LAN Support Center Help Index

Introduction

Introduction to LAN Support Center

Setup and Administration

Windows and Data Display

How To

Create and Maintain Work Tickets

Generate and Customize Reports

Use the Import/Export Utility

Use Brequest

Reference

LSC Error Messages

Btrieve Error Messages


Introduction to LAN Support Center

Introduction

The Purpose of LSC

LSC Features

Technical Support

Getting Started

Btrieve Configuration Options

Launching LSC

Exiting LSC

LSC Menu Bar

LSC Tool Bar

Using the Keyboard

LSC.INI File


The Purpose of LSC

LAN Support Center (LSC) tracks support activities by allowing you to create, maintain and retrieve tickets electronically.  Easily accessible windows display vital information regarding the caller's equipment, software and call history.  To help solve problems rapidly and identify recurring problem areas, the LSC database gives you instant access to information regarding help desk activity.

LSC also provides management with automated tools to supervise support operations more efficiently.  Call histories, support procedure documents and scripts can all be accessed easily to help staff rapidly identify and diagnose problems.  Data in every help desk session can be consolidated to analyze staff performance and response times.  Help desk issues and their solutions can also be analyzed to identify recurring problem areas which may need configuration adjustments or user training programs.

LSC is a sophisticated yet easy - to - use ticketing system based on a powerful database technology.  Each organization can customize the LSC database field labels, the ticket list information display and the information to be included in reports.  This ability to customize LSC results in more streamlined workflow.

LSC is a fully compatible Microsoft Windows 3.1 system.  Familiar Windows techniques execute commands, scroll and select list information, and open, close and move between multiple windows.  Entering, editing, cutting and pasting functions are also consistent with Windows, minimizing required training time.

The reports included with LSC provide management with valuable information regarding staff response time, frequency of problem occurrence, and customer support requests.  These reports can be customized to satisfy the requirements of each organization.  LSC also includes Crystal Reports, a powerful and easy - to - use custom report writer.

See Also:

LSC Features

Technical Support


LAN Support Center Features

LSC automates ticket creation, problem management and the reporting requirements of an active help desk.  LSC simplifies help desk operations by eliminating the paperwork that slows down your response to support calls.  LSC's database maintains support information on - line and lets you quickly view your caller's support history and search for similar problems, to diagnose support problems rapidly.  To meet the individual needs of your organization, you can customize many aspects of LSC: field labels, ticket listings and the type of information stored and included on reports.

With Brightwork's LAN Support Center, you can perform the following functions:

-	Track support activities by creating a ticket for every support call, stored in a powerful ticket database.

-	Build, edit, display and select from lists of customized information needed to create or manage a ticket.

-	Give staff and managers a snapshot of current support activities, all active tickets and the status of any support problems.

-	Maintain user and equipment profiles on - line to rapidly display a caller's configuration.

-	Assign up to four priority levels so urgent problems get quicker attention and resolution.

-	Route calls to other or more qualified support technicians to get the most productivity out of junior, senior and specialized technicians.

-	Automate record - keeping and reporting by electronically capturing the entire history of the help desk session - including all ticket information, actions taken and follow - up activities.

-	Sort, display and save any user - defined, cross section "view" of the ticket database, to facilitate a particular job function.

-	Filter sections of the ticket database for display or reporting, eliminating extraneous information.

-	Display multiple windows of ticketing or departmental information simultaneously, and let users rapidly move between windows to create and process a ticket quickly and accurately.

-	Display solutions to recurring or past problems to quickly resolve similar situations.

-	Provide powerful query, sorting and reporting features to generate daily and periodic performance reports.

-	Produce a variety of standard reports detailing support productivity and help desk operations.

-	Utilize Crystal Reports, a powerful, flexible and easy - to - use report generator to produce LSC information in an unlimited number of formats.

-	Store custom report formats for future use.

-	Archive and restore inactive tickets whenever necessary to utilize disk space efficiently.

-	Support file importing and exporting to share data between LSC and other applications.

-	Display on - line help information.

-	Protect against unauthorized access through log - in password security.

LAN Support Center integrates with the following applications:

-	Novell Btrieve Record Manager - LSC uses the fast and highly sophisticated database system for database management.

-	Microsoft Windows 3.1 - LSC supports the familiar user interface to minimize training time and maximize ease of use.

-	Other Brightwork network management applications as follows:

-	LSC links to LAN Automatic Inventory for a comprehensive and accurate description of a user's hardware configuration.

-	LSC connects to SiteMeter to identify user software version and revision levels.  Support staff can also determine whether a user is "locked out" of a metered application due to licensing limits.

-	LSC accesses NETremote+ to run the user's workstation remotely, without leaving the help desk.

See Also:

The Purpose of LSC

Technical Support


Technical Support

Please take this opportunity to mail in your Product Registration Card.  Mailing in your card enables us to notify you about upgrades, fixes, enhancements and new products.

If you have a problem with LSC, call the Brightwork Technical Support number found in the front of the LSC User Guide.

Before requesting support, please thoroughly consult the LSC User Guide, the READ.ME file, and any product update information included in your LSC package.

When requesting support be prepared with:

-	The version and serial number of your LSC product from the distribution diskette label

-	The type of network hardware and operating system software you are using

-	The version of DOS you are using

-	Any TSRs loaded, including network drivers and memory managers, on your workstation

-	A clear and concise statement of your problem

If you have not mailed in your Product Registration Card you will be required to answer some questions over the telephone so our Technical Support Staff can register your product.

NOTE:

Support cannot be provided for problems related to the installation or operation of your network.


Btrieve Configuration Options

LAN Support Center uses the Novell Btrieve Record Manager as its record manager.  Btrieve is integrated with NetWare and offers an extremely high performance mechanism for storing information.  In addition, Btrieve is the basis for Novell's Network Management System (NMS), which allows Brightwork to integrate with this important management platform more easily.

There are two methods of implementing Btrieve:

-	Server - based  All data processing is done at the file server by the Brequestor (the Btrieve NLM or VAP).  Each workstation communicates with the NLM or VAP by loading BREQUEST.EXE in the local PC's memory.

Brequest uses 31 - 45KB of RAM, depending on the options specified.  (Version 6.10 or greater is required when using Brequest with LSC.)  It is much faster than the local Btrieve; however, it requires that the NLM or VAP be loaded on the file server.

-	Client - based  Workstations perform all data processing locally.  Client - based Btrieve is initialized automatically through the client - based WBTRCALL.DLL file.

LAN Support Center is fully compatible with both methods of access.  It is highly recommended that you use the server - based method, as this will improve the performance of LSC's database access by at least 50% and by as much as 500%.

NOTES:

a -	Refer to Using Brequest for general instructions for configuring the Btrieve NLM.  Refer to your Novell documentation for details on configuring Btrieve.

b -	When running the Brequestor, BSPXCOM must also be loaded.  Refer to your Novell documentation for details on loading this program.

LSC and Btrieve

LSC is fully compatible with both Btrieve methods discussed above.    LSC provides two batch files which configure the program to run with either server - based or client - based Btrieve.  Upon installation, LSC is automatically configured to run with server - based Btrieve (i.e., the Btrieve NLM or VAP).

If you are using local Btrieve instead of Brequest, then you must run the USEBTR.BAT batch file before launching LSC.  This batch file renames several files which instruct LSC to look for local Btrieve.

The USEBRQ.BAT batch file provided with LSC renames several files which instruct LSC to look for Brequest.  (As mentioned above, this is the default configuration upon LSC installation.)

NOTE:

If you are using local Btrieve, you must run the USEBTR.BAT file before launching LSC.  If you use server - based Btrieve later, you must then run the USEBRQ.BAT file before launching LSC.

Both batch files are copied into the LSC program directory upon installation.

-	USEBTR.BAT - The batch file which renames certain files and instructs LSC to look for local Btrieve.

-	USEBRQ.BAT - The batch file which renames certain files and instructs LSC to look for Brequest.

NOTE:

The LSC batch files only need to be run when you have changed the Btrieve method being used.  They do not need to be run each time you launch LSC.


Launching LSC

After successfully installing LAN Support Center, a Brightwork group and an LSC program icon are created on your Windows desktop.

Use the following procedure to launch LSC.

1.	If you are using LSC on a network, load the Novell Btrieve record manager.

Ignore this step if you are using LSC in a stand - alone environment.

Either server - based or client - based Btrieve can be used with LSC.  Server - based Btrieve is strongly recommended due to its increased database access speed.  If you are running server - based Btrieve, proceed to the next step.

NOTE:

Upon installation, LSC is configured to run with Brequest.  If you are running client - based Btrieve, LSC will automatically load the local Btrieve for you; however, you must configure the LSC files to run with local Btrieve.  To do this, you must run the USEBTR.BAT file in the LSC program directory before launching LSC.  For example, from within the LSC program directory, enter the following command: USEBTR.

Refer to Btrieve Configuration Options for details on the batch files provided with LSC.

2.	Run Windows, and double click on the LSC program icon.

If you are using Novell's local Btrieve, a message displays recommending that you use Brequest for increased database access speed.  This message will display when LSC cannot detect Brequest.  It will also display when LSC is configured to run with client - based Btrieve (i.e., by running the USEBTR.BAT file). To disable the warning message under all circumstances, place a checkmark in the "Disable warning message when Brequest isn't running" field in the message window.  (To re - enable the warning message, the LSC.INI file must be edited.  Refer to LSC.INI File for more information on the LSC.INI file parameters.)

Choose the OK button to continue the LSC program launch.  The LSC Login dialog box displays.

3.	Enter your login initials and password, and choose the OK button.

After entering your login initials, press the <TAB> key to move the cursor to the Password field.  Then enter your LSC password.

NOTE:

The default LSC login initials and password are LSC and LSC.  Changing the default password or changing the rights given to the default login is highly recommended.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights.

Upon choosing the OK button in the LSC Login dialog box, the LAN Support Center application window displays.

NOTE:

If previously you have launched LSC and saved the monitor configuration upon exiting, there may be open ticket windows in your LSC application window.  Refer to the topic entitled Exiting LSC.

The application window consists of the following items:

-	LSC Menu Bar

-	LSC Tool Bar

See Also:

Btrieve Configuration Options

Using the Keyboard

LSC.INI File


Exiting LSC

Use the following procedure to end an LSC session.

1.	Choose the Exit command from the File menu.

A dialog box displays prompting you to confirm the exit action.

2.	To save your monitor configuration, check the 'Save monitor configuration' option.

Checking this option will save the configuration of any windows that are currently open in your LSC application window.  All open windows will be automatically restored upon starting your next LSC session.  For example, if the View Tickets window and three additional Ticket windows are open when you exit LSC and enable this option, then all four windows will be opened the next time you launch LSC.

NOTE:

The column widths in LSC's View Tickets window can be modified.  Any modified column widths are saved upon exiting LSC regardless of your response to this exit prompt.

3.	Choose the OK button to close the LSC application.

See Also:

Launching LSC


LSC Menu Bar

To choose a menu, point to the menu name and click the left mouse button.

The general purpose of each menu item is defined below:

-	File Menu - Lists commands for printing reports, configuring global print settings and exiting LSC.

-	Edit Menu - Lists standard editing commands for use when creating and editing tickets.

-	Administration Menu  Lists commands for setting up and maintaining the LSC environment.  This includes staff setup and security, account setup, company setup, database labeling and administration, qualification list administration, custom view definitions and archiving/restoring tickets.

-	View Menu  Lists commands for selecting and managing the ticket display of the View Tickets window.

-	Ticket Menu  Lists commands for creating and managing tickets and their supporting information, as well as provides access to other Brightwork LAN management products.

-	Reports Menu  Provides access to pre - defined and custom LSC reports.

-	Window - Lists commands for arranging the open windows in the LSC application area.  (This menu only displays when there are open windows in the LSC application area.)

-	Help Menu  Lists commands for accessing LSC's on - line Windows hypertext help facility.

NOTE:

Holding down the left mouse button over a menu command causes the function of the command to display in the LSC title bar at the top of your screen.

See Also:

LSC Tool Bar

Using the Keyboard


LSC Tool Bar

LSC's tool bar buttons provide an alternative for accessing the most frequently used LSC functions.

Instead of choosing commands from the drop - down menus, you can choose the tool bar buttons to perform the same tasks.  For example, to create a new ticket, you can either choose the New Ticket command from the Ticket menu or you can choose the New tool bar button.  Both actions display a new Ticket window.

The function of each tool bar button is described below:

-	View  Displays the View Tickets window which allows you to view a list of related tickets and their corresponding actions.

-	Filter   Displays the Filter Ticket List dialog box which enables you to specify criteria of the tickets to be listed in the View Tickets window.

-	Sort  Displays the Select Sort Criteria dialog box in which you can define the sort order of the tickets listed in the View Tickets window.

-	Refresh  Updates the display in the View Tickets window.

-	New  Displays a new Ticket window in which ticket information is entered and maintained.

-	Edit  Displays the Ticket window associated with the highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window.

-	Delete  Deletes the ticket data associated with the active ticket or a highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window.

-	Print  Prints the ticket data associated with the active ticket or a highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window.

-	Contact  Displays the Contact Details dialog box associated with the active ticket or a highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window.

-	Previous  Displays the Ticket window of the previous ticket listed in the View Tickets window.

-	Next  Displays the Ticket window of the next ticket listed in the View Tickets window.

-	Investigate  Displays the Smart - Launch Brightwork Applications dialog box which provides access to other Brightwork network management tools.

-	Action  Displays the Add Action dialog box for entering an action entry to be associated with the active ticket or a highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window.

-	Edit  Displays the Edit Action dialog box associated with the highlighted action entry in the View Tickets window.

-	Delete  Deletes the highlighted action entry in the View Tickets window.

-	Report  Provides access to the LSC reporting module.

See Also:

LSC Menu Bar

Using the Keyboard


Using the Keyboard

LSC can be used with or without a mouse pointing device.  To use LSC without a mouse, perform the following standard Windows keyboard actions to navigate throughout the program.

-	Each menu item on the LSC menu bar has a keyboard mnemonic.  To choose a menu, press the <ALT> key in combination with the underlined letter key.  For example, press the <ALT><F> keys to choose the File menu and display its commands.

-	Each command also has a keyboard mnemonic.  Once the menu is displayed (i.e., "dropped down"), press the underlined letter of the command you want to choose.  For example, from the File menu, press <R> to choose the Print Setup command and display the Print Setup dialog box.  Once a menu is displayed, you can also use the <up/down arrow> keys to move the highlight to a desired command and then press <ENTER> to select the command.

All keyboard mnemonics for use with LSC are listed on the Quick Reference Card included in your LSC product package.

See Also:

LSC Menu Bar

LSC Tool Bar


LSC.INI File

When the LAN Support Center software is installed, the LSC.INI file is created and placed in the Windows directory of the local workstation.  Each time the program is launched, the LSC.INI file is referenced for initialization and status information.

The file can consist of the following sections:

-	[ShowBrequestWarning] - This section indicates the status of the Brequest warning message which displays upon launching LSC when LSC does not detect the presence of the Btrieve NLM or VAP.  This section contains an 'Init=' line which indicates whether or not the warning is disabled (i.e., 'Init=No' when warning is disabled; 'Init=Yes' when warning is enabled).

The warning message can be disabled by checking the "Disable message when Brequest isn't running" field in the message window which displays when launching LSC.  The only way to re - enable the warning message after it has been disabled is to edit the LSC.INI file and enter 'Init=Yes' in this section.

-	[ColumnWidth] - This section lists the widths of all columns in the View Tickets window.  Column numbers 1 to 11 represent the columns of the ticket list area in the window.  Column numbers B1 to B6 represent the columns in the action list area of the window.  Column widths can be changed either by modifying these numbers manually in the INI file or by using the mouse to drag the column separator line directly in the View Tickets window.  (A column width of 0 indicates that the column is hidden.)

-	[ShowBanner] - This section can be added manually to the INI file in order to disable the About LAN Support Center dialog box, which displays upon launching LSC.  To disable the About dialog box at start - up time, enter the following:

[ShowBanner]

Init=No

-	[TicketScr_#] - There can be any number of these sections which indicate the parameters and status of any open LSC windows upon exiting the program.  Ticket window number, field contents and position are indicated.  (The "Ticket Number = -1" entry indicates the parameters of the View Tickets window.)

NOTE:

To restore the default LSC.INI parameters, delete the LSC.INI file and re - launch the program.  The LSC.INI file is re - created with its default settings.


Setup and Administration

The LAN Support Center setup and administrative procedures require minimal effort on the part of the LSC administrator.  For those aspects of the system which do need to be maintained, the procedures for doing so are simple and intuitive.

Refer to the following topics for LSC setup and administrative procedures:

Database Labeling

Staff Membership and Security

Account IDs

Company IDs

Qualification Lists

Defining Problem Type Sub - categories

Archiving and Restoring Tickets

Printer Setup and Administration


Database Labeling

The LSC database labeling scheme greatly affects the way support data is entered, retrieved and compiled during report generation.  The database labels are used to categorize the ticket information, and as a result, database planning and labeling becomes an important factor in your installation and use of LSC.

Planning the LSC database labels should begin with a review of your organization's current support procedures.  For example, after the evaluation, you might discover that a label or field called COMPANY is more applicable then the default label called DEPARTMENT.  Further, you might find that SITE should be used in place of the FIRST NAME field.

NOTES:

a -	Before modifying the database labels, review several of the pre - defined reports supplied with LSC.  Reviewing the reports will help you determine if your organization requires database label changes.  Refer to the topic entitled Reports for instructions on generating reports.

b -	Any changes made to the database labels are also reflected in the reports.

LSC provides a default labeling scheme which can either be tailored to satisfy the requirements of your support environment or can be used without any modification.  After careful planning, the labels can be modified to reflect your support tracking requirements.

See Also:

Planning Your LSC Database

Customizing the Database Labels


Planning Your LSC Database

LSC's flexibility allows you to tailor the database to completely satisfy your requirements.  LSC can be used in either an enterprise environment or internally within a company.  For example, an enterprise environment may have clientele for which they need to track support requests.  Using LSC internally may facilitate a company's management of any number of events: scheduled installations and upgrades, problem reporting, and even employee training classes.

The software is installed with a default database labeling scheme.  Before you begin using LAN Support Center, you should take the time to review the default labels and determine whether or not they apply to your environment.  The database label names should reflect the event(s) you intend to track.

The following examples illustrate how companies can tailor the LSC database labels for their individual purposes:

-	An insurance company uses LSC to track insurance claims.  They have changed the default 'Department' field label to 'Policy Number.'  The 'Issue Type' field is used to reflect the type of insurance held by the insured.  The 'Problem Type' and 'Product Category' fields are used to track the types of claims being made.  The 'Cross Reference' field is used to maintain the insured's policy number for cross - referencing purposes.

-	A software development company uses LSC to track new features to be incorporated into their product upgrades.  They have changed the default 'First Name' field label to 'Product Name,' and the 'Last Name' field label to 'Version Number.'  The 'Problem Type' and 'Product Category' field labels are changed to 'Feature' and 'Module' to track the new feature request and the module which must be modified.  The 'Assigned to' field is used to indicate the programmer responsible for the new feature.  The 'Priority' field reflects the urgency of the new feature.

-	A manufacturing company uses LSC to track customer support calls.  The 'Account ID' field is used to track the companies from which calls are being received.  The 'First Name,' 'Last Name' and 'Phone' fields are used to track data regarding the contact person for the account.  The 'Priority' field is used to reflect the urgency of the support call.  (The URGENT priority displays in red in the View Tickets window so the staff determine quickly which tickets must be handled first.)

Defining the labels in your LSC database is an easy task.  The entire database labeling scheme is defined in one straight - forward and intuitive dialog box.  The steps for defining the LSC database are discussed in the topic entitled Customizing the Database Labels.


Customizing the Database Labels

Use the following procedure to customize the ticket label names.

1.	Choose the Label Options command from the Administration menu.

The Label Options dialog box displays, showing the currently defined labels for each field in the LSC ticket database.

2.	Make the appropriate changes to the labels.

To change a label name, move the typing cursor into a field, delete the existing label and then type the new label name.

NOTES ON MODIFYING LABELS:

a -	Press the <TAB> key to move the cursor quickly from field to field in the Label Options dialog box.

b -	Labels can consist of any typed characters.  The new label name must fit in the field space provided (i.e., the fields do not scroll).

c -	The following fields are linked to the Account ID field: First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department and Network Address.  For example, assume that the following information is entered for a new ticket: Account ID=BLUE RIBBON, First Name=MARY, Last Name=JONES, and Department=SALES.  In this case, the next time that BLUE RIBBON is entered into the Account ID field, then MARY, JONES and SALES will automatically display in the First Name, Last Name and Department fields, respectively. These fields remain linked even if their label names are changed. (Accounts are set up using the procedures in the topic entitled Adding Accounts.)

d -	The Product Category field is a sub - field of Problem Type.  For example, a Problem Type might be entered as "Software."  Related Product Categories might then be entered as "Spreadsheets" and "Word Processors."  These fields remain linked even if their label names are changed. (Product Categories are defined using the procedures in the topic entitled Defining Problem Type Sub - categories.)

3.	Choose the OK button to save the changes.

The Label Options dialog box closes, and all Ticket windows will reflect the new labels.

NOTE:

Labels can be modified after issuing and saving tickets; however, all ticket data reflects the database labels that are present when the ticket is saved.  For example, if a ticket is saved with JOHN in the First Name field and the First Name label is later changed to Company, then the same ticket will have JOHN in the new Company field.


Staff Membership and Security

Every LSC support staff user must be assigned a unique ID and password which defines the LSC activities he or she can perform.  The unique ID also determines the first three characters of all tickets created by the user.

Before LSC is launched, the user must provide a valid user name and password combination.  When a user successfully logs into LSC, the LSC application window displays.

Defining LSC staff users and assigning unique IDs and passwords is an on - going action performed by the LSC administrator.  In addition to adding and removing users, the LSC administrator is responsible for granting user rights and modifying those rights if the users' support responsibilities change.

NOTES:

a -	The commands available from the Administration menu are enabled only for those users who are granted the appropriate rights. For example, if Dan is not given the right to Setup Staff, then the Setup Staff command on Dan's Administration menu is disabled.

b -	Changing the default LSC login name and password (i.e., LSC and LSC) is highly recommended.

Refer to the following topics for procedures regarding staff membership and security:

Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights

Maintaining Support Staff


Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights

Use the following procedure to add new support staff members and define their rights within the LSC environment.

1.	Choose the Setup Staff command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Staff dialog box displays listing the initials of the defined LSC staff members.

2.	To add a new staff member, choose the Add button.

The Add Staff dialog box displays.

3.	Enter the new staff member's information.

Enter the following information for the new LSC user:

-	Staff Initials - Enter a unique code for the new user's LSC login name.  A maximum of 3 characters can be entered.

-	Full Name - In the field space provided, enter the new user's full name.  This is an optional field.

-	Enter New Password - Enter the new user's 8 character password.  This is an optional field.  The typed information displays as asterisks for password protection.

-	Verify New Password - Verify the 8 character password entered in the above field by re - entering the new user's password.  This must exactly match the password entered in the Enter New Password field.  The typed information displays as asterisks for password protection.

-	Rights Granted For Qualification Lists - Place a checkmark next to each qualification list the user is able to modify.  For example, if a new user is to be restricted from modifying any of the qualification lists, then do not check any of the qualification list items in the Add Staff dialog box.

NOTE:

When a user is restricted from modifying a qualification list, the user is unable to add/edit entries via the Qualification Lists dialog box or the Ticket window.  For example, if Dan is not given the right to modify the Problem Type list, then he cannot edit the Problem Type qualification list entries (via the Administration/Qualification Lists command).  Dan also cannot enter a new problem type into the corresponding field of a Ticket window.  In this case, Dan can only select existing entries from the Problem Type field drop - down list.

-	Rights Granted For Actions - Place a checkmark next to each LSC action the user is allowed to perform.  Rights for the Edit Tickets and Delete Actions options can be further defined to include one of the sub - categories.  For example, a new user might be allowed to edit only the tickets assigned to him or her.

NOTES:

a -	Having only one "LSC Administrator" who is given the right to Setup Staff and Define Label Options is recommended.

b -	By default, all rights are enabled when adding a new user.

4.	Choose the OK button.

The Add Staff dialog box closes, and the initials entered for the new staff member are listed in the Setup Staff dialog box.

See Also:

Maintaining Support Staff


Maintaining Support Staff

As staff positions and responsibilities change, the LSC support staff information must be maintained.  For example, assume that Mary receives a promotion to Support Manager.  As a result of Mary's promotion, her LSC rights may be modified to allow for ticket deletion, report generation and archiving/restoring ticket databases.

Use the following procedure to delete or edit an existing support staff member's information.

1.	Choose the Setup Staff command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Staff dialog box displays, listing the initials of the defined LSC staff members.

2.	To delete a staff member, highlight the staff member's name in the Setup Staff dialog box and choose the Delete button.

The message "Delete the Staff selected?" displays.  Choose the Yes button to delete the staff member.

3.	To edit a staff member's information, highlight the staff member's name in the Setup Staff dialog box and choose the Edit button.

The Edit Staff dialog box displays.

4.	Edit the staff member's information.

This box is identical in form and usage to the Add Staff dialog box with the exception that the operations are performed for an existing LSC user rather than for creating a new user.

5.	Choose the OK button.

The Edit Staff dialog box closes.

See Also:

Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights


Account IDs

LSC accounts can be defined to identify companies, persons or events for which tickets are created.  The benefits of assigning account IDs to tickets are as follows:

-	Assigning account IDs to tickets enables you to categorize the tickets according to an account.  The Ticket window has an Account ID field in which the account's identifying code or name can be entered to indicate that the ticket "belongs" to a specific account.  For example, it might be helpful to list all tickets that were created for the Blue Ribbon company.  By doing so, you can determine the types of problems that Blue Ribbon is having and incorporate new procedures to eliminate the problems.

-	Assigning account IDs to tickets facilitates data entry.  When an existing account ID is selected from the drop - down list in the Ticket window, the related account information is automatically entered.

Related account information includes an Account ID, First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department, Network Address and Company ID.

NOTE:

Assigning a Company ID to the account links the company data with the account data.  Each time an account ID is entered on a ticket, the ticket's contact details information is automatically populated with the company data.

Refer to the following topics for procedures related to managing accounts:

Adding Accounts

Maintaining Accounts


Adding Accounts

Use the following procedure to add new LSC accounts.

1.	Choose the Setup Account command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Account dialog box displays listing all accounts.

2.	To add a new account, choose the Add button.

The Add Account dialog box displays.

3.	Enter the new account information.

Enter the following information for the new LSC account:

-	Account ID - Enter a unique code or name to identify the new account.  A maximum of 55 characters can be entered.  For example, enter "Blue Ribbon" to identify the Blue Ribbon company account, or enter #3456 to identify the customer having account #3456.  This is the only required field in the Add Account dialog box.

-	First Name - Enter the first name of the person assigned to the account.  A maximum of 20 characters can be entered.

-	Last Name - Enter the last name of the person assigned to the account.  A maximum of 20 characters can be entered.

-	Phone - Enter the phone number of the person assigned to the account.  A maximum of 27 digits can be entered.

-	Department - Enter the department in which the person assigned to the account belongs.  A maximum of 30 characters can be entered.

-	Network - Enter the network address of the person assigned to the account.  A maximum of 20 digits can be entered in the following format: 8 digits:12 digits (the colon is required).

-	Company ID - Enter the unique code or name which identifies the contact details to be attached to all tickets that are assigned the account ID.  A maximum of 40 characters can be entered.

4.	Choose the Save button.

The Add Account dialog box closes, and the new account ID is listed in the Setup Account dialog box.

NOTES ON ENTERING ACCOUNT INFORMATION:

a -	Entering a company ID in the Add Account dialog box links the account data to the company data.  Each time the account ID is entered in a Ticket window, all related company data is automatically entered in the ticket's Contact Details dialog box.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Company IDs for setting up Company IDs.

b -	If you have changed the database labels for First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department or Network, then the changed labels will be reflected in the Add Account dialog box.

c -	The information entered in the First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department and Network fields is only added to the corresponding qualification list when the account is used in a ticket.  For example, if the "ABC" account is set up with "Smith" in the Last Name field, then Smith is only added to the Last Name qualification list when a ticket is created for account ABC.

See Also:

Maintaining Accounts


Maintaining Accounts

Use the following procedure to delete or modify the information for an existing account.

NOTE:

Account ID data can also be modified from within the Ticket window.  When account information is changed in the Ticket window and the ticket is then saved, a prompt displays giving you the option to update the account information.

1.	Choose the Setup Account command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Account dialog box displays listing all accounts.

2.	To delete an account, highlight the account name in the Setup Account dialog box and choose the Delete button.

The message "Do you wish to delete this entry?" displays.  Choose the Yes button to delete the account.

3.	To edit account information, highlight the account name in the Setup Account dialog box and choose the Edit button.

The Edit Account dialog box displays.

4.	Edit the account information.

This box is identical in form and usage to the Add Account dialog box with the exception that the operations are performed for an existing LSC account rather than for creating a new account.

5.	Choose the Save button.

The Edit Account dialog box closes.

See Also:

Adding Accounts


Company IDs

Company IDs are unique names which identify the contact details of a company.  Details include the company's address, fax number and Email information.

Assigning company IDs facilitates data entry in the Contact Details dialog box.  When an existing company ID is selected from the drop - down list, the related company information is automatically entered.  Furthermore, a Company ID can be linked to an Account ID.  Each time an account ID is entered in a Ticket window, the ticket's contact details information is automatically populated with the company data.

Refer to the following topics for procedures related to managing companies and contact details:

Adding Company IDs

Maintaining Company IDs


Adding Company IDs

Use the following procedure to add new company IDs.

1.	Choose the Setup Company command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Company dialog box displays, listing all companies that have been assigned IDs.

2.	To add a new company ID, choose the Add button.

The Add New Company dialog box displays.

3.	Enter the new company information.

Enter the following information for the new LSC company:

-	Company ID - Enter a unique code or name to identify the new company.  A maximum of 40 characters can be entered.  For example, enter "Blue Ribbon - TX" to identify Blue Ribbon's Texas office site.  This is the only required field in the Add New Company dialog box.

-	Address Line 1 & 2 - Enter the address of the company.  A maximum of 30 characters can be entered.

-	City - Enter the city in which the company is located.  A maximum of 20 characters can be entered.

-	State - Enter the state in which the company is located.  A maximum of 10 characters can be entered.

-	Zip - Enter the zip code of the company.  A maximum of 10 characters can be entered.

-	Country - Enter the country in which the company is located.  A maximum of 15 characters can be entered.

-	Fax - Enter the company's fax number.  A maximum of 20 characters can be entered.

-	Email - Enter the company's Email information.  A maximum of 50 characters can be entered.

4.	Choose the Save button.

The Add New Company dialog box closes, and the new company ID is listed in the Setup Company dialog box.

HINT:

An account is only linked one company ID.  Therefore, for a company that has several locations, link the most frequently used location to the account ID.

See Also:

Maintaining Company IDs


Maintaining Company IDs

Use the following procedure to delete or modify the information for an existing company.

NOTE:

Company ID data can also be modified from within the Contact Details dialog box.  When company information is changed in the Contact Details dialog box and the Save button is chosen, a prompt displays giving you the option of updating the company information.

1.	Choose the Setup Company command from the Administration menu.

The Setup Company dialog box displays listing all companies.

2.	To delete a company, highlight the company name in the Setup Company dialog box and choose the Delete button.

The message "Do you wish to delete this entry?" displays.  Choose the Yes button to delete the company.

3.	To edit company information, highlight the company name in the Setup Company dialog box and choose the Edit button.

The Edit Company dialog box displays.

4.	Edit the company information.

This box is identical in form and usage to the Add New Company dialog box with the exception that the operations are performed for an existing LSC company rather than for creating a new company.

5.	Choose the Save button.

The Edit Company dialog box closes.

See Also:

Adding Company IDs


Qualification Lists

The LSC database is made up of several lists which maintain and categorize ticket information.  Most ticket information is obtained from or written to a "qualification list," which is used for data validation and for compiling ticket records.

Qualification lists cannot be added to LSC; however, individual entries in most qualification lists can be added, modified and/or removed to reflect your own support environment.  For example, by default LSC includes the entries INFO and PRODSTAT in the Issue Type qualification list.  Your support environment may also require an Issue Type called REFERENCE.

Many qualification lists directly correspond to the fields in the Ticket window.  For example, there is a Priority qualification list which corresponds to the Priority field.  When creating or editing tickets, the fields with a drop - down list let you select existing entries from the corresponding qualification list.  This feature is important to maintaining the integrity and consistency of the LSC ticket data.

Refer to the following topics for discussions related to the qualification lists:

Description of the Qualification Lists

Modifying Qualification Items

Defining Problem Type Sub - categories


Description of the Qualification Lists

Many of the qualification lists are populated with information upon the installation of LSC.  The following table describes the contents and intent of each qualification list.

Qualification List	Description

Action Code	Code used to indicate the action taken on a ticket.  (The TO_DO default entry name cannot be edited or deleted.)

Department	Departments or areas in which callers work (e.g., ACCOUNTING, SALES or COST_CENTER#1, ABC CO).

First Name	First names of the callers.

Issue Type	Type of ticket for categorization purposes (e.g., BUG, INFO).

Last Name	Last names of the callers.

Network Address	Network addresses of the callers.

Priority	Priorities that can be assigned to a ticket.  The entry names in the Priority list can only be edited: new entries cannot be added and existing entries cannot be deleted.  This is true even if the Priority label is changed.  Further, the color display of the default priorities in the View Tickets window is as follows: Urgent=red; Important=pink; Necessary=green; Desired=brown.  This is true even if the Priority entry names are changed.

Problem Type	Names used to describe and categorize the type of problems the callers are experiencing.  This database has related sub - categories.  Refer to the topic entitled Defining Problem Type Sub - categories.

NOTES:

a -	The default qualification list names are listed in the table above.  If you change the LSC database labels, your qualification list names also change.

b -	The term "caller" is used to represent the person for whom the ticket is created (e.g., the person requesting support, the person requiring a training class).

c -	The Assigned To category is not considered a qualification list because the entries that display in this drop - down field in the Ticket window are driven by the support staff users' initials listed in the Setup Staff dialog box.  Similarly, the Account ID category is not a qualification list - the entries that display in this drop - down field in the Ticket window are driven by the IDs listed in the Setup Account dialog box.

See Also:

Modifying Qualification Items

Defining Problem Type Sub - categories


Modifying Qualification Items

The qualification list items provided with LSC can be customized to apply specifically to your organization.  For example, you might want to modify the items in the Departments list so they specifically apply to your support environment.  In addition to the Department names provided by LSC, you might want to categorize support calls by mail stops or cost centers.

NOTES:

a -	Users are only able to modify the qualification lists that are checked in their user profile (i.e., the rights they were granted via the Administration/Setup Staff command).   Refer to Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights for more information.

b -	If a user is given the right to modify a qualification list, then the user can add entries to the list by entering the information directly into the corresponding fields of a Ticket window.  When the ticket is saved, the new entry is added to the appropriate qualification list.  For example, if user Helen has the right to modify the Department list, then Helen can save a ticket having QA in the Department field.  Doing so will add QA to the Department qualification list without having to perform the procedure below.

Use the following procedure to modify a database item.

1.	Choose the Qualification Lists command from the Administration menu.

The Qualification Lists dialog box displays.

2.	Select a name from the drop - down list associated with the Name of List field.

Choose the down arrow button next to the Name of List field to view all qualification list names.  When a qualification list is selected, its items display in the List Items field.

3.	Modify the qualification list item information.

Possible modifications include the following:

-	Adding an item - To add a new item to a list, choose the Add button.  The Add Item dialog box displays prompting you to specify the name of the new item.  Type the name and choose the OK button.  The new item is added to the qualification list.

-	Editing an item - To edit an existing item in a list, highlight the item and choose the Edit button.  The Edit Item dialog box displays with the selected item name.  Make changes to the name and choose the OK button.  The item name is updated.

-	Deleting an item -  To delete an existing item from a list, highlight the item in the list and choose the Delete button.  The item name is removed from the list.

4.	To close the Qualification Lists dialog box, choose the Close button.

NOTES:

a -	The Priority qualification list items can only be edited: new entries cannot be added and existing entries cannot be deleted.

b -	Items for the Problem Type qualification list can be assigned sub - categories.  For example, you might want to track the support calls related to printer problems.  Related PRINTER sub - categories might include DRUM and CARTRIDGE.

c -	The TO_DO Action item is a special default item and cannot be edited or deleted.

See Also:

Description of the Qualification Lists

Defining Problem Type Sub - categories


Defining Problem Type Sub - categories

The Problem Type qualification list categorizes the types of problems monitored by LSC.  To further categorize problem types and track your support efforts, detailed sub - categories can be assigned to the items in this list.  These sub - categories comprise the Product Category list available from the Ticket window.

For example, your support environment might monitor SOFTWARE problems.  Monitoring the SOFTWARE problem type is helpful; however, creating a sub - category named WORD would allow you to monitor specific software problems concerning the Word program.  Tracking the Word Software problem type might result in discovering a problem in the way in which the Word program is being installed across your network.  It might also result in discovering that your users require more training in using the Word software.

The level of detail entered in the Problem Type list and the related sub - categories affects the integrity and consistency of your LSC data.  This list requires careful planning and attention.

HINTS:

a -	To avoid having the support staff define sub - categories while creating tickets, define detailed problem type sub - categories.

b -	To track unusual/unidentified problems, create a problem type named UNDETERMINED.  You can run a report listing all tickets assigned the UNDETERMINED problem type and update the field when the problem is identified.

Use the following procedure to manage the Problem Type sub - categories (i.e., the related Product Categories).

1.	Choose the Qualification Lists command from the Administration menu.

The Qualification Lists dialog box displays.

2.	Select the Problem Type database from the drop - down list associated with the Name of List field.

The Qualification Lists dialog box displays.  The Related Product Category field displays listing the sub - category items that pertain to the highlighted list item.

3.	Define or modify the Related Product Category information.

-	Adding a Sub - Category - To add a sub - category to the highlighted problem type, choose the Add button in the lower area of the Qualification Lists dialog box.  The Add Related Item dialog box displays, prompting you to specify the name of the new sub - category.  Enter the name and choose the OK button.  The new sub - category is added to the Related Product Category list.

-	Editing a Sub - Category - To edit an existing sub - category in the highlighted problem type, highlight the related product category item and choose the Edit button in the lower area of the Qualification Lists dialog box.  The Edit Related Item dialog box displays with the selected sub - category name.  Make changes to the name and choose the OK button.  The sub - category name is updated.

-	Deleting a Sub-Category -  To delete an existing sub - category from the Related Product Category list, highlight the sub - category name and choose the Delete button in the lower area of the Qualification Lists dialog box.  The sub - category name is removed from the list

4.	To close the Qualification Lists dialog box, choose the Close button.

See Also:

Description of the Qualification Lists

Modifying Qualification Items


Archiving and Restoring Tickets

As the LAN Support Center program is used, the number of tickets in the database continues to increase.  To use disk space more efficiently, you might want to remove a group of selected tickets from the "current ticket database" and place them into an "historical ticket database."

The above database terms are defined as follows:

-	Current Ticket Database  -  the group of tickets to which new tickets are added.  The current ticket database is used on a daily basis and should consist of primarily active/open tickets.  There is only one current database at any time.

-	Historical Ticket Database  -  a group of tickets that have been removed from the current database.  These archived tickets can be loaded into LSC for reference purposes; however, changes to the historical database tickets should not be made.  There can be any number of historical databases.

The process of archiving tickets moves the selected group of tickets into a user - defined historical database file.  The information is still accessible from within LSC.  By default, the LSC user works with tickets in the "current database."  However, when researching and investigating support issues, it may become necessary to access tickets residing in an historical database.  This procedure is discussed in detail in the topic entitled Viewing Historical Tickets.

In addition to simply accessing archived tickets, LSC provides the ability to restore an entire historical database file.  The process of restoring the file moves the entire group of archived tickets back into the current LSC ticket database.

Refer to the following topics:

Archiving Tickets

Restoring Tickets


Archiving Tickets

When identifying a specific group of tickets to be archived into an historical database, filter criteria can be specified.  The filter criteria defines the group of tickets to be archived.  For example, if your support environment only works with open tickets from within the last two months, then you might want to archive all closed tickets that are older than two months.  If the current date is December 31, 1993, then the filter criteria of the tickets to be archived might include all Closed Tickets to 10/31/1993.

In addition to defining the group of tickets to be archived, you have the option to either add the tickets to an existing historical database file or create a new historical database file.

NOTE:

For increased speed and database performance, keeping the number of tickets in an LSC  database (i.e., current or archived) be fewer than 20,000 is recommended.

Use the following procedure to remove selected tickets from the current ticket database.

1.	Choose the Archive Tickets command from the Administration menu.

The Archive Tickets dialog box displays.

2.	Choose the Filter button to define the group of tickets to be archived.

The Filter Ticket List dialog box displays.  Entering specific filtering criteria defines the tickets to be archived.  Only those tickets that match the filter criteria will be archived into the historical ticket database.

3.	Define the filter criteria of the tickets to be archived.

In the fields provided, specify the information of the tickets to be archived.  For example, to archive all tickets that have been resolved, choose the SOLVED entry from the Action Code field's drop - down list; to archive one specific ticket, enter the ticket number in the Ticket # field.

NOTE:

When archiving a group of tickets, enter specific filtering information in order to archive the desired tickets.  Wildcards are not allowed.

4.	Choose the OK button to accept the filter criteria.

The Filter Ticket List dialog box closes, and you are returned to the Archive Tickets dialog box.

5.	Choose the Browse button to specify the historical database file name.

The Browse dialog box displays prompting you to enter the File Name and destination of the file which will maintain the archived tickets.

You can either:

-	Add the selected tickets to an existing historical database file - Enter the full path name of the historical database file in the File Name field.  (If you do not know the file name and path, choose entries in the Directories and Drives lists to search for the archive file.  From the list of file names which displays under the File Name field, click on the file name into which you want to add the new archived tickets.)

-	Create a new historical database file - Enter the full path name of the new historical database file in the File Name field.  (You can also choose entries from the Directories and Drives lists to define the full path into which you want to place the new archived ticket file.)

NOTES:

a -	LSC historical database file names are assigned the extension .ARC.

b -	If the path is not specified when creating a new database file, then the file is placed into the current directory (as indicated under the Directories field in the Browse dialog box).

c -	If the file already exists when attempting to create a new database file, then the selected tickets are added to the end of the existing file.  If the existing file is not in an LSC archival file format, then you are prompted to overwrite the file contents.

6.	Choose the OK button to accept the archive file name.

The Browse dialog box closes, and you are returned to the Archive Tickets dialog box.  This dialog box now displays the destination directory and archive file name.

7.	Choose the OK button to initiate the archival process.

The selected ticket information is moved into the historical database file.  Upon completion, the following files are created to maintain information regarding the archived tickets:

-	the .ARC file maintains the historical database

-	the .ACT file maintains the ticket actions

-	the .DES file maintains the ticket problem descriptions

-	the .DEA file maintains the action descriptions

See Also:

Restoring Tickets


Restoring Tickets

Archived tickets are accessible to the LSC user by restoring the historical ticket database.  When researching and investigating problems, it may become necessary to restore a selected database.

NOTE:

The restore process moves the entire historical file back into the current LSC database.  A single ticket cannot be tagged and restored.

Use the following procedure to restore an entire historical database file.

1.	Choose the Restore Tickets command from the Administration menu.

The Restore Tickets dialog box displays.

2.	Choose the Browse button to specify the historical database file name to be restored.

The Browse dialog box displays prompting you to enter the File Name of the database to be restored.

3.	Enter the full path name of the historical database file (i.e., the .ARC file) in the File Name field.

Choose entries in the Directories and Drives lists to search for the archived database file.  From the list of file names which displays under the File Name field, click on the desired file name.

4.	Choose the OK button to accept the file name.

The Browse dialog box closes, and you are returned to the Restore Tickets dialog box.  This dialog box now displays the full path name of the file to be restored.

5.	Choose the OK button to initiate the restore process.

All tickets and their associated actions and descriptions in the selected historical database are moved into the current database.

See Also:

Archiving Tickets


Printer Setup and Administration

Printer control information identifies the printer parameters and controls the printing of all reports associated with LSC activity and administration.  Before printing LSC reports, you should review the printer configuration to be sure it reflects the printer settings that you require.  Printer settings include:

-	Printer destination

-	Page orientation (portrait/landscape)

-	Paper size and source

-	Graphics resolution

The procedures for customizing the contents of individual LSC reports are discussed in the topic entitled LSC Reports.  This topic briefly presents the procedures for viewing and changing the global print settings (e.g., target printer, paper size) for Windows.

Use the following procedure to review and change your print settings.

1.	Choose the Print Setup command from the File menu.

The Print Setup dialog box displays.

2.	Select the printer you want to use for printing LSC reports.

The printer defined in your Windows printer control is selected as the default.  To use another printer, select a Specific Printer from the drop - down list associated with this field.

3.	Select the desired orientation and paper parameters.

Choose either the Portrait (long) or Landscape (wide) Orientation setting.  Use the drop - down lists to define the Paper Size and Paper Source settings.

4.	To make additional changes to the selected printer configuration, choose the Options button.

Additional settings include dithering and intensity control.

5.	Choose the OK button in the Print Setup dialog box to save the print settings.

NOTE:

These print settings are global throughout your Windows environment.  Please refer to your Windows manual for detailed procedures on modifying the above print settings.


Windows and Data Display

LAN Support Center provides various methods for viewing ticket information.  An entire database of ticket information and the tickets' actions can be viewed via the View Tickets window; additionally, specific ticket information can be viewed via the Ticket window.

To accommodate users who are responsible for working on a particular type of ticket, the information displayed in the View Tickets window can be filtered to display only the tickets matching specific filter criteria.  For example, if Sue is only responsible for the tickets that have an URGENT priority, then Sue may only want those tickets to display in her View Tickets window.  Similarly, if Anna is responsible for scheduling training classes, then Anna may only want to view the tickets which pertain to the Training Department.

The following windows display the ticket information maintained by LAN Support Center:

-	The View Tickets window offers a general view of the tickets in the LSC database.  Each LSC user can customize the information displayed in this window in order to meet his or her ticket viewing requirements.

-	The Ticket window displays the details of an individual ticket.  New tickets are created and existing ticket information is edited and maintained from within this window.

See Also:

Viewing Historical Tickets

Viewing Current Tickets


The View Tickets Window

The View Tickets window provides access to an entire database of tickets.  Ticket information and related ticket actions can be viewed at a glance.

The View Tickets window is displayed in any of the following ways:

-	Choose the View tool bar button to display a list of the open/active tickets in your LSC database.

-	Choose the Current Tickets command from the View menu to display a list of the open/active tickets in your LSC database.

-	Choose the Historical Tickets command from the View menu to display a list of tickets that have been archived into an historical database file.

Refer to the following topics for information on the View Tickets window:

View Tickets Window Layout

Scrolling Within the View Tickets Window

Filtering the Tickets List

Sorting the Tickets List

Creating Custom Ticket Views


View Tickets Window Layout

There are two list boxes in the View Tickets window: the ticket list and the action list.

Ticket List

The upper area of the View Tickets window lists the tickets in the LSC database.  Double clicking on a ticket item displays the Ticket window in which the ticket's information can be modified.

The information displayed in the ticket list can be modified in the following ways:

-  Define filter criteria to list only the tickets that match the filter criteria.  For example, choose the Filter tool bar button and check only the Urgent priority to view only those tickets that have been categorized as Urgent.   Refer to Filtering the View Tickets Window Display for detailed instructions.

-  Define another sort method to list the tickets according to the new sort criteria.  For example, choose the Sort tool bar button and select Last Name as the primary sort method to view all tickets ordered alphabetically according to the tickets' Last Name field.  Refer to Sorting the View Ticket Window Display for detailed instructions.

-  View a group of tickets in an historical database.  Choose the Historical Tickets command from the View menu to access a list of tickets that have been archived.  Refer to Viewing Historical Tickets for detailed instructions.

-  Resize the columns to modify their width.  By positioning the mouse pointer directly over a column separator line, the mouse cursor changes to a double - sided arrow.  Holding down the left mouse button and moving the mouse to the left or right will decrease or increase the column size.  If a user does not require a certain column of information, then the column can be completely hidden using this procedure.  The modified column widths are saved even when you exit LSC!

Action List

The lower area of the View Tickets window lists the actions associated with the ticket that is highlighted in the ticket list described above.  Double clicking on an action item displays the Edit Action dialog box in which the action details can be modified.


Scrolling Within the View Tickets Window

Horizontal and vertical scroll bars are available in both areas of the View Tickets window.  The Ticket List area contains up/down scroll bar buttons which allow you to scroll through the ticket list.  The Action List area contains left/right scroll bar buttons and a thumb button, all which allow you to view the action information.

To facilitate movement within a large number of tickets, the Ticket List area provides additional vertical scroll bar buttons.

-	Choose the top scroll up button to display the beginning of the ticket list.

-	Choose the bottom scroll down button to display the end of the ticket list.

-	Choose the lower scroll up button to page up through the ticket list (i.e., move up several tickets as opposed to one ticket item at a time).

-	Choose the top scroll down button to page down through the ticket list.


The Ticket Window

The Ticket window is used for creating or editing a ticket.  The information in the Ticket window is specific to the ticket being created or edited.

The Ticket window is displayed in any of the following ways:

-	Choose the New Ticket tool bar button to enter new ticket data.

-	Choose the New Ticket command from the Ticket menu to enter new ticket data.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Edit Ticket tool bar button to edit the ticket's existing data.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Edit Ticket command from the Ticket menu to edit the ticket's existing data.

-	Double click on a ticket in the View Tickets window to edit the ticket's existing data.

Refer to the following topics for information on the Ticket window:

The Ticket Numbering Scheme

Assigning Account IDs

Modifying the Ticket Window Labels

Viewing Multiple Ticket Windows

Associated Ticket Information


The Ticket Numbering Scheme

When a new ticket is created, LSC automatically assigns a number to the ticket.  The ticket number displays in the title bar of the Ticket window and cannot be modified by the LSC user.

The ticket number is generated in the format IIIYYMMDDHHMMSS, which is determined by the following information:

III =	The LSC login staff initials of the user who created the ticket.  This can be up to three characters.

YY =	The year in which the ticket was created.

MM =	The month in which the ticket was created (from 01 to 12).

DD =	The day in which the ticket was created (from 01 to 31).

HH =	The hour in which the ticket was created (from 00 to 23).

MM =	The minute in which the ticket was created (from 00 to 59).

SS =	The second in which the ticket was created (from 00 to 59).


Assigning Account IDs

The Ticket window has an Account ID field in which an identifying code or name can be entered to indicate that the ticket "belongs" to a specific account.  An account can be any entity for which a ticket is created.  For example, accounts may be created for each customer ("Mary Jones") or for each organization ("Blue Ribbon Company").  Accounts are discussed in detail in the topic entitled Account IDs.

The benefits of assigning account IDs to tickets are as follows:

-	Assigning account IDs to tickets enables you to categorize the tickets according to an account.  For example, it might be helpful to list all tickets that were created for the Blue Ribbon company.  By doing so, you can determine the types of problems that Blue Ribbon is having and develop new procedures which eliminate the problems.

-	Assigning account IDs to tickets facilitates data entry.  When an existing account ID is selected from the drop-down list in the Ticket window, the account information is automatically entered.  The fields associated with Account ID are First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department, Network Address and Company ID.


Modifying the Ticket Window Labels

The fields in the Ticket window represent the individual LSC databases.  For example, LSC maintains a database of all First Names entered in the tickets.  The field labels can be modified to reflect the individual requirements of an organization.  Using the label "PO Number" in place of "Cross Reference" might be more meaningful to a support environment if incoming support calls correspond to a purchase order number.

The procedures for modifying database labels are discussed in the topic entitled Database Labeling.


Viewing Multiple Ticket Windows

Multiple Ticket windows can be open simultaneously.  This allows the user to compare information being maintained across any number of tickets.  Additionally, when multiple Ticket windows are open, the Edit menu commands (i.e., Cut, Copy, Paste) facilitate cross-referencing and sharing information among tickets.  The process of creating a new ticket is simplified by displaying any number of existing tickets having similar information.

For example, assume that there are several known problems that your staff should be aware of while providing support.  As a result, you have created corresponding "BULLETIN" tickets which outline the known problems and list their solutions (e.g., for each Bulletin ticket, Problem Type=BULLETIN and Problem Category=SPREADSHEET:LOTUS).  By keeping all Bulletin Ticket windows open, your support staff can quickly reference established solutions and provide support.  Additionally, the Ticket window Cross Reference field can be used to establish a relationship between any number of tickets.  This is discussed in more detail in the topic entitled Cross-Referencing Tickets.

HINTS:

a -	When multiple Ticket windows are open or iconized, use the Window menu commands to arrange them within the LSC application window.

b -	To cycle through the open Ticket windows, press the <CTRL><F6> keys or <CTRL><TAB> keys.

c -	To use the keyboard to minimize or close the active Ticket window, press the <ALT><hyphen> keys to open the Control menu and then choose the desired command.  (The hyphen character is '-'.)


Associated Ticket Information

In addition to the information that displays in the Ticket window, the following items can be associated with a ticket:

-	Action entries - These entries represent the actions performed in response to a ticket.  For example, if LSC is used to track training sessions, then one type of action entry might be called PREPARE which describes the preparation performed before the session.  In addition to tracking the efforts of your support staff, the action entries can be used to accumulate billable time spent on a ticket.  The procedures for creating action entries are discussed in the topic entitled Adding Ticket Action.

-	Company IDs and Contact details - Contact information includes the company, address, and phone number of the person to contact regarding the ticket.  For example, if LSC is used to track requests for support, then the contact details should be used to maintain information for the caller requesting support.  Contact details can be associated with a company ID.  When an existing company ID is selected from the drop-down list in the Contact Details dialog box, the contact information is automatically entered.  For more information, refer to the topics entitled Company IDs and Contact Details.


Work Tickets

A work ticket is a collection of related information regarding an event.  The "event" is the incident for which information is maintained and tracked.  Tickets can track virtually any number of event types.  Consider creating tickets for any of the following events:

-	Support requests and issues

-	Installation scheduling

-	Training sessions

-	Enhancement or upgrade requests

The process of creating tickets is the essence of LSC.  All information maintained and tracked by LSC is done so via a ticket.  Depending on the responsibilities assigned to your support staff and the flow of information within your organization, one staff member or all staff members might create tickets.  For example, Mike answers phones for the support desk staff at the Blue Ribbon company.  For each incoming phone call, Mike creates a ticket with the caller's information and problem.  Throughout the day, the support desk supervisor assigns the tickets to specific staff members.  The staff members are responsible for handling the tickets they have been assigned.

Refer to the following topics for procedures on creating and managing tickets:

The Ticket Window Fields

Creating Tickets

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Printing Tickets

Also refer to:

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Ticket Window Fields

All information regarding an "event" is entered into a Ticket window.  An "event" is defined as the item being tracked by LSC.  For example, an event might be a support call or it might be a scheduled installation.

When a new ticket is created, LSC automatically assigns a number to the ticket.  The ticket number displays in the title bar of the Ticket window and cannot be modified by the LSC user.

Each ticket number is determined by the following information: IIIYYMMDDHHMMSS, where III=staff initials, YY=year, MM=month, DD=day, HH=hour, MM=minute and SS=second.

Each field in the Ticket window is defined and discussed in the table below.

NOTES:

a -	If your LSC database labels have been modified, the field names and definitions for your Ticket window may be different.  For more information on labeling, refer to the topic entitled Database Labeling.

b -	Multiple Ticket windows can be open simultaneously.

Field and Type	Description

Account ID - 55 chars	The account to which this ticket belongs.  Each Account ID must be unique.  Every account has an associated First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department, Network Address and Company ID field.  Entering an existing Account ID will automatically populate all associated fields.  Account IDs can be set up directly from within the Ticket window or by choosing the Setup Account command from the Administration menu.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Accounts for detailed instructions on setting up accounts.

First Name - 20 chars	The first name of the person/customer associated with the account entered in the Account ID field.

Last Name - 20 chars	The last name of the person/customer associated with the account entered in the Account ID field.

Department - 30 chars	The department of the person/customer associated with the account entered in the Account ID field.

Phone - 27 digits	The phone number of the person/customer associated with the account entered in the Account ID field.

Assigned To - 3 chars	The code/name of the LSC staff member assigned to handle the ticket.  This field defaults to the initials supplied by the user who logged in to LSC.

Issue Type - 10 chars	The code/name which indicates the type of ticket being issued.

Priority - 10 chars	The priority assigned to the ticket.  (The color display of each priority is as follows: Urgent=red; Important=pink; Necessary=green; Desired=brown.)

Problem Type - 15 chars	The type of problem being reported.  The item entered in this field determines the items that can be selected from the related Product Category drop-down list.

Product Category - 30 chars	The category of the problem being reported.  The entries available from this drop-down list are determined by the entry in the Problem Type field.  For example, if DRIVE is entered as the Problem Type, then available product categories may be ANY MASS STORAGE DEVICE and DISK DRIVE A.

Network Address - 20 digits	The network address of the person/customer associated with the account entered in the Account ID field.

Cross Reference - 15 alphanum	Any information which can be used to cross reference the ticket to another item (e.g., another ticket or another application).  Press the <ALT><Z> keys to paste the ticket number of the highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window into the active Ticket window's Cross Reference field.

Status - N/A	Mutually exclusive radio buttons that indicate the status of the ticket.  Each button is associated with a date and time field.  By default, the current system date displays for the Opened On date.  (Refer to the topic entitled Editing Dates for procedures on editing date values.)

Problem Description - 4K	A detailed description of the problem which can be up to approximately 2 full pages of text.

Many of the fields in the Ticket window have drop-down lists from which items can be selected.  Clicking on an item in the drop-down list places the chosen item in the selected field.

For those fields which have drop-down lists, typing in new entries adds the new entry to the associated qualification list.  For example, if the name ACCOUNTING is not listed in the Department drop-down list, then entering the name ACCOUNTING into the Department field and saving the ticket will add the name to the Department qualification list.

NOTES:

a -	Users are only able to type new entries in a Ticket window field if they are granted the appropriate rights in their staff member profile.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Support Staff and Defining Rights for instructions on setting up staff members and defining security rights.

b -	Refer to the topic entitled Description of the Qualification Lists  for a list of LSC's qualification lists.

See Also:

Creating Tickets

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Printing Tickets

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Creating Tickets

Inquiries, events and issues can all be tracked via a ticket number.  To assign a ticket to a specific customer account, an account ID can be specified on the ticket.  The steps required for creating new tickets involve entering information regarding the ticket's initial purpose.  For example, when a customer requests support, a new ticket is created which documents the caller's account, name, company and phone information, as well as documents the caller's request.

The process of trying to solve the caller's problem is referred to as "action."  Logging ticket action is discussed in the topic entitled Adding Ticket Action.

NOTE:

New tickets are placed in the ticket database that is loaded at the time the new ticket is saved.  To add the new tickets to the current LSC ticket database, make sure that the current database is being viewed (as opposed to the View Historical Tickets window).  Choose the Current Tickets command from the View menu to load the current ticket database.

Use the following procedure to create a new ticket.

1.	Choose the New Ticket command from the Ticket menu, or choose the New tool bar button.

The Ticket window displays.  A ticket number is automatically assigned by LSC.  It is indicated in the title bar of the Ticket window and represents the LSC login user initials, year, month, day, hour, minute, and second of the ticket's creation.

2.	Enter the ticket information.

Refer to the topic entitled Ticket Window Fields for detailed information on each field.

NOTES:

a -	Selecting an Account ID from the drop-down list associated with this field will automatically enter the information defined for the account (i.e., First Name, Last Name, Department, Phone, and Network Address).

b -	New accounts can be set up from within the Ticket window by typing in the new account information.  Upon saving the ticket, the new account information is also saved.

c - Existing accounts can be updated from within the Ticket window by modifying the account information and saving the ticket.  Upon saving the ticket, a prompt displays asking whether you want to update the account information.  Answering Yes to this prompt will update the account data and all new tickets that are assigned to the account will reflect the updated information.  Answering No will save the modified account data with this ticket only.

3.	Choose the Save button.

If you have selected an account from the Account ID drop-down list and then modified the account data, a prompt displays asking whether you want to update the account information.  Answering Yes to this prompt will update the account data.  Answering No will save the modified account data with this ticket only.

The ticket is saved into the current ticket database.

See Also:

The Ticket Window Fields

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Printing Tickets

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Cross-Referencing Tickets

The Ticket window's Cross Reference field can be used to build a knowledge base of information regarding a specific issue or problem type.  For example, new tickets can be cross-referenced to "TECHNICAL" Issue Type tickets which outline known problems and their solutions.  Either from an LSC report or the View Tickets window, the LSC Administrator then has access to all tickets related to the specific Technical ticket that has ticket number 'x'.  In this example, a report query can be created which includes only ticket number 'x', or a filter can be applied to the View Tickets window which only displays the tickets having ticket number 'x' in the Cross Reference field.

HINTS:

a -	LSC's extensive short-cut keys facilitate the cross-referencing of tickets to one-another.  Pressing the <ALT><Z> keys in a Ticket window will paste the ticket number of the highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window into the active Ticket window's Cross Reference field.

b -	Use the Edit menu commands to cut, copy and paste information between open Ticket windows.

In addition to cross-referencing among LSC tickets, the Cross Reference field can be used to track information external to LSC.  For example, if LSC tickets are created to track installations, entering a Purchase Order number in the Cross Reference field can track the PO number of each installed equipment component.  This information might be useful in tracking equipment movement from purchase to installation, as well as assessing future equipment purchase requirements.

See Also:

The Ticket Window Fields

Creating Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Printing Tickets

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Deleting Tickets

In some instances, it might become necessary to delete a ticket and all of its associated information.

Use the following procedure to delete a ticket from the ticket database.

1.	From the View Tickets window, highlight the ticket to be deleted.

To display the View Tickets window, choose either the Current Tickets or Historical Tickets command from the View menu, depending on where the ticket is located.

If necessary, use the scroll bars in the View Tickets window to find the ticket to be deleted.

2.	Choose the Delete Ticket command from the Ticket menu, or choose the Delete tool bar button.

You are prompted to confirm the ticket deletion.  Choose the Yes button to delete the selected ticket, or choose the No button to cancel the delete action.

The deleted ticket is removed from the LSC ticket database and will no longer display in the View Tickets window.

NOTE:

A ticket can also be deleted while its Ticket window is open.  To do so, choose the Delete tool bar button.  You are prompted to confirm the delete action.  Choose the Yes button to delete the ticket displayed in the open Ticket window.

WARNING:

Use the delete action with caution as all references to deleted tickets are completely removed from the LSC database.

See Also:

The Ticket Window Fields

Creating Tickets

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Printing Tickets

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Printing Tickets

All printing is performed using the currently defined print parameters.  To modify or verify the current print parameters, choose the Print Setup command from the File menu.

Use the following procedure to print a selected ticket.

1.	From the View Tickets window, highlight the ticket to be printed.

2.	Choose the Print Ticket command from the Ticket menu, or choose the Print tool bar button.

The ticket data is sent to the printer.

NOTE:

A ticket can also be printed while its Ticket window is open.  To do so, choose the Print tool bar button.  The ticket data is sent to the printer.

See Also:

The Ticket Window Fields

Creating Tickets

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Ticket Actions

Contact Details

Investigating


Ticket Actions

Creating a ticket is the first step towards solving a support issue and/or scheduling timed events.  For example, the tickets in your LSC database may represent requests for support, or they may represent installations to be performed.  In either case, ticket maintenance is required to keep the ticket database information accurate and up-to-date.

Ticket maintenance is also referred to as "ticket action."  For example, if a ticket is created in order to solve a user's printing problem, all of the events that take place to solve the problem are regarded as action performed on the ticket.  Each time an action is performed in response to a ticket, the action should be entered on the ticket.  In addition to tracking the efforts of your support staff, the action entries can be used to accumulate billable time spent while trying to solve a client's problem.

Contact details can also be associated with a ticket.  Contact details include information regarding the person/company for whom the ticket is issued.

NOTE:

To support multiple users, LSC locks the ticket (window) as soon as it is opened by a user.  This ensures that only one person can save changes to a ticket at anytime.  When users attempt to edit the same ticket simultaneously, only the changes made by the "first" user will be effective (the user who locks the ticket).  All other users will be alerted with a message informing them to edit the ticket later.

Refer to the following topics for detailed procedures on managing actions:

Adding Ticket Action

Editing Ticket Action

Deleting Ticket Action


Adding Ticket Action

Each time an action is performed in response to a ticket, the action should be entered for problem tracking and ticket maintenance purposes.  Each new ticket action is entered into the Add Action dialog box.

Use the following procedure to enter ticket action items.

1.	Display the Add Action dialog box.

Use any of the following methods to display the Add Action dialog box.

-	Choose the Add Action button in an open Ticket window to add an action item to the ticket.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Action tool bar button to add an action item to the selected ticket.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Add Action command from the Ticket menu to add an action item to the selected ticket.

2.	Enter the action details.

Each field in the Add Action dialog box is defined and discussed in the table below.

Field	Description

Action Code	Enter the code for the action performed (e.g., CALLBACK, INVESTIGATE, TO_DO). An action can be selected from the drop-down list associated with this field, or one can be typed in directly if you have been given sufficient user rights to do so.  (Typing in a new action will add the new entry to the Action qualification list.)

Person	Enter the initials of the LSC staff member performing the action.  The initials of the user logged in to LSC will display as the default.  The initials can be selected from the drop-down list associated with this field, or they can be typed in directly if you have been given sufficient user rights to do so.

Description	Enter a detailed description of the action performed.  Approximately 2 full pages of text can be entered.

Date	Select the date on which the action is performed.  The current system date is automatically entered as the default which can be changed by the user.  The date is entered in YYYY/MM/DD format where Y=year, M=month and D=day.  (Refer to the topic entitled Editing Dates for procedures on editing date values.)

Time	Select the time at which the action is performed.  The current system time is automatically entered as the default which can be changed by the user.  The time is entered in HH:MM format where H=hour and M=minute.  Use the up/down arrow buttons to scroll to a new desired time, or directly type in a new time.

Time Spent	Enter the time taken to perform the action.  The time is entered in HH:MM format where H=hour and M=minute (e.g., 1:23 indicates 1 hour and 23 minutes).  Use the up/down arrow buttons to scroll to a desired time, or directly type in the amount of time spent.

Initial Response	Select the Yes or No button to indicate whether or not the action being entered is the first action performed for the ticket.  By default, the Initial Response button is set to No.

NOTES ON THE ADD ACTION DIALOG BOX FIELDS:

a -	The hours and minutes entered in the Time Spent field are automatically accumulated by generating the Daily Action Listing By Person report.  Refer to the topic entitled LSC Reports for instructions on generating reports.

b -	The Initial Response option is set to 'No' by default.  Set this option to 'Yes' when entering new actions to determine the amount of time taken to respond to a ticket.  Generating the Average Initial Response Time reports will automatically calculate the average time between when the ticket(s) has been opened and when the initial response(s) has been performed.

HINT:

Create Action entries which maintain various types of information regarding the ticket.  For example, create an action named CONFIG to be used to describe a caller's workstation configuration.  By entering the configuration information in the Description field, you can then filter the ticket list using the Keyword Search in Action Description option (e.g., filter all "386" machines).

3.	Choose the Save button.

The new action does not immediately display in the action items area of the View Tickets window.  Click on the highlighted ticket in the View Tickets window to update the action items for the selected ticket.

See Also:

Editing Ticket Action

Deleting Ticket Action


Editing Ticket Action

Existing ticket action entries are edited using the Edit Action dialog box.

Use the following procedure to edit an existing ticket action item.

1.	Display the Edit Action dialog box.

Use any of the following methods to display the Edit Action dialog box.

-	Double click on an entry listed in the action items area of the View Tickets window to edit an action item for the highlighted ticket.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Edit Action tool bar button.

-	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, and choose the Edit Action command from the Ticket menu.

The Edit Action dialog box displays the information entered for the existing action item.

2.	Modify the action details.

The fields in the Edit Action dialog box are identical to those in the Add Action dialog box.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Ticket Action for details on each field.

To modify the information entered in a field, move the typing cursor into the field and enter the new information.  Selecting a new item from a drop-down list will automatically enter the new item into the field.

Pressing the <TAB> key will move the cursor from field-to-field within this dialog box.

3.	Choose the Save button.

The modified action information displays in the action items area of the View Tickets window.

See Also:

Adding Ticket Action

Deleting Ticket Action


Deleting Ticket Action

Use the following procedure to delete an existing ticket action item.

1.	From the action items area of the View Tickets window, highlight the action entry to be deleted.

2.	Choose the Delete Action command from the Ticket menu, or choose the Delete Action tool bar button.

You are prompted to confirm the deletion.  Choose the Yes button to delete the selected action entry, or choose the No button to cancel the delete action.

The deleted action entry is removed from the LSC ticket database and is no longer listed in the action items area of the View Tickets window.

See Also:

Adding Ticket Action

Editing Ticket Action


Contact Details

Contact details can be entered and associated with a ticket.  For tickets that are created in response to a customer problem or issue, a contact name and number becomes vital to the quality of the support provided by your staff.

Contact details include the address, fax and Email information for a specific Company ID.  For example, assume that you frequently create tickets for the Blue Ribbon company which has three office locations.  Three Company IDs are set up: Blue Ribbon-NY, Blue Ribbon-NJ, and Blue-Ribbon-CT.  By simply selecting one of the Blue Ribbon company IDs, the desired contact information is associated with the ticket.

NOTES:

a -	Company IDs are set up by choosing the Setup Company command from the Administration menu.  Refer to the topic entitled Adding Company IDs.

b -	Changing the information in the Contact Details dialog box will update the Company ID data throughout the LSC database.  All existing and future tickets will reflect the updated information.

Use the following procedure to enter and maintain contact details to be associated with a ticket.

1.	Highlight a ticket in the View Tickets window, or open a Ticket window for which contact details are to be entered.

2.	Choose the Contact tool bar button, or choose the Contact Details command from the Ticket menu.

The Contact Details dialog box displays.  Any contact information previously entered for the selected ticket will also display.

3.	Enter or modify the contact information to be associated with the selected ticket.

The fields in this dialog box correspond to a Company ID.

-	Select an existing Company ID to automatically fill in the address and phone information that has been defined for the selected Company ID.

-	Enter new company information (new Company ID, address and phone) to create a new Company ID.

-	Modify the field data to update the Company ID information.

All fields are optional.

NOTE:

The Company ID field is linked to the Account ID entered in the Ticket window.  For example, assume that the "Blue Ribbon" account is set up with "Blue Ribbon-NY" as its Company ID.  In this case, when "Blue Ribbon" is entered in the Account ID field in the Ticket window, all contact information for "Blue Ribbon-NY" will automatically display in the ticket's associated Contact Details dialog box.

4.	Choose the Save button.

If you have made changes to existing Company ID information, you are prompted to save the modified information to the Company ID.  Choose the Yes button to save the changes, or choose the No button to cancel any changes you have made.

NOTE:

Choosing the Yes button in response to this prompt will update the contact details information for the Company ID.  The contact details for all new and existing tickets will reflect the updated information.

See Also:

The Ticket Window Fields

Creating Tickets

Cross-Referencing Tickets

Deleting Tickets

Printing Tickets

Ticket Actions

Investigating


Editing Dates

Throughout LSC, there are several places where the user is able to enter or edit a date.  In every date field, a pop-up dialog box can be displayed by double clicking in the field.  These date fields include:

-	the Ticket window's "Opened On" and "Closed On" fields

-	the Add Action and Edit Action dialog box "Date" field

-	the Filter Ticket List dialog box "Open Tickets From/To" and "Closed Tickets From/To" fields

Scrolling to a New Date or Time

Every date and time field has "spin" buttons that can be used to change the value entered in the field.  These spin buttons look similar to scroll buttons and are useful when you want to change the existing value to one that is already close to the desired value.  For example, if "1994/01/15" is entered in the date field, click on "1994", and then choose the up scroll button to quickly change the date to "1995/01/15."

Remember, first click on the part of the value to be changed (e.g., year/month/day or hour/minute), and then choose the desired spin direction (either up or down).

Moving to a New Date

Double clicking in a date field displays a calendar.

If there is a date value in the field when you double click, then that date will be reflected in the dialog box.  If there is no date value in the field when you double click, then the current system date will be reflected in the calendar.

Use the following procedure to change a date value using the calendar.

1.	Double click in the Date field.

The calendar displays.

2.	Modify the Year, Month or Day.

-	To modify the year value, choose the left or right arrow buttons next to the year date.

-	To modify the month value, choose the left or right arrow buttons next to the indicated month.

-	To modify the date, choose a new date by clicking on a new date number.

3.	Choose the OK button.

The calendar closes, and the selected date value is entered into the Date field.


Investigating

LAN Support Center provides the capability for extensively tracking and managing various types of events.  In some instances, investigation may be required to obtain additional information to resolve a problem or handle a support call.  LSC lets you smart-launch into other Brightwork applications installed on your network to take advantage of the applications' network management capabilities.

The Brightwork products accessible from within LSC are:

-	Brightwork Fusion - Brightwork's software management solution which integrates SiteMeter software metering with LAN Automatic Inventory asset management and adds software distribution capabilities.

-	SiteMeter Administration - Brightwork's software metering and virus protection program which maximizes the legal and productive use of your software.

-	SiteMeter Usage Monitor - SiteMeter's Usage Monitor which displays information regarding an application's current use.

-	SiteMeter Reports - SiteMeter's Reporting module which lets you generate reports containing information regarding software metering and the virus protection established for your network.

-	LAN Automatic Inventory - Brightwork's asset management program which collects and manages detailed inventory data for your local area network(s).  (Workstation hardware and software configuration information can be accessed to help troubleshoot problems.)

-	NETremote+ - Brightwork's remote control program which enables control over another user's workstation for the purpose of performing diagnostics.

NOTES:

a -	For detailed information on the individual Brightwork products, refer to the documentation provided in each product package.

b -	The Investigate option requires that a search path be established to all of the Brightwork products.

Use the following procedure to smart-launch into another Brightwork application.

1.	Choose the LSC Investigate tool bar button.

You can also choose the Investigate command from the Ticket menu.  In either case, the Smart-Launch Brightwork Applications dialog box displays.

Only the applications that are in your search path are accessible from the Smart-Launch dialog box.  All other application options are disabled.

The Context area of the Smart-Launch dialog box displays the username and network address of the currently open and active LSC Ticket window.  The Username is obtained from the ticket's First Name field, and the Station Address is obtained from the ticket's Network Address field.

2.	Select a Brightwork application, and choose the OK button.

The selected application launches, as follows:

-	Brightwork Fusion - Brightwork Fusion is launched and displays the administration console.  Use the Brightwork Fusion console to perform software metering, asset management and software distribution.

-	SiteMeter Administration - SiteMeter is launched and displays the administration console.  Use the SiteMeter console to investigate software usage activity and detect corrupted files.

-	SiteMeter Usage Monitor - SiteMeter is launched and displays the SiteMeter Usage Monitor for the file server associated with the Network Address in the currently active LSC Ticket window.  If the active Ticket window does not contain the network address of a server, then the SiteMeter administration console displays.  Use the SiteMeter Usage Monitor to see which users are using which applications.

-	SiteMeter Reports - The SiteMeter reporting module displays in a DOS box.  Use SiteMeter Reports to generate reports with information regarding software metering and the virus protection established for your network.

-	LAN Automatic Inventory - LAI is launched and displays the inventory details associated with the First Name and Network Address fields in the currently active LSC Ticket window.  Use LAI to investigate the hardware and software configuration of a workstation to determine the cause of a problem.

-	NETremote+ - NETremote+ is launched and positioned to call the workstation associated with the Network Address in the currently active LSC Ticket window.  Use NETremote+ to take control over a workstation experiencing problems.

3.	Use the Brightwork application to investigate the problem.

For instructions on using the application, refer to the manual included in each product package.

4.	Exit the application.

For instructions on exiting the application, refer to the manual included in each product package.

Upon exiting the application, you are returned to LSC.


Filtering the Tickets List

Applying filter criteria to the View Tickets window causes LSC to display only those tickets that match the defined filter information.  When no filter criteria is defined, all tickets in the LSC database are listed in the View Tickets window.

Use the following procedure to define filter criteria and narrow down the number of tickets that display in the View Tickets window.  Filter criteria can be applied to the current and historical ticket databases.

1.	Choose the View tool bar button to display the View Tickets window.

The View Tickets window must be open to define filter criteria.

2.	Choose the Filter tool bar button.

You can also choose the Filter command from the View menu.  The Filter Ticket List dialog box displays.  If filter criteria have already been applied to the View Tickets window, then the defined criteria will display in the Filter Ticket List dialog box.

NOTE:

If your LSC database labels have been modified, the field names and definitions for your Filter Ticket List dialog box will be different.  For more information on labeling, refer to the topic entitled Database Labeling.

3.	Define the filter criteria.

Many of the fields in the Filter Ticket List dialog box are identical to the fields in the Ticket window.  For example, entering KELLY in the First Name field of the Filter Ticket List dialog box will instruct LSC to include all tickets that have KELLY in the First Name field of the Ticket window.  Similarly, many fields have drop-down lists from which items can be selected.  For example, choosing the Product Category field's drop-down list displays a list of entries that have been defined for the Product Category qualification list.  Clicking on an entry in the drop-down list places the chosen entry in the selected field.

NOTES ON THE FILTER TICKET LIST DIALOG BOX:

a -	The <All> entry causes the field to be ignored in the filter definition.

b -	The <Blank> entry includes those tickets having blank corresponding fields.

c -	Wildcards are not allowed in any of the filtered fields.

d -	When entering a date range, the To date must be equal to or later than the From date.

e -	At least one Priority must be selected.

4.	Choose the OK button.

The ticket information is filtered, and only those tickets that match the defined criteria will display in the View Tickets window.


Sorting the Tickets List

Defining a sort order for the tickets in the View Tickets window instructs LSC to list the tickets according to a new sort order method.  Depending on the selected sort order, up to three sort criteria can be defined.  For example, if the primary sort key is defined as Assigned To, then the tickets can be further sorted according to Priority and then Problem Type.

NOTES:

a -	Sorting by Priority will result in the tickets appearing in the following order: URGENT, IMPORTANT, NECESSARY, DESIRED.

b -	Sorting by Date will result in the tickets being listed in ascending date order (i.e., older dates are listed first).

Use the following procedure to define the sort order of the tickets in the View Tickets window.

1.	Choose the View tool bar button to display the View Tickets window.

The View Tickets window must be open to define a sort order.

2.	Choose the Sort tool bar button.

You can also choose the Sort command from the View menu.  The Select Sort Criteria dialog box displays.  If a sort order has already been applied to the View Tickets window, then the defined sort criteria will display in the Select Sort Criteria dialog box.

NOTE:

If your LSC database labels have been modified, the sort order names in your Select Sort Criteria dialog box will be different.

3.	Define the sort order.

Each Sort # field has a drop-down list from which the sort criteria can be selected.  Depending on the selected sort order, up to three sort criteria can be defined.

The following table lists the fields that can be sorted and describes the sort result.

Sorted Field	Sort Method

Assigned To	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Closed Date	Numerical - increasing date order

Department	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Issue Type	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Last Name	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Opened Date	Numerical - increasing date order

Priority	Ordered according to: URGENT, IMPORTANT, NECESSARY, DESIRED

Problem Type	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Product Category	Alphabetical - from A to Z

Ticket #	Alphanumerically - from A to Z for the first three characters and then from 1 to xxx

4.	Choose the OK button.

The tickets in the View Tickets window are sorted according to the defined sort order.


Custom Ticket Views

A custom ticket view is a cross section of the tickets in the LSC database.  Custom ticket views selectively display tickets that meet specific filter criteria, and as a result, they narrow down the number of tickets that display in the View Tickets window.  Creating a custom ticket view is identical to applying filter and sort criteria; however, a custom view is saved and can be added to the View menu.

LSC provides several pre-defined ticket views which cannot be modified or deleted.  Choosing the View menu displays the following pre-defined view options:

-	Opened Assigned Tickets by Date

-	Opened Assigned Tickets by Priority

-	All Opened Tickets by Date

--	All Opened Tickets by Priority

-	All Closed Tickets by Date

-	All Tickets by Date

Choosing a view option filters the View Tickets window data and displays only those tickets that apply to the selected view option.

LSC also allows users to create their own customized views of the ticket data.  Ticket views are created by defining filter criteria and a sort order to be applied to the tickets listed in the View Tickets window.  For example, assume that Karen only wants to view the tickets that have been assigned to her.  Furthermore, Karen wants the tickets to be listed in ascending date order.  In this case, Karen would define a filter which included only the tickets that have KRN in the 'Assigned To' Ticket window field (i.e., Karen's login initials), and she would specify 'Opened Date' as the primary sort order.  Karen would then save her customized view as 'Karen's View."

Creating a custom ticket view narrows down the number of tickets that display in the View Tickets window, thereby, allowing the support staff to view only the tickets that pertain to them.

The procedure for creating a custom ticket view incorporates the procedures for Filtering the Ticket List and Sorting the Ticket List.

NOTE:

To accommodate the limited length of a pop-up menu, the maximum number of custom views that can appear on the View menu is ten (10).

Use the following procedure to create a custom ticket view.

1.	Choose the Custom View Settings command from the Administration menu.

The Custom View Settings dialog box displays.  This dialog box list any custom views that have already been defined.

NOTE:

Because the pre-defined LSC custom views cannot be edited or deleted, they are not listed in this dialog box.

2.	To define a new custom view, choose the Add button.

The Add View Name dialog box displays.

3.	In the View Name field, type the name to be assigned to the new view.

All typed characters are valid.  The view name is automatically entered as uppercase.

4.	To define the filter criteria for the new view, choose the Filter button.

The Filter Ticket List dialog box displays.

5.	Define the filter criteria, and choose the OK button.

Detailed procedures for defining filter criteria are discussed in the topic entitled Filtering the Ticket List.  Upon pressing the OK button, you are returned to the Add View Name dialog box.

6.	To define the sort order for the new view, choose the Sort button.

The Select Sort Criteria dialog box displays.

7.	Define the sort order, and choose the OK button.

Detailed procedures for defining sort order are discussed in the topic entitled Sorting the Ticket List.  Upon pressing the OK button, you are returned to the Add View Name dialog box.

8.	To include the new view name on the LSC View menu, check the Include on Menu option.

Click in the option box to place a checkmark in the box and enable the option.  Including the view name on the View menu allows for quick access to the view.

NOTE:

Selecting the Include on Menu option will cause the view name to display on all LSC users' View menus.

9.	Choose the OK button.

The new view is added to the list of views in the Custom View Settings dialog box.

See Also:

Maintaining Custom Ticket Views


Maintaining Custom Ticket Views

Custom ticket views can be edited and/or deleted.  Because support staff job responsibilities and requirements often change, the filter and sort criteria of the custom views may need to be modified.

Use the following procedure to delete and/or modify custom ticket views.

1.	Choose the Custom View Settings command from the Administration menu.

The Custom View Settings dialog box displays listing the custom views that have been defined.

2.	To delete a custom view, highlight the view name and choose the Delete button.

A prompt displays asking you to confirm the delete action.  Choose the Yes button to delete the selected view.  (Choose the No button to cancel the delete action.)

The custom view is deleted from LSC.  The view name is removed from the list of views in the Custom View Settings dialog box, and it will no longer display on the View menu.

3.	To edit custom view settings, highlight the custom view name and choose the Edit button.

You can also double click on the view name to be edited.  The Edit View Name dialog box displays.  The name of the selected view is automatically entered into the View Name field.

4.	Edit the view criteria.

The View Name, Filter criteria, Sort order and Include on Menu definitions can be modified.

a -	To edit the view name, move the typing cursor into the View Name field and enter a new name for the custom view.  (When the Edit View Name dialog box first displays, the entry in the View Name field is highlighted.  Typing a new name will erase the highlighted name and enter the characters you type.)

b -	To edit the filter definition, choose the Filter button.  The Filter Ticket List dialog box displays showing the view's defined filter criteria.  Make any changes to the filter definition, and choose the OK button.

c -	To edit the sort order, choose the Sort button.  The Select Sort Criteria dialog box displays showing the view's defined sort order.  Make any changes to the sort order, and choose the OK button.

d -	To include/exclude the view name from the View menu, select/deselect the Include on Menu option.  This option box toggles on and off when selected.

5.	After all modifications are made, choose the OK button.

You are returned to the Custom View Settings dialog box.  Any changes to the view name are reflected in the View Names list.

6.	To apply the edited view to the View Tickets window, choose the View button.

The View Tickets window displays with the selected view.


Viewing Historical Tickets

To facilitate efficient disk space usage, LSC lets you archive tickets.  Based on any number of filtering criteria, tickets can be tagged and moved out of the current database file and into an "historical" database file.

Historical database files are not compressed, and therefore, support staff members can access tickets that are maintained in either the "current database" or an "historical database."

Use the following procedure to access the tickets maintained in an historical ticket database file.

NOTES:

a -	Historical database files are created upon ticket archiving.  Therefore, the following procedure can only be performed if you have already archived tickets.  Refer to the topic entitled Archiving Tickets.

b -	LSC allows you to view either the current or a historical database.  Before you switch from one to the other, you need to close all ticket windows to prevent database corruption.

1.	Choose the Historical Tickets command from the View menu.

The Choose Historical Database to View dialog box displays.

2.	Make selections from the Directories and Drives lists to find the archived file to view.

For example, choose the Drives down arrow button, and click on Drive G: to display the directories on drive G.   Then click on a directory name to display the list of files it maintains.

By default, *.ARC will display in the File Name field, thereby instructing LSC to list all files in the selected directory that have the extension *.ARC.  You can modify this field entry if you have saved the historical file with a different extension (e.g., *.old).

3.	Select a file from the File Name list.

Click on a file name to enter the name into the File Name field.

4.	To mark the historical file as Read Only, enable the Read Only option.

Placing a checkmark in this field will prohibit any changes to be made to the tickets in the historical file.

NOTE:

To avoid inadvertently making changes to a historical database file, it is highly recommended that you mark the file as Read Only when selecting the historical file to be viewed.

5.	Choose the OK button.

The tickets in the selected historical database file are listed in the View Historical Tickets window.

NOTE:

The historical ticket information will display according to the currently defined filter criteria and sorting options.  To view all tickets in the historical database file, make sure that filter criteria is not applied to the View Tickets window.


Viewing Current Tickets

The database used during the support staff's daily operation is the current database.  New tickets are added to the current database, and open or active tickets are maintained in the current database.

After viewing tickets in a historical database file, choose the Current Tickets command from the View menu to view the tickets in the current LSC database.  The tickets in the current database will display in the View Tickets window.

NOTES:

a -	The current ticket information will display according to the currently defined filter criteria and sorting options.  To view all tickets in the current database file, make sure that filter criteria is not applied to the View Tickets window.

b -	LSC allows you to view either the current or a historical database.  Before you switch from one to the other, you need to close all ticket windows to prevent database corruption.


LSC Reports

LSC is shipped with several pre-defined reports called "style sheets."  The style sheets represent frequently requested reports which can also be customized to accommodate a specific need.  By performing a "query," the information included in a report can be filtered according to virtually any combination of data values. For example, generating a report based on the All Tickets List by Date style sheet includes all tickets being maintained in the current LSC database. The information contained in the report can be filtered to include only the open tickets regarding printing problems specific to the Lotus spreadsheet.  Queries can be saved and attached to any number of style sheets.

In addition to customizing the pre-defined style sheets, reports that are created using the Crystal Reports software can be added into the LSC system.  These added reports can be customized, renamed and/or deleted.

NOTE:

The Crystal Reports software is installed using the LSC install procedure.  A Crystal Reports program icon is added to the BRIGHTWORK Program Manager group.  Procedures for using Crystal Reports can be referenced in Part Two of the LSC User Guide or the Crystal Reports on-line help.

Refer to the following topics for procedures on creating and managing reports:

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Customizing Report Style Sheets

Adding New Reports to LSC

Refer to the following topics for procedures on creating and managing queries:

Applying a Query to a Report

Removing a Query from a Report

Creating a New Query

Editing a Query

Deleting a Query


Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

The pre-defined style sheets supplied with LSC represent frequently requested reports.  A pre-defined report can be generated "as is," or it can be customized by applying queries which further define the data to be included in the report.

This topic lists the procedures for generating the reports listed in the Choose Reports dialog box.

NOTES:

a -	The pre-defined LSC report style sheets cannot be renamed or deleted.

b -	If you have modified the LSC database labels, the report names listed in the Choose Report dialog box will reflect the current labels.

Use the following procedure to generate the reports listed in the Choose Reports dialog box.

1.	Choose the Reports tool bar button.

You can also choose the Choose Reports command from the Reports menu.  The Choose Report dialog box displays.

2.	From the list of Report Names, select the report you want to generate.

Your selection is highlighted. The default selection is the first report name in the list.

3.	Select the report's destination.

The following destinations are available:

-	Printer - Sends the report to the printer and uses the currently defined Printer Setup parameters.  (Refer to the topic entitled Printer Setup and Administration for instructions on administering your print setup.)

-	Screen - Sends the report to a window on your screen.  Use the scroll bars to scroll through the report contents.  If desired, choose the Print Report command from the File menu to send the report to the printer.  Double click on the control menu button in the report window to close the window when you are finished.

-	File - Sends the report to a file.  When this option is selected, the File Format options become available.  The format options are:

-	Text  output file is saved in ASCII format.

-	Comma Delimited  output file is saved in a comma delimited format in which commas are used to separate the fields.

4.	Choose the OK button to initiate the creation of the report.

A Printing dialog box displays indicating the status of the report generation.

NOTES ON PRINTING:

a -	If the report is sent to a file, you are prompted to enter a file name.  Enter the file name and destination, and choose the OK button.  The Printing dialog box displays even if the report is being sent to a file.

b -	If the report is sent to the screen, the resulting report displays in a Crystal Reports dialog box.  The buttons at the top of the dialog box from left to right can be chosen for page scroll to first page, previous page, next page, last page, stop scroll, page magnification and route report to printer.  For detailed instructions on using the Crystal Reports software, refer to Part Two of the LSC User Guide.

c -	After a report has been sent to the screen, choose the Print Report command from the File menu to send the report to the printer.  (The report window must be open or minimized for the command to work.)

d -	If the report is sent to the printer, a "background report" is automatically printed after the selected report.  The background report lists the queries that have been applied to the selected report.

e -	Temporary files are created when reports are generated and routed to the screen or to a printer.  As a result, if you have limited system resources (e.g., disk space or system memory), it is recommended that you apply a query to the report to narrow down the number of applicable records.

f -	You must be captured to a queue when printing on a network.

See Also:

Customizing Report Style Sheets

Adding New Reports to LSC

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Applying a Query to a Report


Applying a Query to a Report

Queries can be defined and applied against a report to act as a filter for the data gathered from the LSC database.  Queries can be saved and applied to any number of reports.

Use the procedure below to apply an existing query to a report.

1.	Choose the Report tool bar button.

The Choose Report dialog box displays.

2.	From the list of Report Names, select the report to which you want to apply a query.

Your selection is highlighted, and the Current Query field displays the name of the query currently applied to the selected report.

NOTE:

The <None> entry in the Current Query field indicates that no query is currently applied to the report.

3.	Choose the Select button to the right of the Current Query field.

The Select Query dialog box displays listing all queries.

4.	Select the query name from the Available Queries list, and choose the Apply button.

To select a query name, point to the query and click the left mouse button.  Upon choosing the Apply button, the Select Query dialog box closes and the selected query name is placed into the Current Query field of the Choose Report dialog box.  The LSC database records are sorted, and only the records that match the query's specified filter criteria will be included when the report is generated.

NOTE:

Before applying a query, make sure that the correct report name is highlighted in the Choose Report dialog box.

See Also:

Removing a Query from a Report

Creating a New Query

Editing a Query

Deleting a Query


Customizing Report Style Sheets

A pre-defined LSC report can be customized by first assigning a unique name to the report and then applying a query which filters the data to be included in the new report.

NOTE:

For instructions on using the Crystal Reports software to create new inventory and distribution reports, refer to Part Two of the LSC User Guide.  For instructions on incorporating the new Crystal reports into LSC, refer to the topic entitled Adding New Reports to LSC.

Use the following procedure to customize a pre-defined style sheet.

1.	From the list of Report Names in the Choose Report dialog box, select the report on which you want to base the new report.

Select a report that consists of fields and data which are similar to the report to be created.

2.	Choose the Add button in the Choose Report dialog box.

The New Report dialog box displays.

3.	Enter a new unique name in the Report Name field.

The report name must be unique.

4.	Select a file name to be associated with the new report.

All report files in your LSC program directory are listed below the File Name field.  Because the new report is to be based on the report selected in the Choose Report dialog box, click on the file name of the selected report.

For example, if you were customizing the Open Tickets by Date report, then you would select the OPNDATE.RPT file name.

5.	Choose the OK button to save the new report information.

The New Report dialog box closes.  The new report name is added to the list of reports in the Choose Report dialog box.

At this point, the new report contains the same information as the report on which it is based.  Applying a query to the report will customize the data to be included in the new report.

See Also:

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Adding New Reports to LSC

Applying a Query to a Report

Removing a Query from a Report


Removing a Query from a Report

Use the following procedure to remove a query from a report.

1.	From the list of Report Names in the Choose Report dialog box, select the report for which you want to remove the query.

Your selection is highlighted, and the Current Query field displays the name of the query currently applied to the selected report.

2.	Choose the Select button to the right of the Current Query field.

The Select Query dialog box displays.

3.	Select the <None> query name, and choose the Apply button.

The Select Query dialog box closes.  The filter criteria is removed and all records that apply to the report will be included when the report is generated.

See Also:

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Customizing Report Style Sheets

Adding New Reports to LSC

Applying a Query to a Report


Creating a New Query

Use the following procedure to create a new query.  The procedure assumes that you have already chosen the Select button in the Choose Report dialog box to display the Select Query dialog box.

1.	Choose the Add button in the Select Query dialog box.

The Add Query dialog box displays.  Press the <TAB> key to move from field to field within this dialog box.

2.	Enter a Query Name and define a filter entry.

The purpose of each filter entry is to narrow down the list of records to be included in a report.  If more than one filter entry is defined, the entries are "linked" using either the AND or OR relationships.

For example, assume the following two filter entries:

Assign To = DAN

Action Code = Callback

If the entries are linked with the AND relationship, only the tickets that satisfy both criteria (i.e., all tickets assigned to Dan which have the callback action code) are included in the report definition.

If the entries are linked with the OR relationship, the tickets that satisfy either criteria (i.e., all tickets assigned to Dan and all tickets with the callback action) are included in the report definition.

For each filter entry, specify the following:

-	Query Name - Enter a query name up to 80 characters in length.

-	Component - Choose a component from the LSC database to use as the filter basis.  Select a component from the drop-down list associated with this field (e.g., Action, Cross Reference, Ticket #).

-	Operator - Choose an operator from the drop-down list associated with this field (e.g., = - equal to, < - less than, <> - not equal to).

-	Description - If desired, choose a description of the component from the drop-down list associated with this field.  The items which are included in this list depend on the selected component.  For example, "Desired" and "Urgent" display as Descriptions if Priority is entered in the Component field; "True" and "False" display if Ticket Closed is entered in the Component field.

-	Query Link - Specify the relationship between the filter entries (e.g., Assigned To = DAN OR Action = Callback).  The link options are AND and OR.

NOTE:

All filter entries in a query must have the same Query Link type (e.g., all entries will be linked by AND or all entries will be linked by OR).

3.	Choose the Insert button to accept the filter entry definition.

The entry is added to the Current Query list in the Edit Query dialog box.

4.	If required, insert additional filter entries.

Repeat steps #2 and #3 above.

NOTE:

To add a filter entry between existing entries, first highlight the filter entry line in the Current Query list where you want the new entry to be placed.  The new defined entry is placed in the highlighted position.

5.	When all filter entries are defined, choose the Save button.

The query is saved and added to the Available Queries list in the Select Query dialog box.  The new query can now be applied to a report.

See Also:

Editing a Query

Deleting a Query


Editing a Query

Use the following procedure to edit the definition of an existing query.  The procedure assumes that you have already chosen the Select button in the Choose Report dialog box to display the Select Query dialog box.

1.	Select a query from the Select Query dialog box, and choose the Edit button.

The Edit Query dialog box displays showing the query's filter entries.

2.	Modify the information, and choose the Save button.

For instructions on modifying the filter entries, follow the procedure in the topic entitled Creating a New Query.

To delete a filter entry, highlight the entry in the Current Query List and choose the Delete button.

NOTE:

To add a filter entry between existing entries, first highlight the filter entry line in the Current Query List where you want the new entry to be placed.  The new defined entry is placed in the highlighted position.

Creating a New Query

Deleting a Query


Deleting a Query

Use the following procedure to delete an existing query.  The procedure assumes that you have already chosen the Select button in the Choose Report dialog box to display the Select Query dialog box.

1.	Select the query to be deleted from the Select Query dialog box, and choose the Delete button.

A prompt displays asking you to verify the delete action.  Choose the Yes button to delete the query.  Choose No to cancel the delete action.  The query is removed from the Available Queries list.

NOTE:

Queries that are currently applied to an LSC report can be deleted.

See Also:

Creating a New Query

Editing a Query


Adding New Reports to LSC

Additional reports can be incorporated into LSC through the use of the Crystal Reports software.  Queries can also be applied to the new reports, and once added, the reports can be renamed and/or deleted.

NOTE:

The Crystal Reports software is installed using the LSC install procedure.  A Crystal Reports program icon is added to the BRIGHTWORK Program Manager group.  Procedures for using Crystal Reports are presented in Part Two of the LSC User Guide.

New reports that have been created using the Crystal Reports software can be added into LSC by using the following procedure.  All report files (.RPT) must be located in the LSC program directory.

Use the following procedure to add a new report into LSC.

1.	Choose the Reports tool bar button.

The Choose Report dialog box displays.

2.	Choose the Add button.

The New Report dialog box displays.

3.	Enter the Report Name of the report to be added.

The name entered in this field is the name that will display in the Choose Report dialog box.

 4.	Select the File Name, and choose the OK button.

Select the .RPT file name to be added into LSC.  (The .RPT files that display are located in the LSC program directory.)  The selected file will be associated with the Report Name.

See Also:

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Renaming Added Reports

Deleting Reports


Renaming Added Reports

Use the following procedure to rename a Crystal report that has been added into LSC.

1.	Choose the Reports tool bar button.

The Choose Report dialog box displays.

2.	From the list of Report Names, select the report to be renamed and choose the Rename button.

The Rename Report dialog box displays prompting you to enter a new report name.

3.	Enter the new report name, and choose the OK button.

The new report name displays in the Choose Report dialog box, and the old name is removed.  All attributes of the old report are preserved in the renamed report (i.e., the report contents and applied query do not change).

See Also:

Adding New Reports to LSC

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Deleting Reports


Deleting Reports

Use the following procedure to delete a Crystal report that has been added into LSC.

NOTE:

A pre-defined LSC report style sheet cannot be deleted; however, a report that was created using the Crystal Reports software and then added into LSC can be deleted.

1.	Choose the Reports tool bar button.

The Choose Report dialog box displays.

2.	From the list of Report Names, select the report to be deleted and choose the Delete button.

A prompt displays asking you to confirm the deletion.

3.	Choose the Yes button to delete the report.

Choose the No button to cancel the delete action.

If deleted, the report name is removed from the Choose Report dialog box.

See Also:

Adding New Reports to LSC

Printing Pre-defined Report Style Sheets

Renaming Added Reports


LSC Error Messages

A reserved item cannot be edited or deleted.

There are certain items in the qualification lists that are reserved or pre-defined, for instance, the "TO_DO" action code is reserved.

Component, Operator, and Description fields must be filled in.

To insert filter criteria for a query through Add Query or Edit Query dialog boxes, you need to select data for all three fields.

Delete the action selected?

LSC asks for your confirmation before deleting an action in the View Tickets window.

Delete the Staff selected?

LSC asks for your confirmation before deleting a staff in the Setup Staff dialog box.

Delete the ticket selected?

LSC asks for your confirmation before deleting a ticket from the database.

Delete the View Name selected?

LSC asks for your confirmation before deleting a view in the Custom View Settings dialog box.

Do you want to delete this entry?

LSC asks for your confirmation before deleting an entry in the Qualification Lists dialog box.

Error: The date range is not valid.

When entering the date range in the Filter Ticket List dialog box, the To date must be equal to or later than the From date.

Error: Unable to create or open specified file.

To archive tickets to a file or restore tickets from a file, LSC must create or open a file accordingly.  This message occurs if the operation is unsuccessful.

Extremely low in memory.  Unable to invoke ticket window.  Please close one or more tickets to free up memory.

As an MDI (Multiple Document Interface) application, LSC allows you to open more than one ticket window simultaneously.  The maximum number of windows are limited to the PC's memory.  When the threshold is reached, the message alerts you to close one or more 'least used' ticket.

Field cannot be left empty.

When editing an item in a qualification list, you cannot enter an empty string.

Login incorrect.  Please try again or click the Cancel button to abort.

The login initials and password combination provided is incorrect.  You may retry or abort logging in to LSC.

Please close all ticket windows before switching to view another set of ticket database.

LSC allows you to view either the current or a historical database.  Before you switch from one to the other, you need to close all ticket windows to prevent database corruption.

Please do not specify filename with .ACT, .DES, or .DEA extension.

The ticket database is maintained in 3 files, HLPDSK1H.DAT, HLPDSK1A.DAT, HLPDSK1P.DAT and HLPDSK1T.DAT.  When archiving tickets, you need to specify a filename (usually with the .ARC extension).  The file will hold data from HLPDSK1H.DAT.  LSC will use the same filename, but assign the .ACT extension to hold the data from HLPDSK1A.DAT, the .DES extension to hold the data from HLPDSK1P.DAT, and the .DEA extension to hold the data from HLPDSK1T.DAT.  Consequently, the message occurs if you specify the .ACT file extension.

Please provide a View Name.

When defining or editing a custom view in the Custom View Settings dialog box, you need to name the view in order to save the configuration.

Please provide the Account ID.

When adding/editing the Account information, the Account ID field cannot be left empty.

Please provide the Company ID.

When adding/editing the Company information, the Company ID field cannot be left empty.

Please provide the Staff Initials.

When adding or editing the staff profile in the Setup Staff dialog box, you need to provide the staff initials.  This message can also occur if you did not provide the initials for the Login dialog box.

Please select a ticket on the View Tickets list first before the specified operation can be completed.

Before you try to perform a ticket-related operation (e.g., Add Action, Contact Details, Delete Ticket), you must first highlight a ticket on the View Tickets list by clicking on it.

Please specify a Closed Date/Time which is equal or later than the Opened Date/Time.

When you close a ticket, you may only specify a Closed Date/Time that is later than the Opened Date/Time.

Please specify a file for the archived tickets.

To archive tickets, you need to specify a filename as the destination.

The Account ID has already been used.  Please provide a different ID.

When adding/editing Account information, the Account ID must be unique.

The addition of this staff member will exceed the number of LSC users allowed by your license.  Please contact Brightwork Development to purchase additional copies of the LSC software.

You are attempting to add more staff than the number indicated by the LSC license you have purchased.  You may increase the number of  staff by upgrading your license.  Please contact Brightwork Development.

The Company ID has already been used.  Please provide a different ID.

When adding/editing Company information, the Company ID must be unique.

The current ticket is the first ticket in the database according to the Filter/Sort criteria.

When you choose the Previous tool bar button or choose the Previous Ticket command from the Ticket menu, LSC will search the database for the previous ticket according to the Filter/Sort order.  This message appears if the present ticket displayed is the first ticket.

The current ticket is the last ticket in the database according to the Filter/Sort criteria.

When you choose the Next tool bar button or choose the Next Ticket command from the Ticket menu, LSC will search the database for the next ticket according to the Filter/Sort order.  This message appears if the present ticket displayed is the last ticket.

The new password was not retyped correctly.

When adding or editing the staff profile in the Setup Staff dialog box, the two password fields must be equivalent to confirm the choice.

The number of view names included on the menu has reached the maximum.

To accommodate the limited length of a pop-up menu, the maximum number of views that can appear on the View menu is ten (10).  When defining or editing a custom view in the Custom View Settings dialog box, this message occurs if you choose to include the view on the menu and there are already ten custom-defined views on the menu.

The related information for this account has changed.  Do you wish to update the account information?

You have added/changed the related information for the account selected in the Account ID field:  First Name, Last Name, Phone, Department, or Network Address fields.  To update the account information, choose the Yes button.  To save the modified information with that ticket only, choose the No button.  To return to the Ticket window, choose the Cancel button.

The Staff Initials has already been used.  Please provide different initials.

When adding or editing the staff profile in the Setup Staff dialog box, the initials must be unique.

The View Name has already been used.  Please provide a different name.

When defining or editing a custom view in the Custom View Settings dialog box, the view name must be unique.

There are no archived tickets in the file specified.  Please select a file that contains archived tickets.

When restoring tickets from a file, the file specified does not have archived tickets.  The restoration process cannot continue.

This item has already been defined in the database.

When adding or editing an item through the Qualification Lists dialog box, the name must be unique within each list.

This ticket is currently being edited by another user.  Please make your changes later.

To support multiple users, LSC locks the ticket (window) last opened by each user.  This ensures that only one person can save changes to a ticket at any time.  When users attempt to edit the same ticket simultaneously, only the changes made by the "first" user (the user who locks the ticket) will be effective.  All other users will be alerted with a message to edit the ticket later.

This will save the detail information for this account.  Do you wish to continue?

This message enables you to confirm whether you wish to save modifications made to a company's contact detail information (the address, Email, fax, etc.).  There can only be one company ID associated with an account ID.

Warning: The corresponding .ACT file cannot be opened. Do you wish to continue?

When restoring tickets from a file, LSC cannot open the corresponding .ACT file, or the file does not exist in the same directory as the .ARC file (the main archive file).  The .ACT file contains the ticket actions.

Warning: The corresponding .DES file cannot be opened. Do you wish to continue?

When restoring tickets, LSC cannot open the corresponding .DES file, or the file does not exist in the same directory as the .ARC file (the main archive file).  The .DES file contains the ticket problem descriptions.

Warning: The corresponding .DEA file cannot be opened. Do you wish to continue?

When restoring tickets, LSC cannot open the corresponding .DEA file, or the file does not exist in the same directory as the .ARC file (the main archive file).  The .DEA file contains the action descriptions.

Warning: The file specified does not have archived tickets.  Overwrite file contents?

When you choose to archive tickets to a file, the file selected has a format that is different from the LSC database.  Responding Yes to the message will overwrite the file's existing content with LSC database information.

You do not have the rights to add new item in the highlighted field.  Please select an existing value or see your administrator for granting the proper rights.

The LSC administrator has set up your security profile (through Setup Staff) such that you may only select existing items from the Qualification Lists (e.g.  Problem Type, Product Category, Issue Type, etc.).  In addition, if you are not granted the right to "Setup Staff",  you will not be allowed to add new values in the "Assigned to" and "Person" fields in the Ticket and Add/Edit Action windows respectively.  See your LSC administrator to modify your rights.

You have too many tickets in the database to perform filter/sort operation completely.  Please archive old or unwanted tickets.

This message displays when there is a large number of tickets in your database and you attempt to perform a filter/sort operation.  It is recommended that a maximum of 20,000 tickets be maintained in any ticket database.

You may not delete this staff as he/she is logged in to LSC.

As a security measure, you may not delete a staff member in the Setup Staff dialog box when he/she is logged in to LSC.

You may not login to LSC with the same staff initials more than once.

As a security measure, you may login to LSC using the same initials on only one station.

You may only delete the activities with the TO_DO action code.

Your rights to delete activities are limited to only those that have the "TO_DO" action code.  To delete any other activities, your staff profile needs to be updated in the Setup Staff dialog box.

You may only edit the tickets that are assigned to you.

Your rights to edit tickets are limited to those tickets assigned to you only.  To edit all other tickets, your staff profile needs to be updated in the Setup Staff dialog box.

You must enter a Query name.

When adding or editing a query, the Query Name must be supplied.

You cannot delete a pre-defined report.

There are pre-defined reports that are shipped with LSC which print ticket information in a easy-to-read format.  These reports are protected from being deleted accidentally.

You cannot rename a pre-defined report.

There are pre-defined reports that are shipped with LSC which print ticket information in a easy-to-read format.  These reports are protected from being renamed accidentally.


Btrieve Error Messages

Btrieve returns a status code after each operation an application performs.  If the operation was successful, Btrieve returns status code 0.  If the operation was not successful, Btrieve will return one of the non-zero status codes described below.

If Btrieve returns a code that is not contained in this topic, refer to your Btrieve Installation and Operation Manual for error codes from the utilities.

01  INVALID OPERATION

The operation parameter specified in the call is invalid.

02  I/O ERROR

An error occurred during disk read/write.  This status code indicates that the file has been damaged and must be recreated, or that the file specified on the open call was not created.  This status code also occurs if the application passed an invalid position block.

03  FILE NOT OPEN

The operation cannot execute because the file is not open.  A successful Open operation must be performed before Btrieve can process any other operations.  This status code may also occur if the application passed an invalid position block for the file.

04  KEY VALUE NOT FOUND

The specified key value in the index path was not found.

05  DUPLICATE KEY VALUE

A record with a key field containing a duplicate key value cannot be added to an index that does not allow duplicate values.

06  INVALID KEY NUMBER

The value stored in the key number parameter was not valid for the file being accessed.  The key number must correspond to one either of the keys defined when the file was created or to a supplemental index.

07  DIFFERENT KEY NUMBER

The key number parameter changed before a Get Next, Get Next Extended, Get Previous, Get Previous Extended, Update, or Delete operation.  The operation specified requires the same key number parameter as the previous operation because Btrieve uses positioning information relative to the previous key number.

If you need to change key numbers between consecutive Get Next, Get Next Extended, Get Previous, or Get Previous Extended operations, use a Get Position operation followed by a Get Direct operation to re-establish positioning for the new index path.

08  INVALID POSITIONING

The current position must be established to update or delete a record.  Perform a Get or Step operation to establish the current position.  This status code may also occur if the application passed an invalid position block for the file.

09  END-OF-FILE

The operation tried to read past the file boundaries (end-of-file or start-of-file).  When reading a file in ascending order according to an index path, Btrieve returns the last record in that index path.  When reading a file in descending order according to an index path, Btrieve returns the first record in the index path.

The Get Extended and Step Extended operations return this status code if the number of records satisfying the filtering condition is less than the number of specified records to be returned and the reject count has not been reached.

10  MODIFIABLE KEY VALUE ERROR

The operation tried to modify a key field which is defined as non-modifiable.

11  INVALID FILENAME

The filename specified does not conform to file naming conventions.

12  FILE NOT FOUND

The filename specified does not exist.  Check the key buffer parameter to make sure the pathname is terminated with a blank or a binary zero.

13  EXTENDED FILE ERROR

Btrieve could not find the extension file for an extended file which the application tried to open.  Extension files must be loaded on the logical disk drive specified when the extension was created.  Both the primary file and its extension file must be on-line to access an extended file.

14  PRE-IMAGE OPEN ERROR

The pre-image file could not be created or opened.  There are three possible causes for this error.

-	Btrieve could not create a new pre-image file because your disk directory is full.  Btrieve must be able to create a pre-image file.

-	Btrieve could not open the pre-image file to restore file integrity.  If the pre-image file was erased or damaged, Btrieve cannot restore the file's integrity.  In this case, either use the RECOVER command in the BUTIL utility to retrieve the damaged file's data records in a sequential file, or replace the file with its most recent backup.

-	Btrieve could not assign a handle to the pre-image file because the Btrieve was not started by a user with access rights to the pre-image file.

15  PRE-IMAGE I/O ERROR

An I/O error occurred during the pre-imaging function.  Either the disk is full or the pre-image file is damaged.

-	If the disk is full, erase any unnecessary files or extend the file to gain additional disk space.

-	If the pre-image file is damaged, the integrity of the Btrieve file cannot be ensured.  Either use the RECOVER command in the BUTIL utility to retrieve the damaged file's data records in a sequential file, or replace the file with its most recent backup.

16  EXPANSION ERROR

An error occurred while writing the directory structure to disk prior to the creation of the expanded file partition.  Either Btrieve could not close the file, or a new page was added to the file and Btrieve could not close and reopen the file to update the directory structure.  Check for a disk hardware failure.

17  CLOSE ERROR

An error occurred while writing the directory structure to disk prior to closing the file.  Either Btrieve could not close the file, or a new page was added to the file and Btrieve could not close and reopen the file to update the directory structure.  Check for a disk hardware failure.  This status code also occurs if the application passed an invalid position block for the file.

18  DISK FULL

The disk is full and the file could not be expanded to accommodate the insertion.  Either erase any unnecessary files or extend the file to gain additional disk space.

19  UNRECOVERABLE ERROR

An unrecoverable error has occurred.  File integrity cannot be ensured.  Either use the RECOVER command in the BUTIL utility to retrieve the damaged file's data records in a sequential file, or replace the Btrieve with its most recent backup.

20  RECORD MANAGER INACTIVE

A request has been made before the Record Manager has been started.  Restart the Record Manager.

In network environments, the operation was not processed because BREQUEST was not loaded.  Reload BREQUEST.

21  KEY BUFFER TOO SHORT

The key buffer parameter was not long enough to accommodate the key field for the index path requested.  Verify that the length of the key buffer equals the defined length of the key specified in the key number parameter.  This status code can be returned only by certain interfaces.

22  DATA BUFFER LENGTH

The data buffer parameter was not long enough to accommodate the length of the data record defined when the file was created.  Verify that the length of the data buffer is at least as long as the file's defined record length.

-	For Get or Step operations, if the data buffer is too short to contain the fixed length portion of the record, Btrieve does not return any data to the data buffer.  If the record is a variable length record and the data buffer is too short to contain the entire variable length portion of the record, Btrieve returns as much data as it can and a status code 22, indicating that it could not return the entire record.

-	For the Insert operation, Btrieve does not insert the record if the data buffer is shorter than the fixed length portion of the record.

-	For the Update operation, if the data buffer is too short to contain the fixed length portion of any record, Btrieve does not update the record.

-	For the Create, Stat, and Create Supplemental Index operations, a status code 22 indicates that the data buffer is not long enough to contain all the file and key specifications, and the alternate collating sequence definition, if specified.

23  POSITION BLOCK LENGTH

The position block parameter was not 128 bytes long.  This error can only be detected using certain language interfaces.

24  PAGE SIZE ERROR

The page size was invalid.  The page size must be a multiple of 512 bytes but must be no larger than 4096 bytes.

25  CREATE I/O ERROR

The file specified could not be created.  Possible causes are a full disk directory or a full disk.  If you are creating a file over an existing file, Btrieve returns this status code if the existing file is open or the operating system does not allow the creation for some other reason (for example, a NetWare file is flagged transactional).

26  NUMBER OF KEYS

The number of keys specified for the page size was invalid.  For standard Btrieve files with a page size of 512 bytes, the number of key segments must be between 1 and 8.  For larger page sizes, the number of key segments must be between 1 and 24.  You must define at least one key without the null attribute.

27  INVALID KEY POSITION

The key field position specified exceeded the defined record length for the file.  Either the key position was greater than the record length or the key position plus the key length exceeded the record length.  For key-only files, the key must begin in the first byte of the record (position 1).

28  INVALID RECORD LENGTH

The record length was invalid.  The record length specified (plus overhead for duplicates) must be less than or equal to the page size minus 6 or greater than or equal to 4 bytes long.

29  INVALID KEY LENGTH

The key length was invalid.  The key length specified must be greater than zero and cannot exceed 255.  The length of a binary key must be even.  Btrieve requires that each key page in the file is large enough to hold at least eight keys.

If the page size is too small to accommodate eight occurrences of the specified key length (plus overhead), either increase the file's page size, or decrease the key length.

30  NOT A BTRIEVE FILE

The filename specified is not a valid Btrieve file.  Either the file was not created by Btrieve, or it was created by an earlier version of Btrieve.

Another possibility is that the first page of the file, which contains the File Control Record, is damaged.

31  FILE ALREADY EXTENDED

The file specified has already been extended.  A file can be extended only once.

32  EXTEND I/O ERROR

The file could not be extended.  Possible causes are that the directory is full, the disk is full, or the disk is write protected.

34  INVALID EXTENSION NAME

The filename specified for the extended partition was invalid.

35  DIRECTORY ERROR

An error occurred while changing to the directory that contains the Btrieve file.  Either the drive specified in the Get Directory operation does not exist or the pathname specified in a Set Directory operation was invalid.

36  TRANSACTION ERROR

A Begin Transaction operation could not be performed because no transactions were specified when the Btrieve was initialized.

37  TRANSACTION IS ACTIVE

A Begin Transaction was issued while another transaction was active at that station.  Transactions cannot be nested.

38  TRANSACTION CONTROL FILE I/O ERROR

An error occurred when Btrieve tried to write to the transaction control file.  Possible causes were that the disk was full, the disk was write protected, or the transaction control file (which was created when the Btrieve was loaded) was deleted.

39  END/ABORT TRANSACTION ERROR

An End or Abort Transaction operation was issued without a corresponding Begin Transaction operation.

40  TRANSACTION MAX FILES

The application tried to update more than the maximum number of files allowed within a transaction.  The maximum number of different files that can be updated during a logical transaction is set when Btrieve is configured.  Refer to your Btrieve Installation and Operation manual for more information on configuration.

41  OPERATION NOT ALLOWED

The application tried to perform an operation that is not allowed at this time.  Some operations are not allowed under certain operating conditions.  For example, Btrieve returns this status code if you attempt to perform a Step, Update, or Delete operation on a key-only file or a Get operation on a data only file.

Also, certain operations are prohibited during transactions because they have too great an effect on the pre-image file or on Btrieve's performance.  These operations include Close, Set or Clear Owner, Extend, Create Supplemental Index, and Drop Supplemental Index.

42  INCOMPLETE ACCELERATED ACCESS

The application tried to open a file that was previously accessed in accelerated mode and never successfully closed.  The file's integrity cannot be ensured.  Either use the RECOVER command in the BUTIL utility to build a new file or restore the file using the latest backup.

43  INVALID RECORD ADDRESS

The record address specified for a Get Direct operation was invalid.  The address is outside of the file's boundaries; it is not on a record boundary within a data page, or on a data page.  The 4-byte address you specify for a Get Direct operation should be one that was obtained by a Get Position operation.

44  NULL KEY PATH

The application tried to use the Get Direct operation to establish an index path for a key whose value is null in the corresponding record.  Btrieve cannot establish positioning based on a null key value.

45  INCONSISTENT KEY FLAGS

The key flags specification on a Create operation was inconsistent.  If a key has multiple segments, the duplicate, modifiable, and null attributes should be the same for each segment in the key.

46  ACCESS TO FILE DENIED

The application opened a file in read-only mode and tried to perform an Update, Delete, or Insert on that file.  Another possible cause is that the owner name required for updates was not specified correctly when you opened the file.

47  MAXIMUM OPEN FILES

The number of files opened in accelerated mode exceeded the number of buffers available in Btrieve's cache.  When a file is opened in accelerated mode, Btrieve reserves one of its cache buffers for the file.  Btrieve always reserves five empty buffers for index manipulation.  Reconfigure the Btrieve Record Manager with a smaller page size parameter to allocate more buffers.

48  INVALID ALTERNATE SEQUENCE DEFINITION

The first byte of an alternate collating sequence definition (the identification byte) did not contain the hexadecimal value AC.

49  KEY TYPE ERROR

The application tried to create a file or a supplemental index with an invalid extended key type, or tried to assign an alternate collating sequence to a binary key or key segment.  You can only assign an alternate collating sequence to a string, lstring, or zstring key type.

This status code is also returned if you define a supplemental index requiring an alternate collating sequence, and no alternate collating sequence definition exists either in the file or in the key definition passed in the data buffer.

50  OWNER ALREADY SET

The application tried to perform a Set Owner operation on a file that already has an owner.  Use the Clear Owner operation to remove the previous owner before specifying a new one.

51  INVALID OWNER

There are two possible causes for this status code:

-	If your application received this status code after a Set Owner operation, the owner names specified in the key buffer and data buffer did not match.

-	If your application received this status code after an Open operation, the file you tried to open has an owner name assigned to it.  Your application must specify the correct owner name in the data buffer.

52  ERROR WRITING CACHE

While trying to make a cache buffer available, Btrieve tried to write data to a logical disk drive from a file that was previously opened in accelerated mode.  An I/O error occurred during a write.

53  INVALID INTERFACE

An application tried to access a file containing variable length records with a language interface from Btrieve v3.15 or earlier.  To access files with variable length records, you must use v4.xx or later interface.

54  VARIABLE PAGE ERROR

During a Step Direct operation, Btrieve could not read all or part of the variable length portion of a record.  In this case, Btrieve returns as much data as possible to your application.  This error usually indicates file damage to one or more pages in the file.

55  AUTOINCREMENT ERROR

The application tried to specify either the segmented or duplicate attribute for an autoincrement key type.  An autoincrement key cannot be part of another key and cannot allow duplicates.

56  INCOMPLETE INDEX

A supplemental index was damaged.  This can occur if a Create Supplemental Index operation or a Drop Supplemental Index operation is interrupted and does not run to completion.  Perform a Drop Supplemental Index operation to completely remove the index from the file.

57  EXPANDED MEMORY ERROR

This error is applicable only in the client-based DOS environment.  Btrieve returns this status if it receives an error from the Expanded Memory Manager.  This error usually means that Btrieve was unable to save or restore the memory mapping register context, indicating an incompatibility with another application that uses expanded memory.

58  COMPRESSION BUFFER TOO SHORT

The application tried to read or write a record that is longer than the value specified for the size of the compression buffer.  Reconfigure the Btrieve Record Manager, specifying a higher value for the "Maximum Compressed Record Size" option.

59  FILE ALREADY EXISTS

This status code is returned for the Create operation if you specified -1 in the key number parameter and the name of an existing file in the key buffer parameter.

60  REJECT COUNT REACHED

Btrieve rejected the number of records specified by the reject count before an Extended Get/Step operation found the requested number of records which satisfy the filtering condition.  Check the first two bytes of the data buffer returned for the number of records that were retrieved.

61  WORK SPACE TOO SMALL

The Extended Get/Step operations use the pre-image buffer as work space.  This error code indicates that the work space was not large enough to hold the filtering data buffer structure and the largest record to be received.  The size of the work space is configurable (see the Btrieve Installation and Operation manual for more information).  Check the first two bytes of the data buffer returned for the number of records that were retrieved.

62  INCORRECT DESCRIPTOR

The descriptor (data buffer structure), which is passed for an extended Get or Step operation, is incorrect.

63  INVALID EXTENDED INSERT BUFFER

Extended Insert provides an invalid buffer.  Either the buffer length is less than five bytes, or the number of records specified is zero.

64  FILTER LIMIT REACHED

During an Extended Get Next/Previous operation, a rejected record was reached.  Furthermore, this rejected record is such that no other record can satisfy the given filtering condition, going in the direction specified by the operation.  This is applicable only if the key specified by the key number is also used as the filtering field.

65  INCORRECT FIELD OFFSET

The field offset in the extractor of an Extended Get/Step is invalid based on the length of the retrieved record.

74  AUTOMATIC TRANSACTION ABORT

This is an informative status code and is applicable only in the server-based environment.  Btrieve replaced an End Transaction operation with an Abort Transaction because an error had been detected for a TTS file inside the transaction.  In addition, Btrieve executed the Abort Transaction operation.

78  DEADLOCK DETECTED

Btrieve detected a deadlock condition.  The application should clear all resources (such as aborting or ending the transaction or releasing all record locks) before proceeding.  This allows the other applications to access the resources for which they are waiting.

80  CONFLICT

The Update or Delete operation could not be performed because the record was changed by another application since your application read the record.  Reread the record prior to resending an Update or Delete operation.

81  LOCK ERROR

This error can result from one of two conditions:

-	The Btrieve lock table was full.  Decrease the number of locks that your application uses or reconfigure the Btrieve Record Manager and specify a higher value for the "Maximum Number of Record Locks" option.

-	The application tried to unlock one record that was locked with a multiple record lock, and the record position stored in the data buffer did not correspond with any record that was locked in that file.

82  LOST POSITION

When performing a Get Next or Get Previous on a key with duplicates, the application tried to retrieve a record that was deleted or whose key value was modified by another application.  Re-establish positioning using a Get Equal or a Get Direct operation.

83  READ OUTSIDE TRANSACTION

The application tried to delete or update a record within a transaction, but the record was not read within the transaction.  If you are going to update or delete a record within a transaction, you must read the record within the transaction to ensure you have first obtained exclusive access to the data.

84  RECORD LOCKED

The application tried to apply a nowait lock on a record that was currently locked by another application, or to apply a nowait lock on a file while another application held active record lock(s) in that file.

If this status code is returned, your application can use either of the following two methods:

-	Retry the operation until it is successful.  Under light to moderate network use, this may be the simplest and quickest solution.

-	Use the wait option (+100/+300) instead of the nowait option.

85  FILE LOCKED

The application tried to apply a nowait record or file lock while another application held the file locked.  This status code is also returned when the application tries to open a file outside of a transaction and the file is locked by some other application.

If this status code is returned, your application can use either of the following two methods:

-	Retry the operation until it is successful.  Under light to moderate network use, this may be the simplest and quickest solution.

-	Use the wait option (+100/+300) instead of the nowait option.

86  FILE TABLE FULL

Btrieve's file table was full.  Reconfigure Btrieve and specify a higher value for the "Maximum Number of Open Files" option.

87  HANDLE TABLE FULL

This status code is applicable only in the server-based and Windows environments.

Btrieve's handle table was full.  Reconfigure the Btrieve and specify a higher value for the "Maximum Number of File Handles" option.

88  INCOMPATIBLE MODE ERROR

The application tried to open a file in an incompatible mode.  If the first application to access a file opens it in accelerated mode, all other applications must open it in accelerated mode.  If the first application to access a file opens it in non-accelerated mode, other applications cannot open the file in accelerated mode.

90  REDIRECTED DEVICE TABLE FULL

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

BREQUEST's redirection table or server routing table was full.  This occurs if you attach to additional servers or map to additional drives after you loaded BREQUEST.  Reload BREQUEST, specifying a larger number for the "Number of File Servers" or "Number of Mapped Drives" options (/S and /R respectively).

This error also occurs if you detach from a particular server and attach to a different server.  Once a workstation has attached to a server, BREQUEST will not remove its name from the server routing table.

91  SERVER ERROR

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

BREQUEST could not establish a session with the server.  In NetWare environments, either the NetWare Btrieve Record Manager has not been started or the server was not active.  Verify that the NetWare Btrieve Record Manager is active on the server in question.

92  TRANSACTION TABLE FULL

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

The maximum number of active transactions was exceeded.  Reconfigure Btrieve and specify a higher value for the "Number of Concurrent Transactions" option.

93  INCOMPATIBLE LOCK TYPE

Your application tried to mix single record locks (+100/+200) and multiple record locks (+300/+400) in the same file at the same time.  All locks of one type must be released before a lock of the other type can be executed.

94  PERMISSION ERROR

Your application tried to open or create a file in a directory without the proper privileges.  Btrieve does not override the network privileges assigned to users.

95  SESSION NO LONGER VALID

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

The previously established session was no longer active due to an error at the workstation, the file server, or on the network.  Verify that your workstation is still attached to the file server and then reload BREQUEST.

96  COMMUNICATIONS ENVIRONMENT ERROR

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

This code occurs when loading Btrieve on a NetWare server.  The SPX connection table is full.  Reload SPX, specifying a higher value for the connection table.  Refer to the NetWare system documentation for more information.

97  DATA MESSAGE TOO SMALL

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

Your application tried to read or write a record which was longer than the Btrieve Record Manager or BREQUEST could handle.  Reconfigure the Btrieve Record Manager and specify a higher value for the "Maximum Record Length" option.  Reload BREQUEST and specify a higher value for the /D option.

-	For an Update, Insert, or Create operation, the application receives this error if the data buffer length it specifies for the record exceeds the length specified for the Btrieve Record Manager or BSERVER.

-	For a Get, Step, or Stat operation, the application receives this error if the value specified for the data buffer length is shorter than the length of the data Btrieve would return, regardless of the data buffer length specified in the program.

98  INTERNAL TRANSACTION ERROR

This status code is applicable only in the server-based environment.

An error has been detected while executing a previous operation on a NetWare TTS file.  Therefore, no operation other than Abort Transaction (21) is allowed at this point.

99  THE REQUESTER CANNOT ACCESS THE NETWARE RUNTIME SERVER

The DOS Requester returns this status code when NetWare Runtime server support is enabled (/C:1) and the Requester either detects no existing connection or cannot find a valid login username.  If the Requester cannot find a login username other than SUPERVISOR, there is no valid name to pass.

100  NO CACHE BUFFERS ARE AVAILABLE

Btrieve has used all the cache buffers it allocated at load time.  Using the Setup utility, you can increase the value for the Cache Allocation configuration option.  Alternatively, you can change the Number of Remote Sessions configuration option to decrease the number of concurrent Btrieve users.  For more information, refer to Chapter 3, "Installing and Configuring Btrieve," in the Btrieve Installation and Operation manual.

101  INSUFFICIENT OPERATING SYSTEM MEMORY IS AVAILABLE

There is not enough operating system memory available to perform the requested operation.  Decrease the value for the Cache Allocation configuration option (using the Setup utility), decrease the number of concurrent Btrieve users (using the Number of Remote Sessions configuration option in the Setup utility), or add memory to the server.  For more information on the configuration options, refer to Chapter 3, "Installing and Configuring Btrieve," in the Btrieve Installation and Operation manual.

102  INSUFFICIENT STACK SPACE IS AVAILABLE

Btrieve has run out of stack space.  To increase the amount of stack space available to your application, relink the application, setting the stack size to a higher value.  Only the NLM applications calling Btrieve on the local server get this message.

103  THE CHUNK OFFSET IS TOO BIG

A Get Direct/Chunk operation has specified an offset beyond the end of the record, either explicitly or through the use of the next-in-record bias to the subfunction value.  Unless Btrieve returns this status while processing the first chunk, the operation was partially successful.  Check the data buffer length parameter immediately after the call to see how much data (and therefore how many chunks) Btrieve retrieved.

This code can also be returned by the Update Chunk operation when the specified offset is more than one byte beyond the end of the record.  However, in this situation, Status Code 103 indicates that Btrieve made no changes to the record.

104  THE LOCALE INFORMATION COULD NOT BE FOUND

The Create or Create Index function returns this status code to indicate that the operating system was not able to return a collation table for the country ID and code page specified.  Check that the application specified the locale's country ID and code page correctly and that the operating system is configured to support the country ID and code page.

105  THE FILE CANNOT BE CREATED WITH VARIABLE-TAIL ALLOCATION TABLES (VATS)

The application specified that a Btrieve file should be created with Variable-tail Allocation Tables (VATs); however, the application failed to specify that the file was to use variable-length records (a precondition for files to use VATs).  This status applies to key-only files as well as regular data files.

106  THE OPERATION CANNOT GET THE NEXT CHUNK

The application called the Get Direct/Chunk operation to retrieve a chunk from a record and used the next-in-record bias on the descriptor subfunction.  However, after the application established its positioning in the record (but prior to this call), the target record was deleted.

107  CHUNK UPDATES/RETRIEVALS CANNOT BE PERFORMED ON THE FILE

The application tried to use either a Get Direct/Chunk operation or an Update Chunk operation on a pre-v6.0 formatted file.

Client-Based Btrieve for OS/2 and Windows Status Codes

Client-based Btrieve may return the following status codes in an OS/2 or Windows environment.

1001  THE MULTIPLE LOCKS OPTION IS OUT OF RANGE

The number specified for the Multiple Locks configuration option must be between 1 and 255, inclusive.

1002  BTRIEVE CANNOT ALLOCATE THE MEMORY NEEDED

Make sure that the workstation has enough memory to load all the programs it requires.

1003  THE MEMORY SIZE IS TOO SMALL

Make sure the value for the Memory Size configuration option is large enough to accommodate the required cache size.

1004  THE PAGE SIZE OPTION IS OUT OF RANGE

The value of the Page Size configuration option must be an even multiple of 512, and it must be between 512 and 4,096, inclusive.

1005  THE PRE-IMAGE FILE DRIVE OPTION IS INVALID

You must specify a valid drive letter for the Pre-Image File Drive configuration option.

NOTE:

Pre-image files are used only for files created by Btrieve versions earlier than v6.x, or by v6.x if it was loaded with the Create Btrieve Files in Pre v6.x Format configuration option set to Yes.

1006  THE PRE-IMAGE BUFFER SIZE OPTION IS OUT OF RANGE

The Pre-Image Buffer Size configuration option must be between 1 and 64, inclusive.

NOTE:

Pre-image files are used only for files created by Btrieve versions earlier than v6.x, or by v6.x if it was loaded with the Create Btrieve Files in Pre v6.x Format configuration option set to Yes.

1007  THE OPEN FILES OPTION IS OUT OF RANGE

The Open Files configuration option must be between 1 and 255, inclusive.

1008  THE CONFIGURATION OPTIONS ARE INVALID

The configuration options specified contain invalid or unidentifiable values.  For more information on configuration options, refer to the installation and operation manual for your operating environment.

1009  THE TRANSACTION FILENAME OPTION IS INVALID

The filename specified for the Transaction Filename configuration option is not valid.  Check to make sure that the transaction filename is correct.

1011  THE COMPRESSION BUFFER SIZE SPECIFIED IS OUT OF RANGE

The Compression Buffer Size configuration option must be between 1 and 64, inclusive.

1013  THE TASK TABLE IS FULL (WINDOWS ONLY)

The Btrieve DLL may return this status code if the task entry table is full.  You can remedy this situation by increasing the number of available task entries; use the tasks initialization option (tasks=xxx) under the [BTRIEVE] or [BREQUESTDPMI] headings in NOVDB.INI.  The minimum value for this option is 1; the maximum value is 255.

1014  THE APPLICATION ENCOUNTERED A STOP WARNING

WBTRVSTOP () returns this status code if the application still has open files or an active transaction.  The application must close all files and end all transactions before calling WBTRVSTOP ().

1015  A POINTER PARAMETER IS INVALID

One of the pointer parameters passed into Btrieve is invalid.

1016  BTRIEVE IS ALREADY INITIALIZED

The Btrieve DLL may return this status code if an attempt is made to initialize Btrieve when it is already initialized.  To reinitialize Btrieve, close all files, end/abort all transactions, and call WBTRVSTOP () before calling the initialization function.

1017  THE BTRIEVE REQUESTER FOR WINDOWS CANNOT FIND WBTRVRES.DLL

WBTRCALL.DLL returns this status code when it cannot find the resource file WBTRVRES.DLL.  You can remedy this situation by placing a copy of the WBTRVRES.DLL file in the same directory as the WBTRCALL.DLL file.

Btrieve Requester Status Codes

This section lists the status codes that the Btrieve Requesters may generate.

2001  THE MEMORY ALLOCATION IS INSUFFICIENT

In an OS/2 environment, the Requester cannot allocate enough memory for the parameters specified with the BRQPARMS environment variable.  In a DOS environment, reduce the value specified for the /D configuration option.

2002  THE OPTION IS INVALID OR OUT OF RANGE

In an OS/2 environment, either one of the options specified with the BRQPARMS environment variable is invalid (such as /P instead of /D) or the value specified for a parameter is out of range.  Check the SET BRQPARMS statements to make sure it is correct.

2003  THE REQUESTER DOES NOT ALLOW LOCAL ACCESS TO THE SPECIFIED FILE

The application attempted to access a file stored on a local drive.  The version of WBTRCALL.DLL installed at the workstation does not allow access to local files.

2004  SPX IS NOT INSTALLED

Install the NetWare SPX v1.3 or later communications software for OS/2.

2005  AN INCORRECT VERSION OF SPX IS INSTALLED

Install the NetWare SPX v1.3 or later communications software for OS/2.

2006  THERE IS NO AVAILABLE SPX CONNECTION

SPX has already established the maximum number of sessions it can handle.  To increase the maximum, edit the NET.CFG file.  Refer to your NetWare documentation for more information on NET.CFG.

2007  A POINTER PARAMETER IS INVALID

One of the pointer parameters passed to Btrieve is invalid.  Check the program to ensure that the pointer parameters are correct.


Using BREQUEST

The Btrieve record manager must be loaded before running LAN Support Center.  It is highly recommended that you use the server-based BREQUEST program.

NOTE:

When using BREQUEST, version 6.10 or greater is required.

The following topics offer recommendations on setting up and using Btrieve.

Using the Btrieve NLM

Using the Btrieve VAP


Using the Btrieve NLM

Using BREQUEST, as opposed to BTRIEVE, will improve the performance of data collection, auditing and reporting by at least 50% and by as much as 500%.  An additional advantage is the savings in local (client) memory - BTRIEVE.EXE can occupy from 50-85K of conventional memory, whereas BREQUEST.EXE can occupy approximately 31-45K.  The exact amount of memory required for both programs depends on the specified command line parameters.

Use the following procedure to configure the Btrieve NLM.

1.	To configure the NLM, run BSETUP.NLM.

At the file server console prompt, type:

LOAD BSETUP <ENTER>

2.	Choose Set Configuration to verify that the following options are defined.

The values provided below are the minimum values required; your current values may be set higher.

-	Number of Open Files: = 22  (default = 20)

-	Number of Transactions: = 1  (default = 0)

-	Largest Record Size: = 17000  (default = 8192)

-	Largest Page Size: = 4096  (default = 4096)

NOTE:

All other BSETUP options can remain unchanged.

3.	Save the configuration, and exit BSETUP.

BSETUP writes the configuration changes to the BSTART.NCF file.  The changes do not take effect until the next time the Btrieve NLM is loaded.

4.	To load the NLM, run BSTART.

At the file server console prompt, type:

BSTART <ENTER>

BSTART is an NCF file which loads both BTRIEVE.NLM and BSPXCOM.NLM.

5.	To unload the Btrieve NLM, issue the BSTOP command.

If the Btrieve NLM was loaded when changes were made in BSETUP, you need to unload Btrieve and then reload the NLMs in order for the changes to take effect.

For example, at the console prompt, type:

BSTOP <ENTER>

BSTART <ENTER>

NOTES:

a -	Loading SPX -  All LSC modules require SPX to be loaded at each workstation. Brequest communicates with BSPXCOM.NLM via SPX.  BSPXCOM, in turn, passes all requests from Brequest to the BTRIEVE NLM.  If SPX is not loaded at a workstation, that workstation has no communication whatsoever with the Btrieve record manager. If you have loaded Brequest and are getting "BTRIEVE Record Manager Not Loaded" messages, make sure that SPX is loaded.  This normally only becomes an issue on workstations that load the ODI drivers because the ODI drivers can optionally load SPX.

b -	Brequest /D switch - The /D: parameter specifies the size of the "data message buffer length."  This buffer refers to the maximum record size that the NLM will transmit to the workstation.  This switch should be set to 17000 for the purposes of LSC.

c -	Brequest Error 87 - If you receive an "Error 87" from Btrieve while using Brequest, increase the 'Number Of Open Files' setting in BSETUP.

See Also:

Using the Btrieve VAP


Using the Btrieve VAP

All of the options and suggestions regarding the Btrieve NLM also apply to the Btrieve VAP.  The BSETUP parameters, Brequest parameters, and Windows requester initialization settings are identical.

NOTE:

When using the Btrieve VAP, the file server needs to be rebooted in order for any changes in BSETUP to take effect.

See Also:

Using the Btrieve NLM


LSC Import/Export Utility

The import/export utility, LSCIMEX.EXE, is a DOS application which allows you to import or export data into/from the LSC 3.0 databases.  The import/export utility is copied into the LSC program directory upon installing LSC.

The following requirements must be met before running the import/export utility:

-	The utility must be executed from within the directory in which the LSC 3.0 software and database files are located.

-	The Btrieve record manager must be loaded before running the utility.

Because LSC 3.0 has a customizable interface, most data fields are not restricted to a particular format.  The import/export utility will match the field names in LSC even if they have been changed by the administrator.  The only fields that have a specified format are date and time fields.  All other fields may be of any type or format.

Refer to the following topics:

Navigating Throughout the Import/Export Utility

Importing Data into LSC

Exporting LSC Ticket Data


Navigating Throughout the Import/Export Utility

Use the following keys to navigate throughout the import/export utility.

Key	Action

<ESC>	Return to the previous menu.  Also used to initiate the export or import process.

<Up/Down Arrow>	Highlight the menu option in the direction of the arrow.

<Enter>	Choose the highlighted menu option.

A mouse can also be used to navigate throughout the utility and choose menu options.  The mouse cursor appears as a small square.  When the small square rests on a desired menu option, click the left mouse button to choose the option.

See Also:

Importing Data into LSC

Exporting LSC Ticket Data


Importing Data into LSC

Tickets are imported from the file ITICKETS.TXT, and actions from IACTIONS.TXT.  To import a file, copy it into the LSC directory as one of the appropriate file names.  The file(s) must be in comma delimited ASCII format.

NOTE:

Quotes around each text field are optional.  If your text fields contain commas, quotes are required to prevent the commas from being interpreted as delimiters.

Use the following procedure to import LSC ticket data from an ASCII text file.

1.	Load the Btrieve record manager.

Either server-based or client-based Btrieve can be used with the import/export utility.  Refer to the topic entitled Btrieve Configuration Options for a discussion of the Btrieve options.

2.	Execute the import/export utility.

Enter the following command at the DOS prompt:

LSCIMEX <ENTER>

The main menu displays.

3.	From the main menu, choose the Import Data into LSC option.

The Import Menu displays.

4.	Choose either Import Ticket Information or Import Action Information, depending on the data you want to import.

Ticket information and action information are imported separately because there can be many actions associated with one ticket.  In order to keep track of which actions are associated with which tickets, the ticket number field is required for importing actions.

After choosing one of the import options, a list of fields displays.

5.	Indicate the layout of the fields in the import file.

This list represents the fields available for import.  The numbers to the left of each field indicate the order of the fields in the import file.  For example, if you want to import a file which contains ticket number, priority, status and date (in that order), you would put a 1 next to the Ticket Number field, a 2 next to the Priority field, a 3 next to the Status field, and a 4 next to the Date field.

A zero in any field indicates that the field does not exist in the import file, and it should be ignored.  In the example above, a zero would be placed in all remaining fields.  With the exception of the zeros, the numbers you place in the fields must be unique.

As mentioned above, the ticket number field is required when importing actions.  If the ticket number contains a zero when importing tickets, then only contact information (and not ticket information) is recorded.

6.	Press the <ESC> key, and choose the Yes option to begin the import process.

Ticket information must be imported from a file named ITICKETS.TXT, and actions must be imported from IACTIONS.TXT.

Once selecting the field order and starting the import process, a "Please Wait" box will appear and the number of records being imported displays on the screen.  If any errors occur during the process, you will be notified at the end and directed to the file ERRORLOG.TXT for details.

7.	To exit the utility, press the <ESC> key two times.

A box displays with the title "Exit LSC Import/Export Program."

8.	Choose the Yes option to exit the utility.

See Also:

Navigating Throughout the Import/Export Utility

Exporting LSC Ticket Data


Exporting LSC Ticket Data

Use the following procedure to export LSC ticket data to an ASCII text file.

1.	Load the Btrieve record manager.

Either server-based or client-based Btrieve can be used with the import/export utility.  Refer to the topic entitled Btrieve Configuration Options for a discussion of the Btrieve options.

2.	Execute the import/export utility.

Enter the following command at the DOS prompt:

LSCIMEX <ENTER>

The main menu displays.

3.	From the main menu, choose the Export Data from LSC option.

The Export Menu displays.

4.	Choose either Export Ticket Information or Export Action Information, depending on the data you want to export.

Ticket information and action information are exported separately because there can be many actions associated with one ticket.

After choosing one of the export options, a list of fields displays.

5.	Indicate the order in which to export the fields.

This list represents the fields available for export.  The numbers to the left of each field indicate the order in which the fields will be exported.  For example, if you want to export the ticket number, action code and person, you would put a 1 next to the Ticket Number field, a 2 next to the Action Code field, and a 3 next to the Person field.

In order to keep track of which actions are associated with which tickets, the ticket number field is required for exporting actions.  It is automatically exported as the first field for actions.

If the ticket number contains a zero when exporting tickets, then only contact information (and not ticket information) is recorded.

A zero in any field indicates that you want to skip that field during an export.  In the example above, a zero would be placed in all other fields.  With the exception of the zeros, the numbers you place in the fields must be unique.

6.	Press the <ESC> key, and choose the Yes option to begin the export process.

Ticket information is exported to the file TICKETS.TXT, and actions are exported to ACTIONS.TXT.  The files generated from an export will have quotes around each text field but not around the integer fields.

Once selecting the field order and starting the export process, a "Please Wait" box will appear and the number of records being exported displays on the screen.  If any errors occur during the process, you will be notified at the end and directed to the file ERRORLOG.TXT for details.

7.	To exit the utility, press the <ESC> key two times.

A box displays with the title "Exit LSC Import/Export Program."

8.	Choose the Yes option to exit the utility.

See Also:

Navigating Throughout the Import/Export Utility

Importing Data into LSC