IT management system. SharePoint

Introduction…

In continuation of a large article in three parts
“ The history of one infrastructure. MS solutions. Part 1 »
“ The history of one infrastructure. MS solutions. Part 2 »
“ The history of one infrastructure. MS solutions. Part 3 "
I will consider in more detail the issue of creating an “IT Management System” based on SharePoint Server 2007.
The main goal, when creating the system, was to get the tools to manage the IT of the enterprise with minimal effort, using the available resources. That is, we did not have our own knowledge in order to do “everything is right”, nor did we have the financial resources to acquire or develop a suitable system.

Factors ...

In the meantime, there was an urgent need to control the equipment. It was necessary to take into account the equipment available to the ICU (take into account the number, placement, relocation, repair, modernization, receipt and retirement). There were a lot of equipment and there were many operations associated with it and requiring accounting. The important requirements were the possibility of collaboration of the OIT employees and generating reports for the management. A search on the Internet did not help find a suitable version of free software (perhaps they were looking bad). Excel was also a little suited to our needs.
It was not possible to convince management of the need to acquire any serious system, since - not the scale. Yes, and I myself understood that it was not reasonable, as they say, “not according to Senka a cap”.

Decision…

The solution was found fairly quickly (as described in the third part of the "History"). These are SharePoint linked lists. Connectivity, which is provided through the use of look-up columns (Lookup Field). And data consistency is provided by workflows (WorkFlow) created using SharePoint Designer. Workflows (RP) are tied to a list and run on an event — creating and / or changing a list item. A set of RPs can be attached to one list. RP can create, delete, copy and modify list items, send e-mail messages, perform comparisons of various conditions, wait for certain events to occur, etc.
It all looks something like this - there are “lists” that are intended for storing melons, there are “journals” (the same lists (Custom List, in fact) intended for registering changes in lists and events associated with them, there are also “ reference books "(directories (the same lists)) intended for the substitution of duplicate data. The interaction between these lists is provided by workflows. Most of the "code", which is intended to ensure the consistency of data - checking the correctness of the entered data, protection against changes, "fool protection".
For example, we have a “Equipment List” that stores data about the available equipment. There is also a “Equipment Change Journal”, through which all the data of the “Equipment List” is managed. Both of them use reference books ("Catalog of clients", "Catalog of performers", "Catalog of divisions", "Catalog of premises", "Catalog of printing equipment", etc.). For the “Equipment List” and “Equipment Changes Log”, workflows have been created that do not allow the creation of items directly in the “list”, ensure creation and modification through the “log” (receipt, installation, withdrawal, decommissioning, repair, etc.) .

Details ...

Lists (Lists). For some lists (“Equipment list”, “Equipment change log,“ Software change log ”, etc.) it was necessary to use“ Content types ”- this is, if simple, when you create your own forms for each content type and in the menu the creation of the item appear the names of the content types For example, in the “Equipment Change Journal” we select “Create> Install / Remove / Receive / etc.” and, in addition, each type has its own list fields. In the “Equipment List” also, the equipment is divided into content types (PC, Printing equipment, Monitors, etc.). In addition to this division, for equipment, of course, there are additional categories that are organized quite standardly - the “Select value” type field.
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Forms . Forms of creating, viewing and editing elements. There are no simple mechanisms for controlling the display of fields in a form, i.e. which fields to display when creating, which when viewing and editing. You can use direct editing in the database of field parameters (ShowInDisplayForm, ShowInEditForm, ShowInNewForm) of the list, using any software of which there are many (for example, SharePoint Manager ), you can also create the necessary forms on your own (which, in my opinion, is too time consuming). And for a while we used the first method until we tried the Office Toolbox solution.
Office Toolbox (just what we lacked) allows you to visually manage forms by adding the menu to the “list options” and, moreover, allows you to display fields in the edit form in read-only mode, which turned out to be very convenient for us.

Lookup Fields. With the substitution of values ​​from another list, everything was not as good as we would like. For example, in the “Equipment Change Journal” we create an installation record (that is, we move it from the warehouse to the customer), select the equipment that we want to install, the substitution field offers a choice of all the “Equipment List” items, most of the values ​​are obviously wrong - they are already installed, I would like to automatically reduce the proposed options and leave to choose only those that are actually in stock. And SharePoint does not offer any additional mechanisms to filter substitution values ​​(discards only empty values). And we do not like to “tangle with small third-party programs that help solve large problems” and prefer to use what is and what we can support on our own. Therefore, for example, the “List of equipment” acquired additional fields created specifically for the substitution (for example, “Name of equipment in stock”). These fields contain “intelligible meanings” that are modified by workflows. Wherever required, we applied this “not quite beautiful” approach.

Connectivity (Lookup). On many forms (creating, viewing, editing an element) it is required to display records from other lists associated with the selected element. Otherwise, why do we need all these linked lists? For example, hardware - you need to see the installed software, log entries (hardware changes, miscellaneous expenses, incidents, configuration changes) with totals of amounts and quantities. This is where SharePoint Designer comes to the rescue. Open our form, select the required data source, drag the required fields, get a web part (DataFormWebPart), set up filtering, appearance, totals. Nothing works. We are looking for in Google a magic phrase “SharePoint LookupId = 'True'”. In the list of the first we find the solution, we apply and everything works.
Views. The same thing was not easy. For example, how to differentiate access to views? No, there are no mechanisms. But the way out was to specify another page for the presentation page (MasterPage) through the SharePoint Designer. A permission to the objects of the main pages to distribute simple.

Calculated Fields. We use everywhere - we calculate everything that is calculated. But, for example, you cannot use the Today function (Today) in calculated fields, which is absolutely necessary, only in data views. And sometimes you need to calculate the birthday, lifetime, etc. Although, if you really want, there is one method - " SharePoint TODAY field and calculated fields ... ". We use it, and it works, but with one note - the value is not recalculated automatically, for recalculation it is necessary to update (change) the element. Therefore, if it is critical, the workflows help (we have this implementation - “Birthdays”, where everything is updated automatically, the perpetrators are timely congratulated by e-mail and congratulations are published on the portal).
Another example - how to reflect in the view, the data for the current month, and for the past? Use calculated columns. There is, for example, the date of the equipment change - we calculate the first date of the current month, the first date of the next month and compare these values ​​with the value of [Today] in the view. Or, we need to classify incidents by decision time, having the start time and end time — we define the evaluation criteria, calculate the decision time, and assign the decision time category based on this value.

Results…

The functionality that we got in the end is located on the site “IT Center” of the portal and received the proud name “IT Management System”. The functionality of this system can be divided into the following areas: IT project management, IT asset management, Cost management, IP configuration and documentation management, Knowledge management, Incident management, Technical support management. I will try to describe ...

IT project management . A separate subsidiary of the "IT Center". There is little of interest here, the functionality is not much different from the “Project Management” site template.
There is a list of “Strategic Objectives”, “List of Projects”, “List of Project Objectives”, “List of Project Milestones” and a reporting page with key performance indicators (KPI). Lists are linked, deviations are tracked, but there are no links to the rest of the IT Management System functionality. Therefore, I will not describe much, I think it is worth uniting and making “IT Project Management” the “tip of the iceberg” of the IT management system. That is, make sure that the “Strategic Objectives” and projects (events) associated with them are primary and traceable throughout the system.

IT asset management is represented by “Equipment List”, “Equipment Change Journal”, “Software List”, “Software Change Journal”, and “FOCL List”.
“Equipment List” is designed to store equipment records by content type and is able to present data in any necessary form - for example, equipment by type, by department, by owner, equipment cost by department, by owner, by equipment type, etc. that made it easy to create any reports of an economic nature. When viewing the “List of equipment” items, records from all linked lists are displayed.
The “equipment change log” is intended to record any work on the equipment (for example, replacement of spare parts, installation, removal, sending in for repair, return from repair, receipt in the warehouse, write-off). The “equipment change log” allows you to track investments in equipment by months and the cost of equipment repairs.
“Software list” is intended for storing records of software (software), it is able to present data in any necessary form - for example, software by type, by manufacturer, by division, by owner, software cost by division, by owner, etc. that also allows you to create any reports of an economic nature. When viewing the "Software List" items, the entries from all linked lists are displayed.
“Software change log” is intended for fixing work with software (for example, installation, removal, acquisition, retirement). The Software Change Log also allows you to track software investments.
The “FOCL List” is short and is intended to highlight the fiber optic links separately, to show their placement and investment in them.
"Replacement magazine RM" is designed to fix the replacement of consumables for printing equipment (RM). It makes changes to the special fields of the “Equipment List”, which allows us to calculate the estimated date of the next replacement. That is, there is some semblance of planning for the acquisition of RM.

The cost management is represented by the lists “Internet expenses journal”, “Other expenses journal”, “Parts acquisition journal”, “RM acquisition journal”.
The “Internet expenses journal” is intended for recording Internet-related expenses (payment of communication lines, traffic, DNS, Internet site, contextual advertising, etc.).
The “other expenses journal” is intended for recording payments for IT services to third-party organizations (consulting services, technical support, auditing, software development, equipment repair, etc.).
“Spare Parts Purchase Magazine” speaks for itself. Allows you to track the cost of parts. Used by the “Equipment Change Log” when adding “Replacement Parts” records. Reflects the condition of the spare parts warehouse.
“The magazine of acquisition of RM” is intended for fixing the acquisition of consumables for printing equipment. Used by the "Journal of Replacement of the RM." Reflects the state of the warehouse RM.

The management of the configuration and documentation of the IC is represented by two lists - the “Journal of changes in the configuration of the IP”, “The journal of changes in the documentation of the IP” and the library of documents “Documentation of the Information System”.
"Documentation IP" is designed to store and collaborate with documents in formats Visio, Word, Excel. Previously developed documentation is available in this library.
The “IP configuration change log” is intended for detailed registration of all changes to the IP software settings. If configuration changes require documentation changes, the “IP configuration change log” creates entries in the “IP documentation change log”, and an agent is assigned and notified by e-mail, i.e., the processes of timely updating of the documentation are provided.

Knowledge management is represented by just one list - the Knowledge Base (KB), designed to store articles about problems, errors and methods for solving them.

Incident management is represented by three lists - “Incident log”, “Supplier incident log” and “Malware incident log”.
"Incident log" is intended for registering and managing incidents with equipment and software. Those. details are recorded, what happened when, how and when it was decided, if necessary, indicate an article from the BR.
“Supplier Incident Log” is intended for registering and managing incidents with suppliers. Ie, “lazhanulsya” (did a bad) supplier, and we recorded, and from now on we will know with whom it is possible to work, and with whom it should not be ...
Malware Incident Log is designed to register and manage malware detection incidents. Those. I caught the client “bad software”, we received an e-mail notification, recorded it in a journal, the customer received a notification that he had reached the “honor roll”. A deterrent, so to speak ...

The technical support management is represented by the “Service Requests”, “Requests for the Acquisition of the RM”, “My Service Requests”, “My Requests for the Acquisition of the RM”, “Frequently Asked Questions” and the WIP User Manual wiki pages.
The magazine “Service Requests” is designed to register and manage user requests to technical support. The ITD employee receives the request and fixes the time, the client creates a description, assigns the type of request, fixes the method of submitting the request, sets the priority, state (accepted / executed / executed / rejected), writes a comment (what has been done / not done), fixes the time to solve the request . The client, in turn, receives email notifications when creating a request and changing its status.
The magazine “Requests for the purchase of RM” is intended to register and manage user requests for the purchase of RM for printing equipment to the technical support service. The ITD employee receives the request and records all the necessary data. The client also receives notifications when creating a request and changing its status.
The journals “My Service Requests” and “My Requests for the Acquisition of the RM” are designed so that the client can independently, using the “IT Center”, leave and control requests. The client leaves the request, technical support is notified, the ITD employee processes the request, the request goes to the “Service Requests” log and is further controlled from there. The user, as usual with us, is notified of all changes by e-mail and, in addition, can track the status where he left the request (after the request is accepted, no one can change it, except RP).
The "Frequently Asked Questions" list is a short question-answer format.
The “User’s Guide for IP” is intended to expand the user’s reference information supplied with the system and applications, as well as to describe the specifics of a specific IP. The instructions have a detailed step-by-step description of the actions, supplemented by graphic images to facilitate the perception of information.

Reporting is provided by the IT Management page, the Reports library and key performance indicator lists (KPIs) grouping KPIs by category and process (KPIs of investments, costs, IP management processes, incident management, technical support management). The reporting page displays all KPIs by groups and links to other ITD reports (documents posted in the Reports library).
Also, when viewing directory elements (“Customer Catalog”, “Executor Catalog”, “Supplier Directory”, etc.), records from all linked lists related to the selected item with totals (sum, number), etc. are displayed. e. The viewing page is a reporting page for the selected item.
IT Management Reporting Page


In addition , the "IT Center" has other lists and document libraries.
The “Notices” list is intended for posting messages to users. Messages are reflected on the main page of the IT Center and on the main page of the portal, if necessary.
The “Discussions” list is intended for communication with “no formalities” users. Discussion of issues is conducted in the style of "forum", any employee of the company can create a discussion or participate in the created.
The “Polls” functionality is used to collect user feedback (for example, on the effectiveness of the technical support service, on the effectiveness of information support, on user satisfaction with the existing solutions).
Libraries of documents "General Documents" and "Internal Documents".

Findings…

And so, what do we have?
We built the system in such a way as “in principle it is not necessary”. But, nevertheless, “if you really want it, then you can” ... Because what happened, has already proved in practice its right to exist.

What are the disadvantages, except architectural?
First, as I have already said, the ICT project management functional (strategic goals and activities) is “cut off and suspended in the air”. It is necessary to work on this issue and make the “Objectives and Projects” primary, to ensure the possibility of combining investments, costs, equipment, software, configuration changes, documentation, etc. within the framework of projects. I think it should turn out to be “quite entertaining.”
Secondly, there is no possibility to manage the IT budget. The annual budget is, on paper and in electronic documents, divided into quarters and months, but the KPIs are tied to it “manually”. Here we need to think about how to dynamically link the target values ​​of the indicators with budget planning.

What benefits did we get?
The whole system turned out quite flexible. We “easily and naturally” customize, complement, expand and do without highly paid developers.
The system allowed management to find the answer to the eternal question - “What are they doing in IT?”. These systems can also be an argument in favor of expanding or reducing the staff of the ICU.
The system made it possible to more accurately organize the work of the ICU, streamline the internal processes, helped to define the tasks, the area of ​​responsibility and successfully position the ICU in the structure of the enterprise.
Management of equipment and software fully met our expectations. We put things in order in the accounting equipment. We can see all the necessary information, a history of changes.
The system allowed to organize an effective management of the RM for printing equipment. We always know how much there is, how much and who needs it.
Inquiry management also helps the OIT to be more organized and not to burn into small things. Request management does not oblige customers to use strictly defined methods of submitting requests - the request can come from anywhere and in any way. We do not create additional obstacles for users (as many people I know are responsible for IT in other enterprises - “that, they say, if you implement request management, users should form requests on their own in the system and only this way”, I consider this statement to be wrong and suppose that “only this way” usually does not work and has “imaginary utility”). Also, having about 2000 records in 1.5 years, it can be interesting and very useful to analyze these data in order to improve the efficiency of the ICU.
Configuration management and documentation is very difficult to overestimate. The documentation update process is up and running. The “Configuration Change Log” is a huge collection of useful detailed step-by-step instructions (what / how / why). Allows you to easily delegate the execution of important tasks "irresponsible performers."
Knowledge management has proven its worth a thousand times. The knowledge base is an invaluable intangible asset of the ICU. For example, having found a solution to a problem, we will write down a detailed article and we can safely forget. As the saying goes, "A bad pencil is better than a good memory." But there is one more unrecorded positive effect - when developing an article, it is necessary to describe in detail the causal relationships and all possible methods of solution. And this forces us to study the issue more deeply, to understand the essence of the problem, contrary to the usual for many methods - “somehow repaired and forgotten”. The knowledge base is substantially complemented by step-by-step instructions from the Configuration Change Log and methods for solving the Incident Log problems.
Incident management also exists for a reason. “Malware Incident Log” disciplines users. The “supplier incident log” disciplines suppliers, offers us, albeit “sluggish”, but still “control levers”. It allows you to objectively assess the quality of the service provided. The "incident log" offers us an objective picture of problems with hardware and software, can serve as a basis for making decisions about replacing problem components.
Management reporting allows you to save a lot of time. Creation of reports on the work of the ICU for management is a relic of the past, ruthlessly eradicated. What the system offers fully satisfies management's reporting needs.

That seems to be all, but does not leave the feeling that I missed something. It is difficult to immediately identify all the obvious and implicit advantages of our solution. I remember important - I will add.
Bureaucracy triumphed, cheers, comrades!
The system was created, guided by the principle “You can effectively manage only what can be reliably measured” and we still have work to do ...