IT Problem Management

4.1. Problem Discovery

Problems can be discovered either before they occur or after they occur. Discovering conditions that will eventually cause a problem—before the problem occurs—allows the service center to be proactive and to fix those conditions before a customer suffers any downtime. If you don't discover those conditions in advance—if you become aware of them only after they create a problem—then you are forced to fix the problem reactively. Many service centers, or help desks, today operate in a 100 percent reactive environment. This is a tough environment to work in because you are constantly putting out fires, which can be very stressful. If you are supporting external customers, there may not be much you can do to proactively eliminate ...