Microsoft 1 manual Support

Chapter 6: Support 91

◆Server hardware problems (servers running Exchange or domain controllers)

◆Server connectivity problems (to domain controllers, other servers running Exchange or the Internet)

Educating your users is one of the key ways to reduce support costs. If users know how to use their clients efficiently and effectively, they will need to contact the Service Desk much less frequently. This results in fewer Service Desk incidents and reduced costs.

In the other areas, the main way of reducing costs is to ensure that the problems occur less frequently in the first place, and that they are resolved quickly when they do occur. This is covered in detail in the other chapters of this guide.

A best practice for reducing the cost of user support is to provide a Web site containing help information that is accessible to all messaging users. There are significant cost savings any time users can obtain the information they need without assistance from the Service Desk. The following are some examples of the type of information that might be included in the Web site:

◆Assistance for creating and managing mailboxes

◆How-to guides for client configuration (according to your standards) and for resolving common connectivity problems

◆Answers to frequently asked questions

◆Workarounds for known problems (related to the problem-management process discussed later in this chapter)

◆Links to other online help information (internal or external)

◆Server status and instructions for determining a user’s mailbox server

◆Information about current incidents that affect more than one user. This will reduce the number of calls that tend to flood Service Desks when there is a major incident. A good example is when you’ve disabled parts of the system to scan for and remove virus- infected messages and/or attachments.

Even in the best of environments, you will still need to resolve end-user problems on occasion. If you are going to deal with client-support issues effectively, you will need to make sure that you clearly define which clients are supported and in what configuration they are supported. Your change and configuration management strategy should include a complete record of your client base. You can use Windows 2000 Group Policy and/or Systems Management Server to ensure that workstation configuration is controlled and that the Change Management Database (CMDB) remains accurate.

Note: It is important to periodically audit the CMDB to ensure that it reflects your inventory.

If you are dealing with clients outside the company firewall, it is much more difficult to have tight control over the configuration. You can, however, minimize support costs by insisting that only certain clients are supported. For example, you may choose to support Outlook Express as a POP3 client, but not Eudora. You can also choose to minimize the