Edit requests in the Service Portal

Search for	Example	Results
A single word	`cat`	Topics that contain the word "cat". You will also find its grammatical variations, such as "cats".
A phrase. You can specify that the search results contain a specific phrase.	`"cat food"` (quotation marks)	Topics that contain the literal phrase "cat food" and all its grammatical variations. Without the quotation marks, the query is equivalent to specifying an OR operator, which finds topics with one of the individual words instead of the phrase.

Search for	Operator	Example
Two or more words in the same topic	`AND` `and` `+` (plus symbol) `&` (ampersand)	`cat AND dog` `"cat food"+milk` `"cat food"&"dog food"`
Either word in a topic	`OR` `or` `\|` (pipe)	`cat OR dog` `cat \| dog`
Topics that do not contain a specific word or phrase	`NOT` `not` `!` (exclamation point)	`NOT cat` `! dog`
Topics that contain one string and do not contain another	`^` (caret)	`cat ^ mouse`
A combination of search types	`( )` parentheses	`cat + (dog \| mouse)` `cat \| dog + (! mouse)`

By default, users cannot edit requests in the Service Portal. If you have the appropriate permissions, you can enable users to edit requests in the portal. The following is a use case demonstrating one advantage of such a capability.

A user submits a request reporting an issue with mobile phone connectivity. The user adds details of the phone and its operating system.

After submitting the request, the user discovers that the phone operating system has automatically been upgraded to the latest version. Therefore, the information in the submitted request is incorrect.

The user logs in to the Service Portal, goes to the request tracking page, and corrects the information about the operating system.

Assuming Service Management is configured appropriately, the request assignee then receives notification that the user has made a change to the request. The agent reviews the change and continues to work on it.

Another use case might be where a user discovers that a previously submitted request is about an issue that affects many colleagues. The user therefore wants to edit the request by making it public for wider viewing.

Caution You must carefully consider how you configure this feature. For example, allowing the Requested for user to edit the Requested for field might result in that user's requests becoming invisible to that user.

How to enable users to edit requests in the Service Portal

If you have the appropriate permissions, you can enable users to edit requests in the portal by doing the following:

Add business rule

The following business rule allows you to specify:

What fields are editable, and
When (in which specified phase) they are editable

Note By default, the editing of all fields is disabled, even if you have enabled the new request tracking page and the editable request form. This is a safety measure, so that users can only edit specified fields at specified times in the workflow, according to how you configure the feature by using the following rule.

From the Main menu, select Administration > Configuration > Records.
In the drop-down at the top of the page, select the Request record type.
Select the Processes and Rules tab.
In the left pane, select Request at the top of the tree.
In the main panel, in the Rendering forms section:
1. Click Add.
2. Click “If…Then” rule.
3. Select the Restrict/allow editing of fields template, and click OK.
Click expression to edit the condition for the rule. Consider using the following conditions:
- entity.Id !=null
  
  This makes the rule applicable for requests after they have been created (they have an ID), and so does not apply to requests at the time of creation.
- current_flow.IsPortalFlow
  
  This makes the rule applicable to the Service Portal only. It therefore has no effect on agents using the main Service Management environment.
- entity.PhaseId=='<phase name>'
  
  Adding this part to the rule makes it applicable to request records only in the specified phase. For example, entity.PhaseId=='Fulfill' makes the rule applicable to only the Fulfill phase, so users can edit request records in that phase.
  
  If you want users to edit request records in more than one phase, but not every phase, you must add a business rule for each phase in which you want users to be able to edit requests, or add the appropriate phases with an 'OR' operator to the condition. For example:
  
  entity.PhaseId=='Fulfill' || PhaseId=='Review'
  
  If you do not add a part like this to the expression, users can edit in all phases.
  
  Note You can view the relevant phase names by clicking HR Support, IT Service, or IT Support in the left pane below Request when in Standard mode.
Click Restrict and select Allow from the drop-down. Then click OK.
Click click to specify.
Click Select Specific fields. This allows a user in the portal to edit only the specified fields of a request record.

Caution Do not select All fields, as this enables editing of all fields on the request form, and this is unlikely to be desirable. For example, you do not want users to be able to edit the Solution field.
1. Click Add item.
2. Select the field you want from the drop-down.
3. Repeat steps a and b for each field you want to add.
Save your changes.

Caution You must take care if you add several business rules using this template. The rules are implemented in the (top to bottom) order listed on the Processes and Rules page for the record type. For example, if you add a business rule that enables editing of a particular field in the Close phase, and then a business rule that restricts editing of fields in the Close phase, the restrict rule will supersede. To achieve the desired effect, the restrict rule should be before the enable rule

How to disable this feature

If, after enabling this feature, you want to disable it, either:

Go to main menu > Administration > Configuration > Service Portal Settings > Feature Settings > Use the custom request form, and select a form other than Customized form - with tracking and editing, or

Disable the previously added business rules.