Overview of Change Rule Functionality

Creating Rules for Changes

Change rules automatically perform actions when specified conditions based on Change record fields or events are met. This functionality can be used to:

• Change values in the Assignee, Category, Customer, Due Date, Impact, Priority, Review Date, Scheduled Implementation Date, Status, Type, and Urgency fields, as well as any custom fields; an email server account and template can also be set

• Create a related change and apply a change template or hierarchy template

• Send notifications via email, Desktop, and SMS
• Initiate an approval cycle
• Route via load balancing or the round robin method
• Execute a webhook for posting Change data to a web application

In order for a rule to be evaluated, it must be included in a rule group; rule groups are applied to changes through customers, companies, category combinations, and change and change hierarchy templates. (A default rule group will apply if none are applicable.) See Configuring Rule Groups for more information.

When a Change record is saved, the matching rule group is first determined. Then, all rules in that matching rule group are evaluated. If a rule’s conditions are met, its actions are performed.

Rule Groups

A default change rule group will be included in iSupport on installation or upgrade. Upgrades will convert previously configured Service Level Agreement functionality into rules and rule groups.  

Any rule group associated with a change template or hierarchy template will take precedence for a change; in the absence of a template, a setting in the Change Management | Basics configuration screen will determine what will take precedence if a change’s customer and the selected categorization both have a rule group. If a customer profile does not have an associated rule group, the rule group associated with the customer’s company will be used for the customer.  Note that rules in the associated rule group will not execute while a Change record is pending approval.

Rule Types

• On Change Save rules do not incorporate time frames; when a change is saved, rules in the associated rule group are evaluated, and if true, their actions are performed.

  

• Time-Based rules incorporate time frames with conditions; when conditions are true upon change save, the date and time that the interval time frame would be reached is recorded and monitored by the Time-Based Rule agent. If the conditions required to meet the rule do not change before the interval time frame is reached, the agent performs the actions specified. If conditions change prior to the recorded date and time:

  

• Time-Based rules will clear all pending actions and if conditions are met again the time frame will restart.

• Time-Based: Cumulative rules will suspend all pending actions and if conditions are met again the time frame will include previous amounts of time in which conditions were met.

If a rule contains conditions with the Customer Work History Added or Work History Added to Change, the rule will be triggered immediately when the event occurs (even if the change hasn't been saved).  Any other changes in the Change record will not be saved until you save the change.

• Time-Based: Important Dates rules enable you to specify a number of days before or after the value in a specified date field. This type of rule will be evaluated when the defined number of days before or after the value in the specified date field occurs. Actions will be performed if the rule's conditions are met at the time the Time-Based Rule agent runs.