Ticket priority - Rationale
In order for Desktop Support to serve our customers better, we prioritize requests for help. There are 4 priority levels (described below) which may be assigned to each request, based on the client's assessment of urgency and the disruption to University business.
Response Time - Guidelines
The time frames defined below are goals we try to meet consistently. Often we can do better. However, they are not intended as service guarantees. Response time represents the time it should take from the moment you receive an automated e-mail from our ticketing system until you are contacted by a Desktop Support staff member. If you feel your request has not been responded to in a timely fashion, please escalate your request by calling a Help Desk or Desktop manager.
Request Response Process
- The request is received
- A ticket is generated and transferred to desktop support
- E-mail is sent notifying you that your ticket has been created
- A Desktop Support technician responds within the appropriate window
- Once the technician has resolved your issue, the ticket is closed
- E-mail is sent notifying you that your ticket has been closed.
Urgent - within 1 hour
Problem affects several people or interferes with important deadline.
We request urgent requests be phoned into the Help Desk for quickest service.
Process:
With urgent tickets, the following additional steps are taken with a request
- The Help Desk staff who took the request contacts a Desktop Support technician directly
- Help Desk updates the ticket indicating the Desktop Support person who is now responsible for the ticket
Examples of Urgent tickets:
- Multiple users are affected
- There is no workaround for the issue
- Caller has an immediate deadline or sensitive task
- Caller is giving a presentation and having problems
- Virus or security related issue
High - within 4 hours
Problem significantly impacts a client's ability to work.
We request high-priority requests be phoned into the Help Desk for quickest service.
Examples of High priority tickets:
- Caller's computer is down
- Caller's network is down or slow
- Caller cannot log in to a key computer service
- Software or application issue that affects ability to work
- Caller has a deadline or sensitive task
Medium - within 1 business day
There is a workaround to the problem or client can work on other tasks.
Medium-priority requests may be phoned into the Help Desk or submitted by email to oit@uci.edu.
Examples of Medium priority tickets:
- One application is misbehaving but your computer is still able to function (ex. Error message from one program, but other computer tasks work)
- You have a workaround to your issue (ex. one PC is down, but there is another PC the client can use)
- Your main printer is down, but you can print to other network printers
- You can't get to certain files, but someone else has a copy or you have the necessary files to work on other projects
Low - within 2 business days
The problem does not represent an immediate disruption to business.
Lower-priority requests may be phoned into the Help Desk or submitted by email to oit@uci.edu.
Examples of Lower priority tickets:
- New computer setups
- Non urgent software requests
- Non urgent computer orders