Using JIRA applications for Helpdesk or Support
Introduction
Customers expect timely responses and resolutions to their questions and problems. Behind the scenes, however, it is easy for an issue to go unresolved, be forgotten or simply slip through the cracks. This is where JIRA applications can help!
JIRA applications is a highly customisable and inexpensive system that never loses track of support requests. It works well as a help-desk and support ticket system because it can:
- Customise JIRA applications according to existing support practices.
- Easily keep track of tickets and people.
- Use JIRA applications as both the support ticket and issue/bug tracker.
Helpdesk Sample File
This sample file is just an example of how JIRA applications may be used in a Help Desk environment; it is not the only method. By restoring this sample file into a JIRA applications instance, it will lose overwrite data previously created and as such as recommend either to backup the instance or restore it into a fresh one. This sample file was created using JIRA 4.4.3 and can be used by simply importing the backup into the most recent JIRA version and installing the third-party plugins.
Recommended Plugins
As these plugins are either third-party or Atlassian Labs they may not be actively maintained or kept up-to-date with the latest versions of JIRA. Please ensure to check their compatibility prior to installing them.
JIRA applications can be further enhanced for Helpdesk/Support by adding plugins. In this sample file, some third-party plugins will be required for some user dashboards to work properly. If the plugins aren't installed, JIRA can still operate however it won't have the additional specialised functionality available from the plugins.
Please follow the instructions for each plugin listed below and be sure to create all the needed custom fields as explained in each plugin. Links to their documentation can be found on the Atlassian Marketplace.
- Filter List (this plugin is only available up to JIRA 4.4.5).
- Show Saved Filter With Select Columns
- JIRA Toolkit
- Links Hierarchy Reports
- Workflow Report
Other plugins can be found can view all available JIRA plugins on the Atlassian Marketplace.
Installing
Sample data is from JIRA 4.4.3 and may not work with the latest versions of JIRA applications.
- Either back up the JIRA applications instance, as per our Backing Up Data documentation, or set up a fresh JIRA applications instance using an evaluation license.
- Download the sample file here and restore it, as per our Restoring Data page.
- (Optional): Install the third-party plugins above.
Click on each arrow to learn more about each feature.
Here you can see what issue types are used in each project:
Below is the list of workflow statuses that an issue can be in. Some things to note are:
- When an issue is created its SLA will be set automatically. The SLA is based on the priority.
- Issues on hold are still counted towards the SLA, they can not be paused for SLA in this example.
All projects use the 'default 3 stage workflow with hold options', the exceptions are:
- 'Suggested Improvement' project uses the 'suggested improvement 2 stage basic workflow' which offers a basic open and close workflow.
- 'New User Form' project and 'User Request' project use the 'user request 3 stage basic workflow' which does not offer all the holding options.
All projects use the same Issue Security Scheme. Below is an explanation and picture of the Issue Security Levels in this scheme:
- Reporter and I.T staff - the default setting, only the reporter of the issue and I.T staff can view the issue.
- H.R and I.T - issues can be seen by everyone in the HR and I.T staff groups.
- Everyone! - these issues are for company wide viewing when logged into JIRA applications.
All user passwords are the same: password
The main username to login with is: rmk, as he has full JIRA applications admin rights and is also a member of the Helpdesk group.
You can also jump to another user quickly by clicking their name in the top bar from the home page:
Helpdesk Sample File Features
- Based on using JIRA applications internally for one company.
- 10 users in the database.
- 9 new groups (not including default groups).
- 3 new project roles (not including default Roles).
- I.T Department reports and SLAs.
- Specific user reports.
- 10 Projects defined as common helpdesk support items.
