I am using 0.6.16 of PHPhelpdesk, as I do not know how to install 1.02, as my PC does not recognise RAR as a file to be opened. Perhaps somebody can advise
As a long time "desktop support engineer", I have worked extensively with various helpdesk systems. My programming skills are rather limited although using and testing lots of packages over the years gives me a good background to comment on how packages can be improved.
Although I have not extensively used PHPhelpdesk, I am trying to set up a helpdesk system to be used by several companies that I work for. I have made notes as I work and here is the first list improvements I would add to my wish-list for PHPhelpdesk
First for clarity, I thought I would define the following users of phphelpdesk
1. Users - These are the users that have the fault. They contact the helpdesk for assistance. (by telephone, email or via web-page to log a call themselves. This interface must be very simple and easy to use. Users when logged in must only have the ability to view their own calls or a listing of their own calls. Not all users will have a login account
2. Call Co-ordinator. - Can log calls for or on behalf of other users and can view all calls they have logged and all calls in their own name. They can not close calls but are usefull in some departments where certain people prefer not to log calls for themselves. They also have the ability to add users without login accounts.
3. Call Co-ordinator and Engineer They might themselves be known as Helpdesk and in some cases be able Assist users over the telephone whilst they are taking the call. When this is done they need to open and close a call at the same time as they do not want to waste time waiting for a web-page to load and take longer actually opening and closing a call than it actually takes to assist the user. Call co-ordinator's also monitor the system throughout the day, and assign calls that were logged by users and therefore not assigned, then assign (or allocate) these calls to an appropriate engineer(s).
4. Engineers. - Engineers access the system to see calls assigned to them. They are also notified by email when new calls are assigned to them. Engineers must have the ability to close the calls after they completed them. Engineer should only be able to see calls assigned to them (and calls logged by them) unless they are also set up as managers.
5. Managers - Managers need access to the system to see what calls are open. They mostly concern themselves with is the reporting ability of the system. They need to know how many calls are open at any one time, they need to know if there is a daily increase or decline and reports need to be able to be easily extracted in both report or chart format. They only have the ability to view reports of companies that they belong to and engineers whom are (or have been) assigned to them.
6. Administrators - need access to everything on the system and must be able to modify calls and override restricted settings. Administrators can also add and remove companies or departments from the helpdesk system.
7. Moderators - can be either call co-ordinators, engineers or Managers. Admin will always be a moderator. Moderators have the ability to set or remove certain privileges users. They can set users to be engineers, co-ordinators or managers.
Multiples of the above could be assigned to one user account. All of the above will have user status.
Additions or changes I thought would be usefull on the current version I am using.
1. For Engineers, Listing of tickets to include
Logged By:
User Name:
Telephone Extension:
Category can be removed:
Status to be replaced by icons:
Company column not required unless user has more than one company
Priorities to be replaced by icon's
2. Allow different companies to have different default preferences like bussiness hours colour settings and company logo's and font preferences and different users to have their own individual preferences (Date format and currency symbols) Also Headers to include large telephone number to be contacted for each company.
3. Allow time to be offset for different companies. I noted that times used when a call was logged was not the correct time. I assume this was the time my server was set to, however the location of my server and the location of my company is not in the same timezone.
4. None of the users, including managers, should have rights to correct or delete any comments added. The administrators could however do this via direct access to database. When a call is viewed, one should not be allowed to edit previous comments, a comment box should be allowed only to add comments to existing notes.
5. Every time a comment is added, or call is re-assigned to another user, it should be logged and dated (with name of person making update) in the call notes.
6. Add a status "RE-OPENED" for calls that are re-opened after they were closed. This should be thought through properly as it is useful for managers to see how many calls are comebacks and also shows how some engineers close hundreds of calls but most of them are re-opened because they did not sort the problem out correctly. Other engineers might take more time tending to calls, however they actually get the problems sorted out properly nd hardly ever have comebacks.
7. The header shows Status: Logged in This is not required as the Logout button and username already indicates that user is logged in. Instead of saying "username: sales" try "welcome sales if you are not sales then logout"
8. Accounts by request. If a user does not have a login, they should be able to request an account to be set up by filling in all own contact details. Once set up they will have limited end user rights and be able to log calls themselves without having to wait for Admin. Moderators need to approve new accounts before second call can be logged by this user
9. Add a facility that allows managers to set time settings restraints on priorities. For example. A call with low priority will become medium priority after three days, medium priority will be upgraded to high priority after 1 working day. A call with high priority will become urgent priority after 1/2 working day. An urgent call will email managers on a defined interval to advise that urgent calls are outstanding.
11. In the download there were three .jpg's in the image directory (metal beads, marble & foggy) not exactly sure what they are for.
12. Ability to schedule certain jobs to automatically log themselves at scheduled times. (i.e. Daily, weekly, monthly tape backups need to be assigned to relevant engineers.)
13. FAQ to be added. (Reporting facility should be able to identify most common calls and resolutions for them)
14. Reports to include graphs to show numbers of calls logged for the year. And average response times
15. Ability to put a call on Hold. When a call is put on hold, it has to be taken out of hold status before any updates can be made to the call. Once the call is closed, the total time calculated (for how long it took to close the call) must not include time whilst call is on hold. Also non-working hours can be excluded from this time.
16. A reason has to be entered as to why it is on hold, the person who logged the call should be emailed to notify him that the call is on hold and when a call is closed.
17. Ability to enter the costings for the call. If selected, Managers could set a cost for labour and parts. Labour could b charged at a cost per unit of time the call is open for. (Should however be a preference for managers to be able to enable or disable as some helpdesks operate on a contract basis and will confuse users if they start to see costings in their calls. Even if disabled, managers should be able to run reports at the end of the year to determine whether the charge per hour justifies the contract that is being worked on.
18. In some companies, you would also want to work into your helpdesk system, some form of approval or authorisation system. Where user places a call, quote is provided before work commences, work commences only upon approval from user (or in some cases manager)
19. Add the ability for some jobs toe be classed as projects. (i.e. logging a call for all desktop PC's to be upgraded; setting up a large number of users etc.) This is handy for when reports are run so that projects can be seperated as they generally take longer to complete than just one call.
20. The parts database was interesting to me although I did not think this was something I would use. This is normally a task for a storeman and I have never found tasks like these administered by helpdesk staff.
21. What might be useful as an add on is a database that stores information about the equipment a user owns. PC's Serial numbers, printers, operating systems and software etc.
22. Redundancy - Think of worst case Scenario, you are at company that uses this helpdesk via the Internet. They have lost access to the internet or your webserver has gone down and you no longer have access to calls on the system. Do you have a hardcopy or a digital backup of calls for users so that engineers can continue their work until the service is available again. (Perhaps consider a report with limited information to be emailed to certain (self)selected members on a scheduled (nightly or weekly basis). Also, perhaps forms that could be printed out and completed by co-ordinators so they can write down information when the system is unavailable and log these calls later when the system is available
23. When a user or engineer is deleted, all calls currently assigned to that engineer need to have the engineer unassigned or re-assigned to another engineer.
24. Add the ability to set a due date for a call. That way the call will not show in listing until the due date
25. I noted that although I had set my helpdesk up to be for companies instead of departments. When selecting permissions, there is no option for adding/deleting companies. But there is one for departments. This might be easy to overlook to one who understands the system, but difficult to explain to a new user and could cause problems.
26. After running a report, there is no link on the page to get back to main screen (apart from using back button on browser)
27. There should be an option to only view jobs assigned to you.
28. When logged in as a Manager of one company, I managed to run a report "Security Audit" that allowed me to see users from other companies and their security settings. This should not be allowed or this report should be restricted only to show details of the company that the manager belongs to.
29. Technician Response Time report is not yet implemented
30. When Viewing all jobs, the assigned to field shows the login name instead of Engineers First and/or Lastname.
31. Users must be given the ability to change their own email address and contact details (as already described earler when asked earlier in asking users to be able to set up their own accounts.)
32. When the email is sent to the user or engineer, it should contain a link to the webpage and to that particular job.
If all this makes you think I am complaining about the product, please excuse. I am actually very impressed with this product and what it offers and wish to congratulate those of you whom have already contributed to this.
As I am unable to assist in the development of this product as I have a lack of PHP programming skills, I hope that at least my ability to provide constructive advice on how to improve your product.
I hope this helps
Regards
Terry
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I am using 0.6.16 of PHPhelpdesk, as I do not know how to install 1.02, as my PC does not recognise RAR as a file to be opened. Perhaps somebody can advise
As a long time "desktop support engineer", I have worked extensively with various helpdesk systems. My programming skills are rather limited although using and testing lots of packages over the years gives me a good background to comment on how packages can be improved.
Although I have not extensively used PHPhelpdesk, I am trying to set up a helpdesk system to be used by several companies that I work for. I have made notes as I work and here is the first list improvements I would add to my wish-list for PHPhelpdesk
First for clarity, I thought I would define the following users of phphelpdesk
1. Users - These are the users that have the fault. They contact the helpdesk for assistance. (by telephone, email or via web-page to log a call themselves. This interface must be very simple and easy to use. Users when logged in must only have the ability to view their own calls or a listing of their own calls. Not all users will have a login account
2. Call Co-ordinator. - Can log calls for or on behalf of other users and can view all calls they have logged and all calls in their own name. They can not close calls but are usefull in some departments where certain people prefer not to log calls for themselves. They also have the ability to add users without login accounts.
3. Call Co-ordinator and Engineer They might themselves be known as Helpdesk and in some cases be able Assist users over the telephone whilst they are taking the call. When this is done they need to open and close a call at the same time as they do not want to waste time waiting for a web-page to load and take longer actually opening and closing a call than it actually takes to assist the user. Call co-ordinator's also monitor the system throughout the day, and assign calls that were logged by users and therefore not assigned, then assign (or allocate) these calls to an appropriate engineer(s).
4. Engineers. - Engineers access the system to see calls assigned to them. They are also notified by email when new calls are assigned to them. Engineers must have the ability to close the calls after they completed them. Engineer should only be able to see calls assigned to them (and calls logged by them) unless they are also set up as managers.
5. Managers - Managers need access to the system to see what calls are open. They mostly concern themselves with is the reporting ability of the system. They need to know how many calls are open at any one time, they need to know if there is a daily increase or decline and reports need to be able to be easily extracted in both report or chart format. They only have the ability to view reports of companies that they belong to and engineers whom are (or have been) assigned to them.
6. Administrators - need access to everything on the system and must be able to modify calls and override restricted settings. Administrators can also add and remove companies or departments from the helpdesk system.
7. Moderators - can be either call co-ordinators, engineers or Managers. Admin will always be a moderator. Moderators have the ability to set or remove certain privileges users. They can set users to be engineers, co-ordinators or managers.
Multiples of the above could be assigned to one user account. All of the above will have user status.
Additions or changes I thought would be usefull on the current version I am using.
1. For Engineers, Listing of tickets to include
Logged By:
User Name:
Telephone Extension:
Category can be removed:
Status to be replaced by icons:
Company column not required unless user has more than one company
Priorities to be replaced by icon's
2. Allow different companies to have different default preferences like bussiness hours colour settings and company logo's and font preferences and different users to have their own individual preferences (Date format and currency symbols) Also Headers to include large telephone number to be contacted for each company.
3. Allow time to be offset for different companies. I noted that times used when a call was logged was not the correct time. I assume this was the time my server was set to, however the location of my server and the location of my company is not in the same timezone.
4. None of the users, including managers, should have rights to correct or delete any comments added. The administrators could however do this via direct access to database. When a call is viewed, one should not be allowed to edit previous comments, a comment box should be allowed only to add comments to existing notes.
5. Every time a comment is added, or call is re-assigned to another user, it should be logged and dated (with name of person making update) in the call notes.
6. Add a status "RE-OPENED" for calls that are re-opened after they were closed. This should be thought through properly as it is useful for managers to see how many calls are comebacks and also shows how some engineers close hundreds of calls but most of them are re-opened because they did not sort the problem out correctly. Other engineers might take more time tending to calls, however they actually get the problems sorted out properly nd hardly ever have comebacks.
7. The header shows Status: Logged in This is not required as the Logout button and username already indicates that user is logged in. Instead of saying "username: sales" try "welcome sales if you are not sales then logout"
8. Accounts by request. If a user does not have a login, they should be able to request an account to be set up by filling in all own contact details. Once set up they will have limited end user rights and be able to log calls themselves without having to wait for Admin. Moderators need to approve new accounts before second call can be logged by this user
9. Add a facility that allows managers to set time settings restraints on priorities. For example. A call with low priority will become medium priority after three days, medium priority will be upgraded to high priority after 1 working day. A call with high priority will become urgent priority after 1/2 working day. An urgent call will email managers on a defined interval to advise that urgent calls are outstanding.
10. The "Need Help Click Here" works (at the bottom of page), although none of the links within that works. http://mywebsite/phphelpdesk/index.php3?whattodo=help&help=general page cannot be found.
11. In the download there were three .jpg's in the image directory (metal beads, marble & foggy) not exactly sure what they are for.
12. Ability to schedule certain jobs to automatically log themselves at scheduled times. (i.e. Daily, weekly, monthly tape backups need to be assigned to relevant engineers.)
13. FAQ to be added. (Reporting facility should be able to identify most common calls and resolutions for them)
14. Reports to include graphs to show numbers of calls logged for the year. And average response times
15. Ability to put a call on Hold. When a call is put on hold, it has to be taken out of hold status before any updates can be made to the call. Once the call is closed, the total time calculated (for how long it took to close the call) must not include time whilst call is on hold. Also non-working hours can be excluded from this time.
16. A reason has to be entered as to why it is on hold, the person who logged the call should be emailed to notify him that the call is on hold and when a call is closed.
17. Ability to enter the costings for the call. If selected, Managers could set a cost for labour and parts. Labour could b charged at a cost per unit of time the call is open for. (Should however be a preference for managers to be able to enable or disable as some helpdesks operate on a contract basis and will confuse users if they start to see costings in their calls. Even if disabled, managers should be able to run reports at the end of the year to determine whether the charge per hour justifies the contract that is being worked on.
18. In some companies, you would also want to work into your helpdesk system, some form of approval or authorisation system. Where user places a call, quote is provided before work commences, work commences only upon approval from user (or in some cases manager)
19. Add the ability for some jobs toe be classed as projects. (i.e. logging a call for all desktop PC's to be upgraded; setting up a large number of users etc.) This is handy for when reports are run so that projects can be seperated as they generally take longer to complete than just one call.
20. The parts database was interesting to me although I did not think this was something I would use. This is normally a task for a storeman and I have never found tasks like these administered by helpdesk staff.
21. What might be useful as an add on is a database that stores information about the equipment a user owns. PC's Serial numbers, printers, operating systems and software etc.
22. Redundancy - Think of worst case Scenario, you are at company that uses this helpdesk via the Internet. They have lost access to the internet or your webserver has gone down and you no longer have access to calls on the system. Do you have a hardcopy or a digital backup of calls for users so that engineers can continue their work until the service is available again. (Perhaps consider a report with limited information to be emailed to certain (self)selected members on a scheduled (nightly or weekly basis). Also, perhaps forms that could be printed out and completed by co-ordinators so they can write down information when the system is unavailable and log these calls later when the system is available
23. When a user or engineer is deleted, all calls currently assigned to that engineer need to have the engineer unassigned or re-assigned to another engineer.
24. Add the ability to set a due date for a call. That way the call will not show in listing until the due date
25. I noted that although I had set my helpdesk up to be for companies instead of departments. When selecting permissions, there is no option for adding/deleting companies. But there is one for departments. This might be easy to overlook to one who understands the system, but difficult to explain to a new user and could cause problems.
26. After running a report, there is no link on the page to get back to main screen (apart from using back button on browser)
27. There should be an option to only view jobs assigned to you.
28. When logged in as a Manager of one company, I managed to run a report "Security Audit" that allowed me to see users from other companies and their security settings. This should not be allowed or this report should be restricted only to show details of the company that the manager belongs to.
29. Technician Response Time report is not yet implemented
30. When Viewing all jobs, the assigned to field shows the login name instead of Engineers First and/or Lastname.
31. Users must be given the ability to change their own email address and contact details (as already described earler when asked earlier in asking users to be able to set up their own accounts.)
32. When the email is sent to the user or engineer, it should contain a link to the webpage and to that particular job.
If all this makes you think I am complaining about the product, please excuse. I am actually very impressed with this product and what it offers and wish to congratulate those of you whom have already contributed to this.
As I am unable to assist in the development of this product as I have a lack of PHP programming skills, I hope that at least my ability to provide constructive advice on how to improve your product.
I hope this helps
Regards
Terry