Category

In Change Management, the category classifies the Configuration Item (CI), change documents, service desk interactions, incidents, quotes, requests, and tasks. It determines the data to be collected for a particular change or task, the forms presented to the user for data entry, the approvals needed, and the intervals at which alerts are sent. Change Management includes a series of default categories. Administrators can also create new categories. Each change record must have a category. Each category has at least one phase.

Examples of considerations for a change record are as follows:

1. The record contains the details of the change.
2. Each change record documents the lifecycle of a single change.
3. A change record is created for every Request for Change (RFC) received, even those that are subsequently rejected.
4. Each change record references the CIs affected by the Change.
5. The change records are stored in the Configuration Management System (CMS).

In a Service Catalog context, a category describes similar Information Technology (IT) products or services that users can select from an online catalog. The Service Manager Service Catalog feature includes out-of-box categories and subcategories. Administrators can optionally create new categories to meet their operational needs.

In Knowledge Management, knowledge documents are assigned to a category or subcategory when the document is created or approved. Knowledge Management administrators can optionally create new categories to meet their operational needs.

Related terms

Change
Configuration Item (CI)
Configuration Management
Phase
Record
Request for Change (RFC)
Service Catalog