Checklist Problem Record

Definition: The Problem Record contains all details of a Problem, documenting the history of the Problem from detection to closure. A 'Problem' is defined as a cause of one or more incidents; the cause is not usually known at the time a Problem Record is created.

ITIL Process: ITIL Service Operation - Problem Management

ITIL 4 Practice: Problem management

Checklist Category: ITIL Templates

 

Problem Record - Contents

Fig. 1: ITIL Problem Record: Definition and information flow (view full size)

A Problem Record typically contains the following information:

 

Unique ID

(Unique ID of the Problem - usually allocated automatically by the system)

Problem priority

Priority, a function of the following components:

1. Urgency (available time until the resolution of the Problem)
2. Impact (damage caused or potential damage to the business or IT infrastructure)
3. Priority (for example expressed in codes like "Critical", "High", "Medium", "Low", "Very Low"): The result from the combination of urgency and impact

(Note: Prioritization of Problems should follow the same rules as the prioritization of Incidents; for further information, refer to the checklist Incident Prioritization Guideline)

Relationships to CIs

(Relationships to Configuration Items (CIs))

Problem category

Problem category, usually selected from a category-tree according to the following example:

1. Hardware error
   1. Server A
      1. Component x
         1. Symptom a
         2. Symptom b
      2. Component y
      3. …
   2. Server B
   3. …
2. Software error
   1. System A
   2. System B
   3. …
3. Network error
4. ...

(Note: Problem categories should be harmonized with Incident categories to support matching between Incidents and Problems)

Links to related Problem Records

(Links to related Problem Records - if there are other outstanding Problems related to this one)

Links to related Incident Records

(Links to related Incident Records - if outstanding Incidents exist, whose solution depends on the solution of this Problem)

Links to related Known Errors and Workarounds

(Links to Known Errors and Workarounds - if Known Errors and Workarounds related to the Problem have been identified)

Links to RFCs/ Change Records

(Links to RFCs/ Change Records associated with the solution of the Problem)

Problem status change history

1. Date and time
2. Person in charge
3. Reason for status change
4. New Problem status

Activity log

Activity log/ Tasks assigned to the Problem: Most service desk systems allow maintaining a simple log of steps carried out to resolve the Problem. Some systems, however, also provide the means to assign "Tasks" to Problems. Akin to the Problems they are assigned to, Tasks are typically characterized by properties like name, description, owner, priority, etc. and contain a status history and activity log of their own.

 

Notes

Is based on: Checklist 'Problem Record' from the ITIL Process Map

By:  Stefan Kempter , IT Process Maps.

 

Definition › Problem Record: Contents › Priority › Category