Contacting the Help Desk

Contacting the Help Desk  

Today there are two primary methods for contacting the Help Desk.  Customers can contact the Help Desk by calling us at (718)935-5100 or by making use of our self-support function at http://servicecenter.nycenet.edu/selfsupport  This link allows you to submit an incident via the web. When you call the Help Desk number (718) 935-5100, we want you to be able to navigate through our Interactive Voice Response (IVR) menu to get the service you need as quickly and efficiently as possible.

What to Expect 

Once you reach a Help Desk Analyst, you can expect that you will be treated in a courteous, professional manner, and that the analyst will try to resolve your problem as quickly and efficiently as possible. The Help Desk's goal is to abide by the principles outlined within the Bill of Rights.

What the Help Desk Analyst will need to Know

The Help Desk Analyst will first ask for basic information such as the location from where you are calling and your name. The Help Desk also needs to know if you are reporting a new problem or one that has been called in on a prior occasion.  You will then be asked to describe your problem in as much detail as possible. The more information about your problem you provide, the more quickly the Help Desk can diagnose and attempt to resolve the problem. 

Your Name and Location

When prompted, please provide the analyst with your name and the location of the school or office you are calling from. If you have never called the Help Desk before (or are calling from this location for the first time) the analyst will need some additional information to create a client record, which is called your ‘Client ID’.  Your client ID will be stored in the Help Desk Database and will be associated with any service requests that you place as a unique identifier. Please be advised that we may also reconfirm your Client ID information with you periodically to ensure that we have your most up-to-date information in our records.

Reporting Your Problem

When reporting your problem the Help Desk Analyst will need detailed information about the equipment that requires service before they can create an incident.  They will need to know the following: 

•   Detailed Problem Description:  A detailed problem description includes not only the problem itself, but any error messages or changes that may have preceded the problem. Also, any troubleshooting steps that you have undertaken to resolve the problem should be provided as well.  
• Classification of the issue: This term basically refers to the particular area that you are currently experiencing a problem in. For example: hardware issues where your computer is not turning on with no lights at all; software issues where you are unable to connect to ATS via the DIIT 3270 menu, and network issues where the whole site is unable to connect to the internet.
•  Operating System: The operating system of the computer you are using may be DOS or Windows 95, 98, NT or XP (if you are using a PC), or the Mac O/S (if you are using a Macintosh computer).
• DOE Asset ID Number: This term refers to the white/silver barcode sticker that is typically on the front of the computer/monitor. It has an 'Asset ID' number that starts with a DOE followed by numbers: this DOE number will be required by the Help Desk agent in case your call has to be escalated for a hardware or software issue.
• Equipment Serial Number: The Serial Number is typically on the back of the unit; in some cases it will be posted on both the front and the back of the unit.  In most cases it is denoted with the term S/N or Serial Number, and on Dell units the term 'Service Tag' denotes a serial number as well. It can be alpha-numeric (a combination of alphabets and numbers) or all alphabets or numbers depending on the particular unit.
• Availability of Security Device Keys: The Help Desk agent will need to know whether the keys needed to unlock the security devices on the computer/printer are available when a service tech arrives on site.
• An Alternate Contact name and phone number: This information will be needed in case the primary contact for the service call is not available when the service vendor tries to schedule an appointment.

For your convenience, the Help Desk has provided the TOP 10 TROUBLESHOOTING TO DO's  of items that users should check prior to calling the Help Desk. These will help users pinpoint the problem and help in providing our Help Desk Analysts a better idea of what actions need to be taken to document and resolve your problem.  

To help you with gathering the above information to expedite the processing of your service call: we have created a PROBLEMDESCRIPTIONFORM.pdf for your convenience.   

Since Serial numbers can be difficult to find, we have also created an informational GUIDE TO FINDING SERIAL NUMBERS with tips on finding serial numbers.