Fast Find

Technology Services

July 26, 2007

Levels of Support

The Technology Support Center (TSC) of Campus Technology Support Services (CTSS) provides a central point of contact for support in resolving computing and telecommunication issues for the college community at St. Mary’s College of Maryland.

Why should I contact the Technology Support Center?

· SMCM faculty, staff, student, or alumni accounts

· SMARTNet

· Passwords or access to the SMCM e-mail system

· Access to the SMCM network and shared drives

· Voicemail or the campus telephone system

· ResNet

· Software purchases on the campus Microsoft agreement or the Work at Home policy

· Status of network/computer system maintenance or outages

· Your college owned office desktop/laptop computer setup

· Campus supported software, such as Microsoft Office

· Computer purchase/upgrade recommendations

· Pay for Print

· Use of the computer labs

How do I contact the Technology Support Center?

Walk-in support is available on campus in Baltimore Hall during the following regular business hours:

Monday – Thursday 8 a.m. – 10 p.m.

Friday 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Saturday 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Sunday 12 p.m. – 10 p.m.

Telephone support is available during regular business hours at:

Faculty and Staff - (240) 895-4357
Students - (240) 895-2357

E-mail support is available during regular business hours at

Staff and faculty - helpdesk@smcm.edu
Students - studenthelpdesk@smcm.edu

Web form support is presently available for Telephone problems at http://www.smcm.edu/tech/phonetrouble.cfm

What is the support process at the Technology Support Center?

Once the initial contact is made, a member of the Technology Support Center staff will request basic information, including full name, telephone number and email address.
Next, a general description of the problem/issue will be requested. The caller should be prepared to answer basic questions about their computer and its configuration if possible, specific events that preceded the error, the error message if applicable, and if the problem/issue had been reported previously.
The staff member will then attempt to resolve the problem/issue immediately using the resources available to them.
If the staff member is successful in finding a solution to the problem/issue or answer the question, the transaction is considered completed and closed.
If the client’s needs have not been completely addressed, the problem/issue will be entered into the database system, and a work order number will be generated and given to the client for further reference.
Once a work order is generated it will be assigned a priority level and assigned to a member of the second level support team. Each “priority” has an associated goal with regards to response time during normal business hours.

What defines a Priority Level?

A problem is an unplanned or unexpected occurrence that strays from standard activities or normal operating conditions. Based on the severity of the business impact of a problem, a priority level will be assigned to determine the response of the CTSS staff and appropriate resources. Establishing priority levels does not mean that lower level problems will be ignored. Priority levels are guidelines to best address conflicting resources and priorities.

Priority Levels:

Critical -	An emergency, any problem with a mission critical system during a critical usage period.
High -	A problem impacting many users.
Medium -	Problem affects a relatively small number of users but no mission critical operation is impacted.
Low -	Problem is causing an inconvenience to a relatively small number of users.

CRITICAL - An emergency, any problem with a mission critical system during a critical usage period

Time to assess situation and advise campus: One (1) hour

Priority Level 1: Critical
Normal operation of any significant academic and/or administrative function of the College is adversely impacted during a critical usage period. This includes any major production outage, performance degradation or instability of any mission-critical system or service. The result is that the affected function cannot operate normally, and the problem adversely impacts the College’s services.
Scope	Critical Systems	Examples
· Most end-users are unable to function. · Mission critical system down. · Mission critical application down. · Mission critical server/circuit down	· CARS · Internet · Network connectivity · Phone · Library · SMCM Web Site · SmartNet · One-Card (door access, pay-for-print) · Blackboard · ResNet	· Loss of email or Internet access to the entire College · SmartNet is unavailable during orientation · Telephone system is down (no dial tone in Public Safety) · Network failure for an entire building or the campus · SMCM webpage unavailable No student is able to use “Pay for Print” in any campus lab No student/public safety member is able to gain one-card access to any door on campus.

High – A problem impacting a large number of users

Time to assess situation and advise campus: Four (4) hours

Priority Level 2: High
A large number of users are impacted by problems that severely restrict the use of an application, system, or piece of equipment. The problems affect significant academic or administrative functions of the College and could result in a re-scheduling of resources, or a severe degradation of services offered by the affected area.
Scope	Examples
· Large number of users unable to function · Major performance issues · Large number of users running on contingencies or “work-arounds” · Backup failure of mission critical application	· Student Lab not operational · Large number of users unable to login · Large number of users password problem · Large number of users no access to network drives · No student is able to use “Pay for Print” in one or more campus labs · One-card door access offline for students/public safety members to one or more buildings · Point of Sale Equipment failure for all users in campus dining areas

Medium – Problem affects a relatively small number of users but no Mission-critical operation is impacted

Time to assess problem and advise affected users: One day/24 hours

Priority Level 3: Medium
Any problem that affects a relatively small number of users and no significant academic or administrative operation of the College are impacted.
Scope	Examples
· User having difficulty, but basically operational · User unable to carry out their necessary tasks · User unable to work due to a hardware or software malfunction	· Shared printer inoperable in an office · Request for restoration of deleted file(s) from a network drive · Simple hardware replacement · Student has no G: drive/cannot access G: drive · Cannot print a PO or RI · Individual student cannot gain one-card access to residence(where applicable; public safety should be contacted first)

Low – Problem is causing an inconvenience to a relatively small number of users

Time to assess problem and advise user: Two (2) to five (5) business days

Priority Level 4: Low
Any problem that impacts one user, or an individual request that has no impact the operation of the College.
Scope	Examples
· User has simple question or problem · A How-to or Procedural question	· Voicemail setup problem · Reset password · Assist with Outlook · Set up public folder/access to shared folders

What are the Levels of Support?

Level 1 Support

The first level of support, also known as Front-line Support, is the responsibility of designated full-time CTSS staff and Student Support Center Consultants during regular support hours.

Student Lab Assistants in Anne Arundel Hall, Kent Hall, Montgomery Hall and Schaefer Hall are considered front-line support and are responsible for answering basic computer questions related to software and hardware in all CTSS supported computer labs during scheduled hours of operation.

Level 2 Support

The second level of support, also known as Technical Support, uses specially trained staff with an in-depth knowledge of computer technology to provide additional support to solve the client’s computer issues. The Technical Support team will respond to assigned work orders and provide on-site support to the client. Support may involve a more thorough discussion of the issue with the client. Once the problem is resolved, the support member provides a detailed description of their investigation of the problem/issue, including the steps that led to the solution, and the work order is closed. If it can not be resolved within a reasonable time frame then the problem/issue is escalated to level 3 support.

Level 3 Support

The third level of support, also known as Outside Support, is for a work order that requires special analysis or programming, or support and/or repair from a software/hardware vendor. Support staff with the assigned work order will be responsible for contacting the appropriate outside support vendor and keeping the client updated on the status of the work order as well as providing information to the work order in the database.

After-hours Service and Levels of Support

This outlines the support service levels campus technology users can expect from CTSS outside of regular business hours.

Priority Levels:

Critical -	An emergency, any problem with a mission critical system during a critical usage period.
High -	A problem impacting many users.
Medium -	Problem affects a relatively small number of users but no mission critical operation is impacted.
Low -	Problem is causing an inconvenience to a relatively small number of users.

Procedures and Staffing:

Each group within CTSS, Enterprise System Services (ESS), Network and Technical Services (NTS) and User Support Services (USS) maintain on-call guidelines, and an on-call schedule:

· The on-call guidelines include basic troubleshooting procedures.

· The on-call schedule includes the on-call team member for that day or week and how that person can best be reached. When possible, the on-call team member carries a college provided pager and/or wireless communication device.

· The guidelines and schedule are made available to the Technology Support Center and Public Safety.

While on-call, the staff member:

Remains within one hour[1] commuting distance of the College.
Remains aware of impairment policy [2] during the on-call period.
Answers all calls forwarded to them by the Technology Support Center or Public Safety.

After-hours Levels of Support and procedures

Level 1 Support – Priority Levels: Low and Medium

During the posted hours for the Technology Support Center (TSC) this level of service includes basic troubleshooting, call prioritization and call escalation. Support for calls directed to Public Safety at x4911 or the Technology Support Center outside of the posted hours for the Technology Support Center is limited to call escalation only when appropriate. Call escalation will occur only if the reported problem satisfies the requirements for the High or Critical priority levels. All Low and Medium priority calls will be directed to the Technology Support Center voicemail for next business day attention.

Level 2A Support - Priority Level - High

Once notified, the on-call CTSS team member will contact the TSC/Public Safety and the user within 30 minutes to acknowledge the call and will provide an update if possible. All initial troubleshooting and analysis shall be performed remotely or on-campus at the discretion of the on-call team member. When necessary, as dictated by the scope or complexity of the problem, the call may be escalated to Level 2B for additional support.

Level 2B Support - Priority Levels - Critical:

Once notified, the on-call CTSS team member will contact the TSC/Public Safety and the user within 15 minutes to acknowledge the call and will provide an update if possible. Initial troubleshooting and analysis may be performed remotely or on-campus. Should additional CTSS staff members be needed, the on-call team member should contact his/her supervisor who will contact the additional personnel. The additional team members called should be those listed as on-call for the respective group within CTSS.

[1] MOU 9.27

[2] MOU 26.05