Sending Notifications


Overview

Tasks

Included with

Tivoli Service Desk

Overview

Sending notifications on demand

You can send a notification to any other Tivoli Service Desk user at any time. A notification does not need to relate to a specific call or problem (although it can).

You do not need to remember pager numbers, e-mail addresses, or fax machine numbers to send a non-alarm notification. The system administrator sets up notification methods that contain this information for users and groups . See Maintaining Notification Methods for Users and Groups.

Choosing a notification type

Your system administrator can establish default notification types for each user or group of users. You can choose a different notification type in certain circumstances. For example, if you are sending a notification to an analyst who is out of the office, you may prefer to send a pager signal rather than a Tivoli Service Desk alarm.

Send Notification dialog box

You use the Send Notification dialog box to send notifications to another Tivoli Service Desk user at any time.

To access the Send Notification dialog box, do one of the following

  • If you are using the Problem Management Administrator profile, the Problem Management Analyst profile, or the Problem Management Field Analyst profile, from the File menu, choose Send Notifications.
  • If you are using the Tivoli Service Desk User profile, from the File menu, choose Send Notifications.
  • From the Help menu, choose Your System Profile and follow the instructions under Send Notifications.
  • In the Alarm Monitor window, from the Actions menu, choose Send Notifications.
  • In the Alarm Manager dialog box, choose Set New.
  • In the Alarm Manager dialog box, from the Alarms list, select an alarm and choose Fwd.

    Result:
    The Send Notification dialog box appears.

Notification Options dialog box

The Notification Options dialog box enables you to notify a user or group that a call is being dispatched or a problem is being transferred. You can set the notification date and time and also select a notification method.

To access the Notification Options dialog box:

  • In the Transfer Problem dialog box or Call Dispatch dialog box, choose Notifications Options.

    Result: The Notifications Options dialog box appears.

Tasks

Sending notifications

To send a notification:
  1. In the Send Notification dialog box, under Notify, do one of the following:
    • To send the notification to one person, select Person.
    • To send the notification to a group of people, select Group.
  2. Did you select Person?
    • If no, go to the step 3.
    • If yes, do one of the following:
      • Type part of the last name of the person. If a match is found, the First Name, Middle Name and Phone boxes are completed automatically.
      • In the Last Name box, type the complete last name of the person.
  3. Did you select Group?
    • If no, go to step 4.
    • If yes, in the Recipient box, type the name of the Group or choose Browse to select the group from the Work with Groups dialog box, then do one of the following:
      • To send a separate notification to each user in the specified group, as though they were each specified as a single user in the Recipient box, select the Send Individual Copies check box.
      • To send one notification addressed to the group ID, clear the Send Individual Copies check box.
    • Sending alarms to groups: If you select Alarms as the notification type in step 4, each user in the group is notified of the alarm regardless of the Send Individual Copies setting. If the Send Individual Copies check box is cleared, only one alarm record is created. If one of the users in the group deletes this alarm notification from the Alarms for list in the Alarm Manager dialog box, it is removed from the Alarm Manager dialog box for all the users in the group.

  4. From the Notification Type list, select one of the notification types set up for this user or group.
  5. In the Title box, type the notification message title.
    Note: Not all notification types may use message titles.
  6. In the Regarding box, type the notification subject line.
    Note: Most e-mail systems support this information, but there is no guarantee that all notification types support it.
  7. In the Notification Text box, type the text of your message.
  8. Do you want to send the notification immediately?
    • If yes, go to the step 9.
    • If no, in the Notification Date box, indicate when you want to send the notification by typing the date or choosing the Calendar button to select a date. See Selecting Dates. Then, in the Notification Time box, type the time the notification should be sent.
  9. Choose OK.
    Result: The Send Notification dialog box closes. The notification is sent to the specified user or group. If the Send Individual Copies check box is selected, copies are sent to each member of the specified group as though they were each specified as a single user in the Recipient box.

Sending notifications when transferring calls or problems

You can send a notification to a help desk analyst or group of analysts anytime you dispatch or transfer a call or problem. This notification alerts the help desk analyst or group of analysts that the transfer has taken place. This notification can appear in Tivoli Problem Management as an alarm or it can trigger an e-mail message, pager signal, fax, or some other form of communication, depending on the notification type you choose in the Notification Options dialog box.

To send a notification when dispatching calls, or transferring calls or problems:

  1. In the Call Dispatch dialog box, Transfer Call dialog box, or Transfer Problem dialog box, select the Send Notification check box.
  2. To specify a recipient, under Recipient Infomation, select a user or group name.
    Result: The selected name and the associated site ID appear in the Recipient box.
  3. To select a notification method other than the default for this user or group, choose Notification Options. For more information, see Changing notification options.
  4. Choose OK.
    Result: The notification is sent to the specified user or group of users.

Changing notification options

To change how a notification is handled:
  1. In the Notification Options dialog box, to send the notification to a different user or group:
    • Under Notify, select Person or Group, then do one of the following:
      • If you selected Person, in the Last Name box, type a different name.
      • If you selected Group, in the Recipient box, change the recipient name by typing another user name or choosing Browse.

    Note: In some cases, you cannot change user or group names in the Notification Options dialog box. Return to the dialog where you chose Notifications Options and select a different user or group.

  2. To send individual notifications to each user in the group:
    • Under Notify, select Group.
    • Select the Send Individual Copies check box.
  3. To delay the notification, in the Notification Date and Notification Time boxes, change the date and time.
  4. To change the way the notification is sent, from the Notification Type list, select a notification type.
    Note: If a default notification type has not been established for this user or group, Notification Type is automatically set to Alarms. The system administrator establishes the notification types available for any user or group. If a desired type is not present in the Notification Type list, contact your system administrator.
  5. Choose OK.
    Result: Depending on where you accessed the Notification Options dialog box, either the Call Registration Dispatch, Transfer Call, or Transfer Problem dialog box reappears.