Update a problem

You may need to update problem records many times. Typically, you add relevant information to the Activities section to describe the work you performed to resolve the problem. The Activities section provides you with information about the work other operators have performed to resolve the problem. You can use the Activity section to view the history of other activities, such as when the record opened or when the status of the record changed.

You should record all the investigation activities in the known error to track the effort associated with the problem, task, or known error. After the current activities for a phase are complete, you advance the known error record to the next phase.

To update a problem, follow these steps:

1. Click Problem Management > Problem Control > Search Problems.
2. Use search or advanced search to find one or more records.
3. Select an existing problem from the record list.
4. To document test results provided by the Problem Analyst, follow these steps:
   1. In the Problem Details section, enter a detailed update in Suggested Workaround field. Include the necessary actions to implement the solution and any possible risks.
   2. If the solution needs to be implemented through the Change Management process, open a change request.
   3. Select the Assessment section and enter the following information to document the estimated costs and resources:
      • The estimated number of days to apply the fix
      • The estimated costs
      • Click the Fill icon to select any affected CIs
5. In the Activities section, select the applicable update type in the New Update Type field list.
6. In the New Update field, type the description of the update.
7. Consider whether the priority of resolving this problem has changed. If you need to update the priority of this record, select the Problem Details section, and then follow these steps:
   • Update the Impact, if necessary.
   • Update the Urgency, if necessary.
8. Consider whether the problem needs further investigation. If so, update the Status field to Deferred and schedule it for investigation at a later date.
9. Click Save.

10. If you are ready to advance this problem record to the next phase, click Next Phase to proceed to the next phase.

    For example, you may want to advance to the next phase after you finish the categorization phase.

    Note Before you advance to the next phase, make sure you have added the following information to the problem record:

    • Root Cause Description
    • Root Cause Target Date
    • Solution Target Date

    After you verify this information, click Next Phase to advance the problem record to the Problem Prioritization and Planning phase.

    Note When all known errors are closed, Service Manager automatically updates the problem record from the Problem Resolution phase to the Problem Closure and Review phase.

11. Click Save & Exit.