ALTIRIS HELPDESK SOLUTION 6.0 SP2 PRODUCT GUIDE

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ALTIRIS HELPDESK

SOLUTION 6.0 SP2

PRODUCT GUIDE

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Notice

Document Date: January 31, 2005 Bootworks U.S. Patent No. 5,764,593. RapiDeploy U.S. Patent No. 6,144,992.

Recovery Solution U.S. Patent No. 5,778,395, 5,907,672, 4701745, 5016009, 5146221, 5144425, 5463390, 5506580, 5532694, GB 2172127, B 904359, 3606869. Other patents pending.

Due to the inherently complex nature of computer software, Altiris does not warrant that the Altiris software is error-free, will operate without interruption, is compatible with all equipment and software configurations, or will otherwise meet your needs.

The content of this documentation is furnished for informational use only, is subject to change without notice, and should not be construed as a commitment by Altiris. Altiris Inc. assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or inaccuracies that may appear in this documentation. For the latest documentation, visit our Web site at

www.altiris.com.

Altiris, the Altiris logo, BootWorks, Inventory Solution, LabExpert, PC Transplant, RapiDeploy, and RapidInstall are registered trademarks of Altiris, Inc. in the United States and in other countries.

Carbon Copy is a registered trademark licensed to Altiris, Inc. in the United States and a trademark of Altiris, Inc. in other countries.

Altiris eXpress, Altiris Protect, Application Management Solution, Application Metering Solution, Asset Control Solution, Asset Management Suite, Client Management Suite, Compliance Toolkit, Connector Solution, Conflict Analysis Solution, Contract Management Solution, Deployment Server,

Deployment Solution, Energy Saver Toolkit, Education Management Suite, Helpdesk Solution Software, Lab Management Suite, Migration Toolkit, Mobile Client for SMS, Monitor Solution, Notification Server, Patch Management Solution, Problem Management Suite, Recovery Solution, Server Management Suite, Site Monitor Solution, Software Delivery Solution, TCO Management Solution, UNIX Client for SMS, Web Administrator for SMS, Web Reports, and other product names are trademarks of Altiris, Inc. in the United States and other countries.

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Getting Started . . . 5

Chapter 1: Introduction to Altiris Helpdesk Solution 6.0. . . 6

Chapter 2: Installing and Configuring Helpdesk . . . 13

Chapter 3: Security Role Management . . . 21

Chapter 4: Helpdesk Business Rules . . . 24

Helpdesk Help . . . 28

Chapter 5: Menu Quick Reference Guide . . . 29

Chapter 6: The Incidents Menu . . . 31

Incident Settings . . . 31 Worker Report . . . 33 New Incident . . . 35 Find Incidents . . . 43 Queries . . . 46 Bulletins . . . 49

Last Query Results . . . 52

Edit Multiple Incidents . . . 52

Retrieve Queued Incident . . . 54

Delete Incidents . . . 54

Chapter 7: The Quick Incidents Menu . . . 56

Chapter 8: The Admin Menu. . . 60

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Contents

Resource Types . . . 90

Lookups . . . 90

Import Admin Data . . . 91

Export Admin Data . . . 91

Chapter 9: The Contacts Menu. . . 92

Chapter 10: The Assets Menu . . . 95

Chapter 11: The Worker Menu . . . 99

Chapter 12: The Recents Menu . . . 104

Chapter 13: The Knowledge Base Menu . . . 105

Advanced Helpdesk Reference . . . 120

Chapter 14: Helpdesk Knowledge Base . . . 121

Chapter 15: Customization . . . 132

Chapter 16: Advanced Query Settings . . . 150

Chapter 17: Advanced E-mail Template Macros . . . 155

Chapter 18: Data Macros . . . 158

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Getting Started

This section will introduce you to the Altiris Helpdesk Solution and an overview of its features, including installation and security configuration requirements.

Quick Links

“Introduction to Altiris Helpdesk

Solution 6.0” on page 6 Introduction and overview of the Helpdesk Solution. Review Alert Manager vs. Helpdesk Solution feature list.

“Installing and Configuring

Helpdesk” on page 13 Install Notification Server and the Helpdesk Solution. “Security Role Management” on

page 21 Roles dictate privileges to features that are available in the Notification Server and other Altiris suites and solutions, including Helpdesk. “Helpdesk Business Rules” on

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Chapter 1:

Introduction to Altiris Helpdesk Solution 6.0

Altiris® Helpdesk Solution™ provides incident management tools to enhance, expand, and enforce the workflow and resolution of IT helpdesk issues. Helpdesk provides easy-to-use, integrated business rules to route incidents based on features such as, providing an essential foundation of ITIL components to help your organization move from reactive fire-fighting to managing the complexity and demands of IT infrastructure. It allows you to ensure infrastructure availability and raise service levels while reducing costs. Designed for quick implementation, it enables you to realize immediate benefits. Helpdesk Solution is built on the Altiris Notification Server™ architecture and is fully integrated with other Altiris components such as asset management, remote control, and Web-based administration tools.

With the release of Altiris Notification Server 6.0, the Helpdesk file structure is different than previous versions.While these changes were made to improve Notification Server, it also affected the way Alert Manager and Helpdesk Solution are added to the server. Because this release of Helpdesk Solution is complementary to the new Notification Server product, we will detail some of the new features in this section.

When you install Altiris Notification Server 6.0 or later, the installation process will automatically activate Alert Manager. However, if you install a license for Helpdesk Solution, the features of Alert Manager and all features of Helpdesk Solution are enabled.

Throughout this document, all feature references will be made to those available in the Helpdesk Solution. The user interface displays “Helpdesk”, even if you have not installed a Helpdesk Solution license; however, the features displayed on the menu fly-out depend on which product you are using. See “Alert Manager vs. Helpdesk Solution” on page 10 for a complete list of menu features available and the differences between the two products.

The menu features are also contingent on the security set by administrators and managers, so regardless of the product you are using, all features may not be displayed. See “Helpdesk Security” on page 8 for more details.

This Incident Management system is a powerful tool to manage any organization and can track any IT resource, create contacts, report and manage incidents that have been submitted to a Helpdesk department. Some of the features new with this release are outlined below.

IMPORTANT: Notification Server install will create a Helpdesk database called AeXNS_Helpdesk

that is used by Alert Manager. Helpdesk Solution can be configured to use the existing database or create another. If Alert Manager has been used, you will want to use the AeXNS_Helpdesk database to maintain existing data. If you are upgrading from a previous version of Helpdesk Solution, then Helpdesk Solution 6.0 will upgrade your existing database if you prefer.

Knowledge Base Feature

The Knowledge Base is the most requested feature from our Altiris Helpdesk customers.

Recognizing the value of our customer input, we now offer the Knowledge Base as a new feature with this release. The Knowledge Base is a convenient, fully integrated way to capture and preserve information to be used for future reference. Helpdesk workers can search the Knowledge Base to quickly find known errors and other documented processes, which significantly reduces the time required to resolve incidents. See “The Knowledge Base Menu” on page 105 for more details. Some of the features available with the Knowledge Base are listed below.

• Create an article directly from an incident

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Chapter 1: Introduction to Altiris Helpdesk Solution 6.0

• Organize content into hierarchical libraries and scopes for more targeted searching • Search the Knowledge Base from the My Helpdesk console

• Set expiration dates for each article so that outdated articles can be easily archived • Review each article submitted before publishing it to a library or scope

• Set security to restrict the searching and displaying of articles by group • Users can rate the usefulness of articles after they have been retrieved • Articles are tracked by the number of times they are retrieved

• Articles can be searched by keyword or natural language Registration of Tasks

Registration of tasks is an integration feature that enables Helpdesk users to leverage functionality from Web Administrator for Windows and other Altiris Solutions. The feature allows other solutions (consumers) to register contextual URLs associated with incidents. When an incident is being viewed, Helpdesk will provide links that invoke the registered URLs, and help workers run processes that can resolve incidents that meet the tasks’ defined criteria. See “Tasks” on page 78 for more details.

Inbound E-mail Support

This feature lets you monitor a POP3 mailbox for new messages, and automatically map the content of the messages to the fields of new and existing incidents. To help monitor incoming e-mail, you can set inbox filters to help control spam and auto-reply messages. You can also receive e-mail messages that correspond to existing incidents. See “E-mail Inboxes” on page 84 and “E-mail Inbox Filters” on page 87 for more details.

Enhanced Bulletin Board

In previous versions of Helpdesk, bulletins could be broadcast throughout an organization to inform workers and other users of system wide problems, server maintenance schedules, or any other information that could potentially generate a lot of calls to the Helpdesk department. Administrators, managers, and workers now have the ability to create a bulletin from an incident, and then link all incidents reporting the same problem to the bulletin. This lets you track all calls reporting the same problem, managing it as one incident, while keeping all other workers and users informed. When the problem is resolved, and the incident turned bulletin is closed, all incidents linked to the bulletin are closed as well. See “Bulletins” on page 49 for more details.

Quick Incidents

This feature lets administrators define templates for incidents that are most frequently reported, which saves workers from having to manually fill out each field of an incident over and over again. For example, workers that field calls from users that request password resets will enter the same property values in the fields of an incident, every time. Using this feature reduces the amount of time a worker spends on a call because quick templates have most of the information already entered. See “The Quick Incidents Menu” on page 56 for more details.

Incident Rules

Routing rules affect the Assigned field of an incident, where as Incident Rules affect many more

fields of new or modified incidents. Administrators and managers can create incident rules, which are automatically evaluated by the Helpdesk system and will change the field values of incidents it they match the incident rule’s criteria. The rules are easy to configure and do not require any scripting. See “Incident Rules” on page 67 for more details.

Satisfaction Survey

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Improved Summary Pages

The Admin and Worker Report pages have been enhanced to display a more complete summary of incidents entered into the system. Incidents are displayed by item count and time periods and are more easily understood. On the Worker Report page, you can access both shared and personal

incident queries, so that workers can browse through incident data based on any criteria. On the

Admin Report page, a rollup of important incident status values for all active workers is now

available. See “Admin Report” on page 60 and “Worker Report” on page 33 for more details. Edit Multiple Incidents Capability

This feature lets you change selected field values for multiple incidents all at the same time. For example, if a worker is out on vacation or is no longer with the organization, managers and administrators now have the ability to reassign their incidents to another worker. This ensures that all incidents are assigned and routed to an appropriate worker or queue. See “Edit Multiple Incidents” on page 52 for more details.

Quick Links

• “Helpdesk Security” on page 8 • “Accessing Helpdesk” on page 9

• “Alert Manager vs. Helpdesk Solution” on page 10

Helpdesk Security

Notification Server 6.0 installs with five out-of-box groups that are added to the Windows NT Local Groups, they are as follows:

• Altiris Administrator • Altiris Supervisor • Altiris Level 2 Worker • Altiris Level 1 Worker • Altiris Guest

These groups are called Roles and control the access to features available in the Notification Server, and other Altiris suites and solutions. All workers must have a valid NT User ID so that they can be added to one or more of these roles. Helpdesk Solution uses a person’s NT ID to determine the groups or roles that they belong to, and what features are available in the user interface. The privileges for the predefined roles are described below.

Role - Group name added to the NT Local Users and Groups.

Global Privileges - Rights to features that do not have multiple instances, such as; Licensing, Tabs, and more.

Role Permissions - Using NT Authentication, users and groups can be assigned a predefined set of privileges and permissions. There are five out-of-the box groups (roles) that are automatically added to the NT Local Users and Groups. The following role permissions can be granted:

• Read (R): Read permission. Allows users to view objects.

• Write (W): Write permission. Allows user to create items, such as; folders, policies, tasks, and more.

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Scope Permissions - Tasks that can apply actions to a selected collection.

Accessing Helpdesk

You can access Helpdesk through Notification Server’s Altiris Console, or you can use the following URL http://<server name>/aexhd/. If you use the URL address, Helpdesk uses your NT ID and associated roles to route you to an appropriate console.You may also open a specific console (if you have the required privileges) by providing the URL address as described below.

Helpdesk Worker Console: This is used by workers assigned to the Helpdesk department. The features (on the user interface) are enabled according their user authorization and Helpdesk privileges. You can access the Worker console by entering the URL address, http://<server name>/ aexhd/worker.

Role Global Privileges Role Permissions Scope Permissions

Altiris

Administrator - Control over all things.

All. All. All regions or security

scopes.

Altiris Supervisor - Control over most things, including collection, configuration, and report management.

R - Solution Center tab R - Configuration tab RWE - Tasks tab RWE - Collections tab RWE - Reports tab RE - Getting Started tab RWE - Incidents tab

RWE - Tasks RWE - Reports RWE - Collections RWE - Altiris Agent settings

RWE - Alert Manager

Regional or other access scope based.

Altiris Level 2 Worker - Control over most things outside of collection, configuration, and report management.

R - Solution Center tab R - Configuration tab RWE - Tasks tab RE - Collections tab RE - Reports tab RE - Getting Started tab RWE - Incident tab

RWE - Collections R - Altiris Agent settings RWE - Alert Management; Certain Tasks; Software Distribution; Remote Control; Capture Inventory Regional or other access scope based.

Altiris Level 1 Worker - Control over non-critical devices and non-destructive activities.

RE - Tasks tab RE - Collections tab RE - Reports tab RE - Getting Started tab RWE - Incident tab

RE - Reports RE - Collections; Windows Clients, Windows Notebooks RE - Tasks; Non-destructive, Inventory, Application Metering, Baseline, Backup/ Restore R - Altiris Agent Settings RW - Alert Management; Tasks; Non-destructive, Inventory Regional or other access scope based.

Altiris Guest - Access to incidents and reporting features

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My Helpdesk Console: This is for users with an NT ID in an intranet environment and are not Helpdesk workers. This console lets you set up contact information, create incidents, and view bulletins. You can access the My Helpdesk console by entering the URL address, http://<server name>/aexhd/winuser.

Incident Request - NT User: This is for users with an NT ID in an intranet environment and are not Helpdesk workers. This console has fewer features available than My Helpdesk Console. You can access the Incident Request - NT User console by entering the URL address, http://localhost/aexhd/ winuser/NTUser.aspx.

Incident Request - User: This console is for users who want to make requests or report problems but do not have an NT ID. The users and their incidents are tracked by e-mail. You can access the Incident Request - User console by entering the URL address, http://<server name>/aexhd/user.

Incident Request - Guest: This console is for anonymous access to the Helpdesk system from the public internet. Users can report incidents and read bulletins, but only if the bulletins are set for Guest users to view. You can access the Incident Request - Guest console by entering the URL address, http://<server name>/aexhd/guest.

Alert Manager vs. Helpdesk Solution

The Altiris Notification Server 6.0 installation package includes an event management system called Alert Manager, which is automatically installed and activated during the Notification Server installation. Alert Manager receives events that are generated from other Altiris suites and solutions, and creates incidents that are assigned to the appropriate personnel to be resolved. The Helpdesk Solution is a complete Incident Management system where users can create, update, report, and manage all incidents.

There are many advantages in upgrading to the Helpdesk Solution. The additional features give you greater flexibility with increased managing power to enhance the effectiveness of any IT

organization.

The Features List below illustrates the differences between Alert Manager and the Helpdesk Solution. The Menu column shows the menu feature as it appears on the menu fly-out, and the Tasks column lists the commands available for the menu feature. If a menu feature is not displayed on the menu fly-out, then you have not been granted the appropriate privileges by the Systems or Helpdesk administrator. To gain access to any feature not displayed on the menu after you log in to the Helpdesk system, see the Systems or Helpdesk administrator.

Features List

Menu Tasks Alert Manager Helpdesk

The Incidents Menu • Worker Report • New Incident • Find Incidents

• Edit Multiple Incidents • Retrieve Queued Incident • Delete Incidents • • • • • • • • • • • •

Queries • List Queries

• New Query • Delete Query • Last Query Results

• • • • • • • • Bulletins • List Bulletins

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The Quick Incidents

Menu • List Quick Incidents_{• New Quick Incident} • Delete Quick Incidents

• • •

Admin Report • View Status • •

Categories • List Categories • Edit Categories

• •

Tasks • List Tasks

• New Task • Delete Tasks • • • • • • Validation Rules • List Validation Rules

• New Validation Rule • Delete Validation Rules

• • •

•

Routing Rules • List Routing Rules • New Routing Rule • Delete Routing Rules

• • • • • • Incident Rules • List Incident Rules

• New Incident Rule • Delete Incident Rules

• • • • • • Notify Rules • List Notify Rules

• New Notify Rule • Delete Notify Rules

• • • • • • E-mail Templates • List Templates

• New Template • • • • E-mail Inboxes • •

E-mail Inbox Filters • List E-mail Inbox Filter • New E-mail Inbox Filter • Delete E-mail Inbox

Filters

• • •

The Contacts Menu • Contacts Home • Find Contacts • New Contact • Delete Contacts • • • • The Assets Menu • Contacts Home

• Find Assets • New Asset • Delete Assets • • • • The Worker Menu • List Workers

• New Worker • List Queues • New Queue • • • • • • • • Features List

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The Recents Menu • Incidents • Contacts • Assets • • • • • • The Knowledge Base

Menu • Search Articles_{• Publish Existing} Document • Review Article

• Search Article Properties • Libraries • Archive Articles • Delete Articles • • • • • • • Features List

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Chapter 2:

Installing and Configuring Helpdesk

Altiris Helpdesk Solution is a plug-in component of the Altiris® Notification Server™, an infrastructure that provides security, reporting, policy definition and other services for Altiris solutions. The Notification Server infrastructure also includes the Altiris Console, a user interface with features to manage all resources remotely from a remote web browser.

As a plug-in web solution, Helpdesk Solution joins with other Altiris IT management solutions such as: Inventory, Deployment, Application Metering, and Software Delivery solutions. These combined solutions and systems provide comprehensive remote, automated administration of desktops, notebooks, servers, handhelds, network computer devices, and provides integrated incident management from the HelpDesk Solution.

Install Helpdesk Information

To install Helpdesk, you first install the Notification Server, and enable the Helpdesk solution. It is a simple process that can be automated in many different ways depending on your environment and individual requirements. This document details the basic tasks required to set up Notification Server and the Helpdesk Solution.

Important: The Notification Server install creates a Helpdesk database called AeXNS_Helpdesk that is used by Alert Manager. Helpdesk Solution can be configured to use the existing database or create another. If Alert Manager has been used, you will want to use the AeXNS_Helpdesk database to maintain existing data. If you are upgrading from a previous version of Helpdesk Solution, then Helpdesk 6.0 will upgrade your existing database if you prefer.

For general set up information of Altiris products, see the Altiris 6.0 Getting Started Guide. For in-depth planning concepts and rollout instructions for large or distributed environments, see the “Installation” section in the Altiris Notification Server Help.

Quick Links

• “Setup and Installation” on page 13 • “Licensing” on page 17

• “Create a Worker Account” on page 18 • “Localization” on page 18

• “Uninstalling Helpdesk” on page 20

Setup and Installation

Helpdesk Solution 6.0 installs to the Notification Server 6.0 infrastructure with new task-based user interface features, updated security, localized language support, easy-to-use wizards, and integrated IT solutions. In fact, the whole Notification Server infrastructure has been updated, including the Helpdesk Solution and its complementary suite of IT solutions.

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Chapter 2: Installing and Configuring Helpdesk

These major updates will require the installation of Microsoft .NET services, updated MDAC connectivity, increased database requirements, and other design considerations when moving to a production environment. See Altiris Notification Server for complete information.

Setup, installation, and configuration of this product will vary depending on what Altiris products you have installed. Choose one of the following options:

• If you are a new customer: You must review System Requirements to ensure you have met all

software and hardware requirements. Then, you will download and install Altiris Notification Server followed by Installing Helpdesk Solution from the Altiris Console.

Note: If you are evaluating Helpdesk Solution, accept the default settings and install in a test environment with the prescribed server and client computers.

• If Notification Server 6.0 is already installed: Go to Installing Helpdesk Solution from the Altiris

Console to install Helpdesk Solution from the Solution Center.

• If you are upgrading to Notification Server 6.0 and Helpdesk Solution from previous versions:

Because Notification Server 6.0 and Helpdesk Solution 6.0 include major feature upgrades, in many cases you must perform basic update tasks such as: increase allotted disk space for the database, and complete additional design optimization tasks before proceeding. Go to Upgrading from Previous Versions of Helpdesk Solution 6.0 for detailed instructions.

• If you are upgrading to a new release of Helpdesk Solution 6.0: If you already have Helpdesk

Solution 6.0 installed and want to check if there is a new release, go to “Upgrading New Releases of Helpdesk Solution 6.0” on page 17 for details.

System Requirements

The following information shows the system requirements for installing Altiris Notification Server and Helpdesk Solution on the server and setting up the Altiris Agent on all managed client computer devices.

The following are system requirements for the client computer running the Altiris Agent.

Hardware Requirements for Notification Server

Operating System Windows Server 2003, and Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000 Advanced Server with SP2 or later.

Processor Pentium III 800 MHz or faster

RAM 512 MB

1 GB recommended for increased speed and large environments Hard Drive 20 GB (recommended)

105 MB for Notification Server and components (disk space) 1 GB for SQL Server database

File system NTFS partition

Altiris Agent Requirements for the Managed Computer

Operating System Windows 95 or later

Disk space on client 5 MB disk space for Altiris Agent, plus space to install required software.

RAM 64 MB

Browser Microsoft Internet Explorer 4 or later

Worker Console Requirements

Worker Console / End

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Altiris Notification Server

Before you begin the setup and installation process, review the “System Requirements” on page 14 to ensure you have all hardware and software components necessary to proceed.

Follow the instructions to download, install, and configure the settings for the Altiris Notification Server. See the Altiris Notification Server Help. Go to “Installing Helpdesk Solution from the Altiris Console” on page 15 when you have finished installing Notification Server.

Installing Helpdesk Solution from the Altiris

Console

After successfully installing Notification Server, you can download Helpdesk Solution through the Altiris Console.

To download and install Helpdesk Solution

1 Click Start > Programs > Altiris > Altiris Console. 2 Click the Getting Started tab.

3 Click the Install Altiris Solutions from the Solution Center link.

• By default, the Solution Center page opens with the Available Solutions tab view. Click the appropriate Solutions, Suites, or Segments (large suites) button. You can also sort the solutions categorized by the operating system (OS).

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5 Click the Start button on this page to begin downloading and installing the product.

6 From the Altiris Console, click the Configuration tab on the Altiris Console.

7 Click the Currently Installed tab on the Solution Center page. This table will display a list of the

solutions installed on the Notification Server. If the Helpdesk Solution is not listed, try refreshing the web browser’s page, or reinstall the product.

8 Go to “Installing Licenses” on page 17.

Upgrading from Previous Versions of Helpdesk

Solution 6.0

Helpdesk Solution 6.0 installs to Notification Server 6.0, a major update of the Altiris infrastructure. Upgrading to Notification Server 6.0 allows you to further optimize the design of your system, clean up old files and database data, and expand the database to handle the added features included with Notification Server 6.0 and Helpdesk Solution 6.0.

Before you begin to upgrade your system, be sure to backup the database currently used by Notification Server. This ensures that inventory data, status information, custom reports, collections, and policies in the system can be migrated to Notification Server 6.0. After you uninstall previous versions of Notification Server and any Altiris solutions from the Windows operating system, including previous versions of Helpdesk Solution, you can begin upgrading software.

Steps required for Notification Server 6.0 and Helpdesk Solution 6.0 upgrade

Note: The Helpdesk database gets upgraded automatically through this upgrade process. After you upgrade to Helpdesk Solution 6.0, you will still have your Helpdesk information (including incident information) from your previous version of Helpdesk. If you want to create a new Helpdesk Database after you upgrade, you can do this on the Incident Settings page (see “Incident Settings” on

page 31).

1 Back up the Notification Server database. If the database version you are backing up is previous

to the Notification Server 5.5 SP3 database, you must upgrade to that version first, and then perform a database backup.

2 Open Add/Remove Programs from the Control Panel of the Windows operating system.

• Remove Altiris Notification Server

• Remove Altiris Helpdesk Solution, if it was not removed during the Altiris Notification Server

uninstall.

• Remove Inventory Solution and any other Altiris solutions that have been installed, if they

were not removed during the Altiris Notification Server uninstall.

3 Clean up all MSIs and other files from previous installations.

4 Run InstallHelper to identify any missing software required for Notification Solution 6.0. See the

Altiris Notification Server Help for more information.

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Note: As part of the Notification Server 6.0 installation, you are required to specify a database name where all Notification Server data will be stored. You can enter the database name previously backed up, which will upgrade all data to be compatible with Notification Server 6.0, or you can define new SQL Server settings and database name.

6 Install Helpdesk Solution 6.0. See “Installing Helpdesk Solution from the Altiris Console” on

page 15.

Upgrading New Releases of Helpdesk Solution

6.0

Upgrading Helpdesk Solution can be done by doing an upgrade check in the Solution Center. This will install over the top of the existing software. Downloading the latest AeXHD.exe and running it manually will upgrade Helpdesk Solution also. If you use “Add/Remove Programs” to remove the

previous version of Helpdesk, any customization to the web site you made may be lost and have to reconstituted.

Upgrading an interim development database is not supported, and requires the creation of a new database. An interim development database is defined as any database created by a non-released version of Helpdesk Solution.

Interim builds during beta testing should be removed using the “Add/Remove Programs” in the

operating system. Subsequent builds can then be installed once the previous build has been removed. Any time Notification Server is being updated to a newer version along with Helpdesk Solution, Notification Server should be upgraded before upgrading Helpdesk Solution.

IMPORTANT: Beta releases are always required to be installed on test servers and kept separate from released production installations of Helpdesk Solution.

Licensing

Starting with Altiris Helpdesk Solution 6.0, Altiris has changed the Helpdesk Solution licensing model from node based to a concurrent user licensing model. This means that Altiris licenses can be purchased based on a factor of 1 concurrent license for every 100 nodes in the Helpdesk Database. However, you may request a license with a higher node limit, if necessary.

To upgrade to Helpdesk Solution 6.0 or renew Annual Upgrade Protection, you will need to obtain a new license from Altiris Customer Support.

A concurrent user is considered to be anyone who uses the Helpdesk Solution system except employee self-help users (My Helpdesk Console users). Level 1 and Level 2 workers, Supervisors, Administrators, and so forth are all required to have a concurrent license slot available when they log in. Employee self-help users are able to open incidents on their own behalf and check the status of these incidents, as well as search the Knowledge Base, without a license.

When a user requiring a license logs into the system, Helpdesk allows the user to search for and view incidents without running a license check. The moment the user attempts to edit an incident or create a new incident, Helpdesk asks the Notification Server for the number of concurrent sessions allowed by the license. If the number of open sessions is less than the number allowed by the license, the user will be allowed to save the record. If not, the user will be denied the ability to save changes with an appropriate screen message, and will be returned to the Edit Incident screen with all modifications

intact. There is also a time-out feature that automatically frees the concurrent license slot after 30 minutes of inactivity. The license slot will be taken again when the user updates or creates an incident record.

Installing Licenses

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To install licenses

1 From the Altiris Console, click the Configuration tab. 2 In the tree view, click Licensing.

3 In the content pane, click the Install License tab. 4 Click Path to license folder.

• Click Browse to navigate where the license product key information is located, and then click

Install License.

<OR>

5 Click Paste content to Licenses below (default option).

• Copy and paste the license product key information into the text field, and then click Install

License.

Create a Worker Account

After installing Helpdesk and applying the Helpdesk license, you will be required to set up an administrator to implement role-based security. The worker name you add must be in the Altiris Administrators group through Security Role Management on the Altiris Console (which uses the Windows NT file system). By default, the administrator has the appropriate privileges to complete the Helpdesk setup and installation steps. See “Security Role Management” on page 21 for more information.

To create a Worker account

1 From the Altiris Console, click the Incidents tab.

2 Enter a name in the Worker name field. This is the user name that is used by the administrator to log on to the Helpdesk system. By default, the user name you are logged on to the Notification Server with is the name that appears on the Create worker account page.

3 Enter the worker property values in the fields on the page.

4 Click OK.

Localization

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incident titles and comments will not. Information from other components, such as error messages from SQL Server, is displayed in the configured language of the server or will be in English, depending on how other components were installed.

Note: You must change the locale setting of the computer to view the language in Internet Explorer 6.0 or later.

Configure Regional Option

1 Click Start>Settings>Control Panel>Regional Options.

Worker Console

• Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 or later, Netscape Navigator 3.0 or later, Opera 4.0 or later End User Console

• Although Helpdesk Solution works from any web browser, it works best with Internet Explorer 6.0 or later

2 Select one of the supported languages from the drop-down list.

• English • Spanish • French • German • Portuguese (Brazilian) • Japanese • Simplified Chinese

3 Click Apply, then OK.

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Uninstalling Helpdesk

To ensure that Helpdesk Solution uninstalls from the Notification Server cleanly and successfully, perform a stop and restart of IIS prior to removing the product.

Caution: Restarting IIS will cause current users to lose their work.

You can uninstall the Altiris Helpdesk Solution by selecting Add/Remove Programs from the Control

Panel of the Windows operating system.

Files that have been added to the Helpdesk Solution custom directories will not be deleted by

Uninstall; however, files installed by the Setup program that you modified will be deleted.

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Chapter 3:

Security Role Management

When you install Notification Server 6.0, five new groups are be added to the Local Users and Groups for NT authentication. These groups are provided so you can control the attributes of the solution available to users based on privileges set by the Altiris System Administrator. These groups are considered Roles, which dictate privileges to features available in the Notification Server and other Altiris suites and solutions. You can add as many Roles as you want to fit the needs of your organization.

All users must have a valid NT User ID and be assigned to a Role in order to use Helpdesk Solution. Helpdesk Solution determines a person’s NT ID and the Role in which they are assigned in order to determine what features are available in the user interface. The privileges for each role are described in “Roles and Privileges” on page 21.

For more information on Security Role Management, see the Altiris Notification Server Help. To change the Role Management settings

1 From the Altiris Console, click the Configuration tab.

2 Click Server Settings > Notification Server Settings > Security Role Management.

3 In the right pane, click on one of the management Roles.

4 Click the scroll arrow in the lower pane and select or clear the Global Privileges.

5 Click Apply.

Roles and Privileges

There are five default Roles added to the NT Local Groups when Notification Server gets installed. These Roles have been designed to give you the security you need in a typical helpdesk environment. For example, only the Altiris Administrators have permission to delete incidents. This prevents users from accidentally deleting incidents. This also prevents users from intentionally deleting incidents that might reflect negatively on them.

The following table describes the Roles as they are designed for specific types of users. You can edit these Roles or add Roles to fit your needs.

Altiris Guests: Altiris Guests by default do not have access to the Incidents tab or the Worker Console (that is accessed in the Incidents tab view). Those who belong to this group can still use the MyHelpdesk, NTUser, and user (authenticated by e-mail address) consoles. Altiris Guests have access to the Reports tab. You can then grant guests permissions to run specific reports or view saved reports.

Altiris Level 1 Workers: Level 1 Workers have the rights to create incidents, edit incidents, create bulletins, and search and view Knowledge Base articles. Users assigned to this role are full Helpdesk workers and are able to work in the worker console. Level 1 workers are the front-line Helpdesk workers. They answer the call when the end-user calls the support number.

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Chapter 3: Security Role Management

Altiris Supervisors: Users assigned to this role have all of the Level 2 Worker rights and also the rights to administer the Knowledge Base.

Altiris Administrators: Users assigned to this role have all rights to administer Helpdesk.

Role Management Default Settings

Role Name Global Privileges

Altiris Administrator Incident Privileges • Administer Incidents • Create Bulletins • Edit Incidents

• Edit Multiple Incidents • Manage Workers • View Incidents Altiris Management Privileges • Create Agent Settings

• Create Collections • Create Reports

• Create Notification Policies • Create Shortcuts

Altiris System Privileges • Change Security • Import XML • Take Ownership • View Security • Edit SQL Directly Helpdesk Privileges • Change Security

• Import XML • Take Ownership • View Security • Edit SQL Directly Altiris Console Privileges • View Incidents Tab

• View Resources Tab • View Configuration Tab • View Reports Tab • View Tasks Tab

• View Getting Started Tab

Altiris Guests Incident Privileges • None available Altiris Management Privileges • None available Altiris System Privileges • None available Helpdesk Privileges • None available Altiris Console Privileges • View Reports Tab

Altiris Level 1

Workers Incident Privileges • Create Bulletins_{• Edit Incidents}

• View Incidents Altiris Management Privileges • None available Altiris System Privileges • None available Helpdesk Privileges • Create Incidents

• Create Knowledge Base Articles

Altiris Console Privileges • View Incidents Tab • View Resources Tab • View Configuration Tab • View Reports Tab • View Tasks Tab

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Chapter 3: Security Role Management

Altiris Level 2

Workers Incident Privileges • Create Bulletins_{• Edit Incidents}

• View Incidents Altiris Management Privileges • Create Agent Settings

Altiris System Privileges • None available Helpdesk Privileges • Create Incidents

Altiris Supervisors Incident Privileges • Create Bulletins • Edit Incidents • Manage Workers • View Incidents Altiris Management Privileges • Create Agent Settings

Altiris System Privileges • View Security Helpdesk Privileges • Create Incidents

Role Management Default Settings

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Chapter 4:

Helpdesk Business Rules

Helpdesk Solution provides powerful routing and notification tools. These tools can automatically route incidents through your Helpdesk system and notify anyone at any step, giving you a way to enforce your corporate policies, business rules, and any service level agreements you have. These tools are: Validation Rules, Routing Rules, Incident Rules, Notify Rules, and Automated Actions.

These tools are very flexible and easy to use. Rules can be created at any time and are active as soon as they are created. Any time the Save button is clicked on an incident page, all active Rules which apply to that incident get run in the following order:

• Validation Rules • Incident Rules • Routing Rules • Notify Rules

Validation Rules are run first to ensure that all data that is required from the user is in place when the rest of the Rules run.

The Rules (Validation, Incident, Routing, and Notify Rules) get applied to an incident immediately after the Save button on that incident is clicked. Automated Actions are associated with Notification Policies, which are time based. Notification Policies run on a set schedule.

• Validation Rules - Validation Rules allow you to define a new set of rules to ensure that modifications to an incident meet certain criteria before they can be saved. For more information, see “Validation Rules” on page 64.

• Routing Rules - Routes incidents to an individual or a queue and lets you set the status of each

Assigned field. Routing Rules lets you get the incident to the right worker. For more information,

see “Routing Rules” on page 71.

• Incident Rules - These go a step beyond Routing Rules and let you affect any field in the incident. This gives you control over creating a workflow process. For more information, see “Incident Rules” on page 67.

• Notify Rules - Notifies workers or groups via e-mail of an incident based on criteria that you set. For more information, see “Notify Rules” on page 74.

• Automated Actions - Specifies the action to take when a Notification Policy is run. Each Notification Policy can have multiple Automated Actions. Automated Actions let you send e-mail, launch applications, and launch reports. For more information on Notification Policies and Automated Actions, see the Altiris Notification Server Help.

You can set up e-mail notification through the use of Notify rules or Notification Policies. Notify rules send e-mail immediately after the incident is saved. Notification Policies send e-mail on a set schedule.

Using Rules and Automated Actions

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Chapter 4: Helpdesk Business Rules

Scenario 1 - Using Routing Rules to enforce your Service Level

Agreements

Suppose a telephone call comes in from someone who is wants some software installed. The worker assigns the incident to the category of Add/Install software and gives it a Medium priority.

Suppose a Routing Rule has been put in place to automatically route all incidents of this category type to a Desktop Software queue. When the worker saves the incident, it then automatically gets placed in the Desktop Software queue.

Suppose you have a Service Level Agreement to respond to all incidents within 24 hours. You can set up an Automated Action in a Notification Policy to notify someone if that incident has not been responded to in 24 hours. Or you can set up an Automated Action to assign that incident to another worker.

This helps you enforce your Service Level Agreement by sending out an e-mail or updating the priority or status or routing the incident to another person.

Now suppose this incident gets escalated by getting sent to another worker because it has not been responded to in the set amount of time. This worker then changes the status on the incident and saves the incident. Suppose you have an Incident Rule that sets the value of the Category field every time the status of an incident changes. This incident will then be placed in a different queue (perhaps an escalation queue) when the incident is saved.

Scenario 2 - Using Incident Rules to enforce your Service Level

Agreements

Suppose you have a Service Level Agreement to fix network printer problems as soon as possible. You can create an Incident Rule to change all incidents that are logged against an asset that is a network printer to the ASAP priority.

To create an Incident Rule to change incidents with Asset type of “Network Printer” to the ASAP priority

1 From the Incidents tab of the Altiris Console, select Admin > Incident Rules > New Incident Rule. 2 Enter the name of the Rule (“All Network Printers to ASAP” for example).

3 Enter a comment to describe the Rule in more detail.

4 In the Set these properties section, select Priority from the drop-down list, and then click the Add

button.

5 Select the specific Priority to automatically assign (ASAP for example) and then click OK.

Note: You can enter as many properties as you want.

6 In the When section, select Asset type from the drop-down list, and then click the Add button. 7 Select the When the value of “Asset type” check-box, and then select is equal to and Network Printer

from the drop-down lists.

8 Click the OK button.

9 Select the Active and/or Terminal check-boxes depending on your needs. 10 Click OK to save this Incident Rule.

11 When an Incident Rule is created, the status is automatically set to Active.

To view an Incident Rule

1 From the Incidents tab of the Altiris Console, select Admin > Incident Rules > List Incident Rules. 2 From here, you can view, edit, delete, or create Incident Rules.

Now when incidents are created for network devices with the Asset type of “Network Printer”, the

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Scenario 3 - Using Notify Rules to notify customers when an incident

resolves

Notify Rules allow you to notify people at any stage of the incident process, all according to your needs. You can create a Notify Rule that runs only when the status of an incident changes from Open

to Resolved. You can use this Notify Rule to notify a customer that the incident has been resolved

and asks them to verify.

Scenario 4 - Using categorization to process a new employee

Helpdesk Solution can help you set up a process for new employees. When a new employee comes in, a request is made to create a new employee incident. When a new employee incident comes through, there should be an approval request. So, when a new employee incident comes in, the category of Authorize Approve is selected. When this happens, an e-mail gets sent to the person

responsible of approval (for example, a manager). That person replies to the e-mail and the incident gets assigned a new category (such as Service Request) and gets placed in the appropriate queue. The

owner of the incident then monitors it. Then a whole new set of Rules can come into play based on the new category.

You can also set up Tasks to show up on an incident based on certain criteria. For example, a new employee incident might have the following Tasks show up:

• Get approval

• Show me the assets that are in stock • Go get a computer from receiving

• Install the default image (with a link to Deployment Solution) • Install additional software (with links to that software)

Scenario 5 - Using Automated Actions to escalate the priority

Notification Policies are time-based, running automatically on the schedule you want. Each Notification Policy can have one or more Automated Actions, which perform a separate task when the policy runs.

Suppose you want to escalate the priority of all incidents of High priority to ASAP every 2 days. Helpdesk Solution comes with several built-in Notification Policies. One of these is called Escalate

Incident Priority: High to ASAP. This policy, when enabled and on a business schedule (every hour

during business hours), changes the priority on all incidents of High priority to ASAP. These incidents are then re-assigned based on applicable Routing Rules. For example, this might let you forward these incidents to a different group that handles incidents with ASAP priority.

This Notification Policy can be changed to fit your needs. For example, you can change the schedule on this Notification Policy from hourly during business hours to every 2 days. Now, this policy runs on a 2 day schedule.

If you want to keep this policy, but also have a slightly different policy, you can clone it and change the clone. Suppose you clone this policy and change its schedule to run every 2 days. Now, suppose you want to send an e-mail informing the helpdesk supervisor which incidents had their priority changed. In this policy, you would create a new Report Automated Action that runs a report and set it up to send an e-mail containing the report. Now, when the Notification Policy runs, incident priorities are changed from High to ASAP and a report is generated and e-mailed.

You can also create Notification Policies from scratch if you desire.

For more information on Notification Policies and Automated Actions, see the Altiris Notification

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Complex Conditions for Helpdesk Business Rules

Helpdesk Business Rules are governed by conditions that you set up. When the condition or conditions of a Rule occur, Helpdesk runs the Rule. These conditions can be simple or complex. Simple conditions are usually non-nested condition groups which use data from the Helpdesk Database. Complex conditions are usually nested condition groups or are advanced conditions which use data from the Notification Database.

When you create Rules or Tasks, you specify conditions for when the Rule is run or the Task is available. Helpdesk gives you the ability to nest condition groups.

The available condition groups are:

• When ALL of these are TRUE

• When ANY of these are TRUE

• When ANY of these are FALSE

• When ALL of these are FALSE

The default is When ALL of these are TRUE.

Condition groups can be nested inside each other. You can add as many conditions as you want to a group and add or nest as many condition groups as you want. To nest a condition group, click inside a condition group, then click the Add a “When… <end>” group icon. A new condition group will be

added.

The FALSE conditions let you provide exceptions to your Rules. For example, suppose you have the following Routing Rule: When ALL of these are TRUE

When ALL of these are TRUE

“Category” is the same as “Article Review” <end>

When ANY of these is FALSE “Status” is equal to “Hold” <end>

<end>

This lets you route an incident in the Article Review queue except when it has a status of “Hold”. Advanced Conditions

Helpdesk stores only a subset of asset information from the Notification Database. The drop-down list used for selecting conditions in a Rule or Task lists this subset of information. Helpdesk provides a way to use any data from the Notification Database by selecting Advanced condition in the

drop-down list.

You can select the Advanced condition at the bottom of the condition drop-down list (listed as

<Advanced condition>). When you select <Advanced condition> and click the Add button, you can

enter any condition that you want by using the AEXQUERY macro.

Notification Server data from any Notification Server field can be retrieved using the AEXQUERY macro. The AEXQUERY macro specifies a SQL query to run against the Notification Database. Because this data is intended to replace a single value in the invoking text stream, this query must return a single scalar value of any length. Failure to do so means that the macro fails to resolve. In order to relate Helpdesk asset data to the correct Notification Server data, the SQL query within the AEXQUERY macro can contain WORKITEM macros to select values from the Notification Database based on asset name, NS ID, and so forth.

The AEXQUERY macro lets you query directly into the Notification Database using SQL. For example, you can create a query that looks for the asset of a resource that is associated with an incident and gathers inventory detail. You can also create a condition for when the asset is “Server” and the Operating System is “Windows 2003 SP2”.

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Helpdesk Help

This section identifies the major features of the Helpdesk consoles. Each of the major menus accessible from the Helpdesk console are listed below.

Quick Links

“Menu Quick Reference Guide”

on page 29 See the Helpdesk menu structure and the commands available for each specific features. “The Incidents Menu” on page 31 An incident is a reported issue or request for service, with

general or specific information about the nature of the issue. Workers or queues responding to incidents can add processes or step procedure to the incident itself, or publish a Knowledge Base article to help others know how to resolve the incident being reported.

“The Quick Incidents Menu” on

page 56 The Quick Incidents commands are used to manage quick incidents, which are used by workers to create new incidents for commonly reported problems or requests.

“The Admin Menu” on page 60 This menu is reserved for administrators and managers, who have been granted the appropriate privileges, to use some of the most powerful administrative features of the Helpdesk Solution. “The Contacts Menu” on page 92 Contacts are users who request help, or managers acting as the

contact point for another user for the associated problem or request. Each user should be defined in the database as a contact. Workers are also contacts and their information is stored in the database as well. Contacts are associated with incidents. “The Assets Menu” on page 95 Assets can be any resource that you want to track through the

Helpdesk database, such as; computers, printers, monitors, network hubs, and more.

“The Worker Menu” on page 99 The Worker menu is displayed if you have the appropriate privileges to perform tasks such as, setting up new workers, changing hourly rates, assigning worker to queues, and managing queues in the Helpdesk system.

“The Recents Menu” on page 104 The Recents menu provides a convenient way for you to find the most recent incidents, contacts, and assets you have accessed. The recents menu is divided into three sections; Incidents,

Contacts, and Assets.

“The Knowledge Base Menu” on

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Chapter 5:

Menu Quick Reference Guide

The Menu Quick Reference Guide lists the Helpdesk menu structure and the commands available for

each feature. The menu quick reference guide has links to take you directly to specific topics, which will provide greater detail to help you become more familiar with the Helpdesk Solution.

When you log on to the Helpdesk system, the features displayed in the menu fly-outs are conditional, based on the privileges you have been granted by the administrators. For example, if you do not have privileges to administer the Knowledge Base, you will not find the command displayed on the Helpdesk menu.

Menu Quick Reference Guide

Menu Tasks

The Incidents Menu • New Incident • Find Incidents

Queries • List Queries

• New Query • Delete Queries

Bulletins • List Bulletins

• New Bulletin • Delete Bulletins • Last Query Results

• Edit Multiple Incidents • Retrieve Queued

Incident • Delete Incidents The Quick Incidents

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Chapter 5: Menu Quick Reference Guide

The Admin Menu • Admin Report

Categories • List Categories

• Edit Categories

Tasks • List Tasks

• New Task • Delete Tasks Routing Rules • List Routing Rules

• New Routing Rule • Delete Routing Rules Incident Rules • List Incident Rules

• New Incident Rule • Delete Incident Rules Notify Rules • List Notify Rules

• New Notify Rule • Delete Notify Rules E-mail Templates • List Templates

• New Template E-mail Inboxes • List E-mail Inboxes

• New E-mail Inbox • Delete E-mail Inboxes E-mail Inbox Filters • List E-mail Inbox Filters

• New E-mail Inbox Filter • Delete E-mail Inbox

Filters The Contacts Menu • Contact Home

• Find Contacts • New Contact • Delete Contacts The Assets Menu • Asset Home

• Find Assets • New Asset • Delete Assets The Worker Menu • List Workers

• New Worker • List Queues • New Queue The Recents Menu • Incidents

• Contacts • Assets The Knowledge Base

Menu • Configure the Knowledge Base • Search Articles • Publish Existing Document • Review Article • Search Article Properties • Libraries • Archive Articles • Delete Articles

Menu Quick Reference Guide

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Chapter 6:

The Incidents Menu

An incident is a reported issue or request for service, with general or specific information about the nature of the issue. Workers or queues responding to incidents can add processes or step procedure to the incident itself, or publish a Knowledge Base article to help others know how to resolve the incident being reported.

Workers assigned to the Helpdesk department will create a new incident for each issue or request reported by other users. Incidents are assigned to either a worker or a queue when they are created. Routing rules, set by administrators and managers with the appropriate privileges, can also be applied to incidents, which helps direct them to an appropriate person or queue for resolution. You can use the Find Incidents command to search for incidents already entered in the Helpdesk system, or you can use the Queries command to retrieve data based on specific values. Both of these method are similar, because you have the option of saving the search criteria used in the find incidents command as a new query.

Incidents can become bulletins, which lets workers link to other incidents to the bulletin as a means of tracking system wide problems. A bulletin that informs workers about a major problem can help distribute information to a broad audience, while the incidents linked to the bulletin are managed as one call. When the problem is resolved and the incident that became the bulletin can be closed, all the incidents linked to the bulletin are automatically closed.

Incidents can have a contact or an asset associated with them, send e-mails, attach files, and link to other incidents. All these features and more, are available through the Incident fly-out menu. Helpdesk Solution gives you the ability to manage your IT infrastructure by tracking and routing each request in the most efficient manner possible.

Quick Links

• “Incident Settings” on page 31 • “Worker Report” on page 33 • “New Incident” on page 35 • “Find Incidents” on page 43 • “Queries” on page 46 • “Bulletins” on page 49

• “Last Query Results” on page 52 • “Edit Multiple Incidents” on page 52 • “Retrieve Queued Incident” on page 54 • “Delete Incidents” on page 54

Incident Settings

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Chapter 6: The Incidents Menu Incident Settings

The incidents database gets created when Alert Manager is installed (at the installation of Notification Server) and is used by Helpdesk Solution. The Incident Settings page gives you the

ability to create a new database. However, if you create a new database, the data in your old database will not transfer over and you will need to configure your Helpdesk Knowledge Base again. If you create a new database, your old database will be preserved so you can use it again in the future. Keep in mind that data will only be added to the selected database on the Incident Settings page.

The advantage of keeping incidents stored in a separate database instead of combining data in the Notification Database, is that you can perform search commands much faster.

To configure Incidents

1 From the Altiris Console, click the Configuration tab. 2 Click Notification Server Settings > Incident Settings.

3 Enter a property value in the Database field if you do not want to keep the default name. 4 Select the check box if you want to use a specific SQL login.

a Enter a property value in the User name field. b Enter a property value in the Password field.

c Click Test Connection to make sure you can connect to the database.

5 Select Synchronize resource and incident data with Notification Server, if desired. For more

information, see “Importing Assets and Contacts from Notification Server” on page 32.

6 Select Read e-mail from active e-mail inboxes, if desired and enter the Inbox processing interval (in

seconds).

7 Select Process deletions and multiple incident edits, if desired and enter the Incident processing

interval (in seconds).

8 Click Apply.

Importing Assets and Contacts from Notification

Server

Alert Manager automatically imports Notification Server resources into its own database for use as Assets. Initially, Alert Manager imports Computer resources only. Use the Resource Types

command under the Admin menu on the Incidents tab to choose the types of resources to be imported.

This process is also called “autoupdating” because it happens automatically.

This process occurs in the background on a schedule you can set on the Incident Settings page. You

can disable all automatic integration with Notification Server by clearing the Synchronize resource

and incident data with Notification Server check-box. The Synchronize Interval can be any integer

number of seconds greater than or equal to 60.

The autoupdate process is efficient but it can take several seconds of CPU time to run on very large databases. Do not set the interval too small. The default for a new installation is 3600 seconds (one hour). Most of the data imported into Alert Manager changes very slowly, if ever; a more aggressive schedule is usually not required. If you want to force an autoupdate, run the Resource Types

command, choose Edit and then OK without changing the list. That will cause the autoupdate process

to start in the background.

The autoupdate process executes the queries found in the /AexHD/templates/nssource.xml file. This file has more detailed information about how the queries work. The queries are carefully designed to only return resources that are new or whose data differs from the data stored in the Alert Manager tables.