Robert, Am I reading this right that you were in production less than a year before the decision was made to move away from the full suite? Can you share how long it took to get into production? It sounds like a very short lived implementation.
Jason On Wed, Sep 14, 2011 at 1:29 PM, Spangler Robert C CIV USSTRATCOM/JWAC < rspan...@jwac.mil> wrote: > Thanks for all the info. We only have one external integration, no > import/update jobs, no tables that have been exported and very few reports > and no reporting server. All of our end users are using the web interface > at this point. We only have 3 support people that are using the UT. We are > basically only using ARS as a ticketing and assets management platform. We > haven't been live long enough to get involved in Change, SRM and some of the > other modules we wanted to use. > > Yes, we have to migrate the data. We have had ARS version 7.5 up for > almost one year at this point and management has told us that with our > budget restrictions we can no longer afford ARS, no matter how long it takes > to migrate. We have to find a new, read less expensive, solution. Given > that we still have maintenance, we can get issues resolved in ARS while we > work to identify, purchase and stand up a new system. SDE was one option > for us. I have also looked at some of the other players in the help desk > arena along with open source solutions. It sounds like it will be no easy > task, but I figure at this point there is no easy solution out there. > > -----Original Message----- > From: Action Request System discussion list(ARSList) [mailto: > arslist@ARSLIST.ORG] On Behalf Of William H. Du Chene > Sent: Wednesday, September 14, 2011 2:20 PM > To: arslist@ARSLIST.ORG > Subject: Re: SDE versus ARS > > ** > I have worked with both of them over the years and have a fair amount of > experience with both products. There are a number of things that you should > know and prepare for. > > I guess the first question is going to be: how deep down the rabbit hole do > you want to go? > > Do you have any external integrations which make use of your ARSystem > database? Do you have any import/update jobs (or the like) that make use of > DTS/SSIS (or similar technology) which update records directly? Do you have > any tables that have been exported for use in your database (with vendor > forms) from external sources? Do you have a significant number of reports > that query the database for data, or are you using a reporting server? Have > you developed any applications which use the API to process data - outside > of the normal workflow (active link, filter, guide) paradigm? > > And the big question: Are you planning on migrating your existing data? > > Depending on how you have your installation set up and what your > requirements are, a migration may well be a nightmare. > > If you switch platforms, the glaringly obvious stuff would be that all of > your reports have to change, you'll have to recreate all of your user > accounts (or your integration to the LDAP/AD), any packages for moving and > updating data that your DBA might have set up, any custom views, database > objects (SPs, UDFs), or API applications become useless and you will have to > redo or retire them. > > Be prepared also that the database schemas between the application suites > are different as well. > > For example, within the AR System, everyone knows that there are the > "wonderfully insightful" T, H, and B tables to work with with all of the C > columns inside that make an odd sort of sense once you get used to them. On > the SDE side, throw that schema completely out the window because there are > now _SMDBA_._CUSTOMER_ and _SMDBA_.TELMASTE_ tables to deal with. The > "telmaste" table is actually the applications version of an incident table. > The name makes a lot of sense. Go figure. Likewise, each user receives an > account on the database server, and each group that is created automatically > generates an entire series of views for each of the modules. Each group > added, therefore, owns objects within the database. > > Behind the scenes, there are many, many differences which should be > accounted for - carefully - before a migration comes to mind and that should > be considered before making a choice. > > Likewise, if you have the UT installed in your environment, you will need > to remove it from your desktops. (If your're running just the midtier for > your users to use, this might not be an issue.) The SDE is web based. There > is no desktop client to use (so if you have any desktop level automation > going on, it's now useless also if you move). > > Superficially, the two products have some similarities - a ticket is still > a ticket - but that is where the similarity ends. > > Finally, if I were in your shoes and they were talking about moving to > another platform (in spite of how much I encourage people to find an open > source solution, a low cost solution with another product, or to write their > own due to the cost of both products and the lack of a developer > subscription) I would ask them if they had crack for breakfast. They're not > talking about an overnight thing with a migration, but rather a blood, sweat > and tears effort that would take months (depending on what your current > implementation is like) to even get off the ground. They are committed to > what they have, and unless their willing to change radically, it's a mute > point. > > > > > ________________________________ > > From: Action Request System discussion list(ARSList) [mailto: > arslist@ARSLIST.ORG] On Behalf Of Spangler Robert C CIV USSTRATCOM/JWAC > Sent: Wednesday, September 14, 2011 12:41 PM > To: arslist@ARSLIST.ORG > Subject: SDE versus ARS > > > ** > > Going out on a limb, but we are being forced to move away from Remedy due > to budget and personnel reductions. Was wondering if any of you guys knew > much about Service Desk Express (SDE). We were primarily using ARS for > ticketing and assets management, had never broken into Change, SRM and some > other goodies that we had plans for. BMC suggested SDE as an alternative > so we were going to look in to. Thanks for any advice or suggestions! > > _attend WWRUG11 www.wwrug.com ARSlist: "Where the Answers Are"_ _attend > WWRUG11 www.wwrug.com ARSlist: "Where the Answers Are"_ > > > _______________________________________________________________________________ > UNSUBSCRIBE or access ARSlist Archives at www.arslist.org > attend wwrug11 www.wwrug.com ARSList: "Where the Answers Are" > _______________________________________________________________________________ UNSUBSCRIBE or access ARSlist Archives at www.arslist.org attend wwrug11 www.wwrug.com ARSList: "Where the Answers Are"
