to avoid single points of failure and achieve system load sharing. The OTRS high-availability deployment solution can realize dual (multiple) backup and real-time synchronization of the OTRS server and the database server, so as to share the request load under large capacity, and realize automatic switchover after a server failure.
1. Load balance
Use Nginx to achieve load balancing configuration, load balancing between two OTRS servers, and when one of the servers goes down, all traffic is automatically directed to the other server. The load balancing server itself adopts the primary-standby mode. When the primary load balancing server fails, the backup server automatically takes over the business.
2. OTRS server load sharing
The OTRS server is configured in the mode of the active server plus the standby server. For the access of ordinary business traffic, the load sharing server performs traffic distribution, and both the active and standby servers can process the business access traffic according to the configured proportion.
The primary OTRS server undertakes two specific tasks:
1) The main OTRS server handles all access traffic to the system configuration page. Causes system configuration changes to always be performed on the primary server. After the system configuration is changed, the active server automatically synchronizes it to the standby server in real time.
2) The main OTRS server handles all background automatic tasks (executed by OTRS Daemon), such as: receiving emails, updating work order indexes, sending work order notifications, and other tasks. When the primary server fails, the Daemon on the backup service starts automatically and takes over the corresponding tasks.
3. Database load sharing and synchronous replication
The database server is configured in the master-master synchronization mode, and two Virtual IPs are configured at the same time. Access to Virtual IP 1 configured on the active OTRS server is normally configured on database server 1. Access to Virtual IP 2 is configured on the standby OTRS server. Normally, it is configured on database server 2. In this way, the service access traffic processed by the primary OTRS is undertaken by the database server 1, and the data access of the standby OTRS server is undertaken by the database server 2. When one of the database servers fails, both Virtual IPs switch to the functioning database server, directing all traffic to the functioning database server.
Store operation and maintenance management solutions
For multi-store application scenarios, service engineers are jointly completed by the company's internal service team and outsourced service providers, and on-site service is required in many scenarios. Use OTRS to realize the collaborative interaction of store users, call centers, monitoring centers, remote service teams, and field service teams.
1. Store repair process
- Repair report: The store can choose to call the call center, and the call center personnel will create a work order, or the store can directly report for repair through the WeChat terminal (you can upload a picture).
- Call center assignment: For software problems, or problems that can be solved remotely, the work order is transferred to the remote service center for processing, and the work order is assigned to the field engineer if it needs to be handled by an on-site engineer. On-site engineers will receive WeChat notifications and go to the store site.
- Automatic dispatch: For work orders with dispatch rules, specific types of work orders for stores (or specific users) in a specific area can be directly and automatically dispatched to designated service engineers or contracted outsourcing services through the automatic dispatch rules in the system. business.
- On-site processing, user confirmation: The engineer handles the problem on-site, and completes the association and binding of the work order and the asset by scanning the code; after the work order is processed, the user confirms the completion of the work order, closes the work order, and fills in the satisfaction survey.
2. Monitor alarms
- The monitoring center finds abnormal situations and sends alarm emails to OTRS. OTRS automatically creates a work order, associates the corresponding assets, and can automatically assign the work order according to the rules.
3. Active maintenance
- Pre-set rules for equipment that need regular maintenance in stores, OTRS automatically generates work orders according to the rules and assigns them according to the rules. After the engineer finishes processing, record the processing process and results.