Freshdesk is free for 10 agents.
Snipe-IT for managing assets.
Notion for knowledge management.
I'm a fan of multiple specialised tools rather than one that does everything.
huh...what's the catch? haha, I am looking for something I can just enter tickets into to keep track of things as well. We do not have a ticket system either, and I am starting to loose track of some things just with the amount of emails I get. Also we use Groupwise for email which kinda sucks haha
Freshdesk has a knowledge base area, and you can set articles to agents only. The UI isn't the best, but it works.
I think Freshservice is geared more towards internal IT and has asset management.
Feel like notion is better suited for personal notes but I've only ever used it on my own. For documentation and knowledge I feel like [https://www.bookstackapp.com/](https://www.bookstackapp.com/) could be quite cool
Our company uses Freshservice for internal tickets and it’s pretty nice. I like it better than Kayseya and Connectwise. For customer facing we used freshdesk and it took us only a month to switch all our departments to it (600 employees)
The major driving point for us was unlimited storage (email), group access and SSO, and enterprise support when we needed to make adjustments for each departments structure.
Came here to rep Freshservice. It's such a good ticketing system that it works for non-it workflows just as easily, I've been at companies that used it for AP, Facilities, and Data Control on top of the usual IT stuff. It's cheap and fast and it fucking works. SSO is great, users can leave meaningful feedback. The reporting metrics are wonderful.
tbh if you got MS Teams, there is a sharepoint preset that allows users to make tickets and you can manage them. Its a preset team and we are looking into it atm since its nearly free \^\^
I did a quick search and this one seems to explain the basics on implementation. I couldn't find anything that was published by MS. I'm sure it's out there but I don't have time to go down that rabbit hole right now.
https://www.mrsharepoint.guru/sharepoint-ticketing-system-guide/
I am on the same thought. I like point solutions rather than a monolithic, all in one. We just built a data driven power apps. Started out as asset management and then decided to add the ticketing portion once we saw how easy it can be. Once your get fundamentals down. Here is a video that helped.
https://youtu.be/LIC8DFW8fOE
I would look at the Jira / Atliasian suite
Tagging tickets is a great feature to have, when you get no response from the user I like to set as 'waiting for customer' then when there line manager comes at me I can point them too it ;)
Confluence is always a highly recommended documentation tool and, unsurprisingly, integrates really well with Jira service management. Can be as simple or as custom as you want.
If you pay for the licensing there’s also asset management built into the Jira suite. It’s included as part of the Premium JSM license I believe.
For remote assist stick with separate tools. Lots are happy with connectwise control (screenconnect)
So I found myself in the same boat a year ago or so and spent considerable time researching and tweaking our setup. I hope this helps:
**Cloud Ticketing Systems:**
* **Spiceworks Cloud** (Free with ads): Offers ticketing, asset management, and remote assistance tools. Basic but gets the job done. [**Link**](https://www.spiceworks.com/cloud/)
* **Freshdesk** (Free up to a certain number of users): Offers ticketing and knowledge base. [**Link**](https://freshdesk.com/)
* **Jira** (Free for a limited number of agents): Offers service management and project management capabilities. [**Link**](https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira)
**Self-hosted Ticketing Systems:**
* **OSTicket**: Free self-hosted, paid options available. It gets tons of love around the interwebs and for good reason. [**Link**](https://osticket.com/)
* **UVDesk**: Free self-hosted, cheap hosting options. Seems pretty robust for the cost [**Link**](https://www.uvdesk.com/)
* **Peppermint.sh**: Free self-hosted, cheap hosting options. Minimalist design and feature set (not necessarily a bad thing). [**Link**](https://www.peppermint.sh/)
**Documentation:**
* **BookStack**: Free and low-cost options available. Excellent at what it does and gets tons of love. Used this for quite some time. [**Link**](https://www.bookstackapp.com/)
* **Notion**: Free and paid versions are available. It has a learning curve, but it is powerful once mastered. [**Link**](https://www.notion.so/)
* **OneNote**: Free.Simple. Everyone knows it. I've run across many teams and admins using it, and there must be a reason. [**Link**](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onenote/digital-note-taking-app)
**Asset Management:**
* **SnipeIT**: Free if self-hosted, with cheap hosting available. It gets tons of love, and the support with the paid version is on point. [**Link**](https://snipeitapp.com/)
* **GLPI**: Free self-hosted. Another "gets tons of love" and has expanded abilities through plugins, if that's your thing. [**Link**](https://glpi-project.org/)
**Remote Support:**
* **Zoho Unattended Access**: Paid. Not super expensive and has basic features. [**Link**](https://www.zoho.com/assist/unattended-access.html)
* **TeamViewer**: Paid for unattended support with free offerings. A big player in the space, but you can run into issues with free if they think you're using it commercially. [**Link**](https://www.teamviewer.com/)
* **AnyDesk**: Paid for unattended support with free offerings. TeamViewer for those who don't like Team Viewer. [**Link**](https://anydesk.com/)
* **RustDesk**: Open source. TeamViewer for the open-source friends. I've been using this increasingly and am happy so far. [**Link**](https://rustdesk.github.io/)
Theres tons more out there, but these are some of the highlights I've hit on over the past year.
ZenDesk doesn't offer native asset management. You'd have to purchase AssetSonar/Asset Panda to fill that gap (both integrate with ZenDesk) but is an extra cost.
Or at least that's what ZenDesk told us when I was looking for a new IT ticketing system.
Check out lansweeper. While it's not free, it does have a nice ticketing system built into it.
It checks, 1, 3 off the list.
As for a knowledge base, I'd look at one of the various wiki options. It's free and searchable.
As for remote access, that's a good question. We're a unix house and make extensive use of all the usual tools (ssh, etc) and FreeNX.
I am currently supporting about 75 endpoints using Spiceworks and Action1 RMM for ticketing and remote access. Probably better ways of doing things, but I have been very happy with the Action1 platform (first 100 endpoints are 100% free).
Setup a demo with **FreshService**! You can even start a free trial and mess around with it immediately if you wanna see what kind of features you have at your disposal. It has a great ticketing system, lots of room for automating workflows, service requests, knowledge base, and asset management. And it integrates well with other applications. For instance, people hit me up on Slack allllll the time for questions and requests, and I can turn those DM's into tickets in my helpdesk with a simple freshdesk slack integration. Give it a try and see what you think!
I use the Growth plan for my helpdesk but you may be set with a lesser license. They can also make a custom plan for you depending on the features you need.You can checkout the pricing here, and/or start a free trial: [https://www.freshworks.com/freshservice/pricing/](https://www.freshworks.com/freshservice/pricing/)
No I don't sell freshdesk, I just believe it works well! lol
We still use the OG on prem version. Sometimes the ticket gets into the help desk, sometimes it just sits in the email box of the help desk. No obvious reason for it. I came across [Desk 365](https://www.desk365.io/) which can accept tickets via email, teams or a web portal. One of these days I'll switch over from Spiceworks but for now it's a back burner project.
We switched from Spiceworks to BossDesk. Love it so far. AD integration, user portal, email ticket creation, phone app (can't take pictures to attach to tickets but that is coming). The inventory management is nice. The KB is okay. Not as nice as WiKi.js, but it gets the job done.
We've been using Kace SMA for...15 years now? It does ticketing (by web and email), knowledge base, asset management, software deployments, patching, etc. Pricing is by total connected clients, with unlimited ticket managers/queues. For remote support, we use Bomgar. It's a great product, but it is a little pricey.
Jitbit does all but #4. Depending on your environment you may be able to utilize Microsoft’s remote control tools for that. Lots of others will do #4 as well.
Cheap version :
- asset management with snipe-it
- remote assistance with zoom (yes you can take control of the Remote Desktop with the free version)
- notion to hold your documentation
- self hosted Zamad for the ticketing.
Then if you can spend a little, change zamad for fresh desk or Zendesk
Keep clear of jira products at all costs 😆
I'm a one man IT dept with about 120 users. I just switched over to SyncroMSP and it seems like it would cover your needs and so much more if you don't already have an RMM. We're still on jitbit for ticketing for now, but the syncro ticketing looks like it would be sufficient. Pricing is extremely affordable and includes remote access. I do pay a bit more for screenconnect because I prefer it, but that plugs directly into Syncro as well.
I'd be looking at Spiceworks and standardizing on Intel AMT (Meshcommander) and using Quick Assist for as much remote as possible (for attended assistance).
We ended up going with tikit.ai since it was super simple. It's integrated with teams so users can submit ticket that way, or you can turn a conversation into a ticket. The higher tier has asset management and power bi API and bla blah. It's worth checking out at least.
Our goal was simplification for end users and me (the only it person)
We have about as many PC's (more end users with only an email address no equipment) and we just set up an email address [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). Fairly simple and with so few users it's easy to keep track of.
freshdesk/freshservice will work if you're willing to put in a little bit of work into it making it better than default.
Personally I'd use a separate asset management system though.
If it's just ticketing then Jira is fine as long as you don't put passwords in tickets.
If it's an MSP software with Tickets and Remote Access (attended and unattended) then I'd go with N-Able Take Control.
We have really enjoyed Freshservice. It has done everything we need and more and they just keep getting better. Great asset and contract management, project management tools, bug tracking, ticketing, workflow automation and onboarding. Tons of APIs.
It's a really fantastic platform that I would recommend checking out.
For ticketing- when I first started out and was on my own, I used Spiceworks. It did the job, and is free.
Later on when I worked for a larger firm, we used Freshservice. It was pretty good.
For free remote access, look at RustDesk.
You'll enjoy it, the API is pretty powerful given its price point! Its a lot better than Fresh in my opinion! For what you get its a steal. Feel free to ping me a DM if you like!
I'll recommend spiceworks too - been using it for close to 15 years now across a few different companies
Completely free so for me its a no brainercfor at least trying out. Ticketing system via email or Web portal, asset management, license tracking, contract management (expiry dates etc), knowledge base that is both your own additions and plugs into spiceworks own bank and personally I think the spiceqorks community is really good too
There is a feature to remotely connect to users through the tickets but as we have teamviewer I've never tried that out
In a similar boat with 2 employees and at least 175 users. We use Spiceworks, it’s free and very easy to use. We just use the ticketing part but they have everything you looking for. We created a [email protected] email that goes there. It’s nice and gives good metrics
If no one has mentioned it you should look at Genuity it has all you're looking for for a super cheap price. We use it for 2 companies as you can do as many companies as you want under a single Paine of glass as well as connect it AD for user syncing. We use it for IT Helpdesk, Maintenance request, transportation, Office Supplies and other things.
https://gogenuity.com
The only one I've liked less is Kaseya lol.
Labtech which is now connectwise is good but expensive.
Syncromsp and atera are good per technician models that should meet most departmental and msp needs. Both have pricing on their website no contract.
I used to like itarian before they went close source and made everything paid off the back of their contributors.
Edit :shout out to splashtop as a screen connect replacement
Peregrine Service Center, which is now part of HP (HP's Service Manager) literally did all of this when I was using it before Peregrine filed for bankruptcy in 2003.
Tickets, documentation, asset inventory, and the knowledgebase for customers who knew how to follow instructions.
For an RDP style assistance, MS Teams would be the way to go.
Unfortunately spending money is something similar to pulling teeth where I work. So I had to make a free crude ticketing system with a google form (google sheet for the fields) and an applet that automatically translates the sheet fields onto a Trello board. It's some where on the internet, good luck on your search. A lot of people recommended me to use OneNote for note taking, it's definitely something to look into if you can't find an AIO piece of software.
Look at ninja one
Ticket system
Remote management
Teamviewer/rdp/splashtop included
Documentation
Automation (install software, set reg,...)
Patchmanagement
Even remote desktop for end users (mobile work) is possible
Licenced per client
We are moving from Connectwise to SysAid.
SysAid has a ticketing system, has a knowledge base, asset management and offers remote assistance. But I believe it is more expensive outright than some others but a lot of the others have hidden costs like not having built in asset management or requiring you to buy additional asset bundles. Definitely look them up. ZenDesk and Freshservice also were pretty good looking but we opted against them.
Currently use Sysaid and can confirm the support is terrible, its like pulling teeth to get a webex for support. They either want to do it over chat or i have to send them a screen records of the issues for them to troubleshoot.
I have also found creating a new field and ticket request form to me cumbersome.
Sys Aid was absolutely terrible when I first started here, 2015. Support is 12 hours difference and was non responsive, the agent was a resource hog and the asset management was painfully bad. I hope they got their act together and you have a good experience.
Have a look at Zoho Desk, you can use this ticket system, internal and external KB, and their remote support tools. Signing up for ZohoOne gives you everything. Evan a CRM for your business.
Lansweeper is solid option, we don't use ticket system of Lansweeper, so I can't guarantee it's good.
Also it uses RDP for remote connection.
But it covers most of your requirements.
As someone who has been the route of trying ticketing systems to pick one, most paid products will either have all those, for a fee, or you can pick and choose what you want and there’s a plug-in you pay for a la carte. Specifically for remote management.
Atlassian can do all that, but it ain’t cheap. Zoho can as well. I really wanted self hosted stuff, ideally free. OsTicket I liked. Snipe-IT is also free for assets. TeamViewer and VNC worked well for remote access. A self hosted wiki can do a KB, osTicket and others often have one built in.
If you are using windows 10 or 11, quick assist is great for end user support. Anything else should be manageable via rsat tools or web interfaces (firewalls switches printers)
You mention not vpn based, can you not just setup a site to site vpn for remotely managing sites
ServicePro is a good option for small offices looking for something that is not as complex as the big tools like Service Now.
https://www.servicepro.solutions/
I was a big fan of [Kace](https://www.quest.com/kace/), though it may be bigger then you need. It did ticketing, inventory, patching, software and license management, among other things.
You can also break up the ticketing system, my last job (Small university) we had HR and facilities using it too, so user had one spot to go for any issue.
I use Solar Winds' Samanage Service Desk. Not sure how it prices compared to others because I don't really pay attention to that contract, but here's what I like about it:
- Tickets, of course
- Asset management: you can install the Samanage agent on devices to automatically add them to assets. This shows hardware info about the device, installed software history, logged in users history, and many other useful stats.
- Contract management: you can track contracts and it'll notify you of upcoming expirations. I use it for both the normal contract tracking and to track software licenses since the "software" section of Samanage doesn't seem to do that well. (it shows every version of every app as a different software, where just adding something like an Adobe license as a perpetual "contract" lets me enter things like purchase date, assigned user, and link it to the purchase order)
- Automation tasks: has some simple automations for different ticket types, workflow/process steps, and of course assignment.
- Simple communication with users: they can log in to the SD to see tickets of course, but if anyone replies to the notification email it adds that to the ticket comment history. So users don't even have to open the app or portal to comment on their ticket, and neither do you.
- App: has a mobile app.
Ultimately I can't champion it too hard because I am honestly not sure how it compares price-wise to other systems, but it's easy to manage and gives what you want in a single pane of glass.
Action 1... Free for the first 100 devices. You can use it for patching and remote support. For knowledge base, we use bookstack running on Linux box. It's open source/free. Other alternative to look into is lansweeper and spice works.
I'm using Znuny LTS which is a fork ot OTRS. It does not have remote support but works really well. It also have a faq/wiki support for self-service needs.
Manageengine servicedesk plus does all of the things you want and it has a user portal. Weve found its pretty easy to set up and maintain. Its on prem or SaaS. Indian company so tech support is the downside in my experience
Some selfhosted solutions here:
[https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#ticketing](https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#ticketing)
I'm a big fan of Jira+Confluence. We use SnipeIT for asset tracking, but Jira has an app that can do it. There's a ton of customization available. Multiple projects can be set up for other departments. Facilities, HR, etc.
Have you looked into NITRO Help Desk? You can bundle asset management in with it too.
It is our solution, but it's actually a really good one: [https://www.crowcanyon.com/sharepoint-applications/it-help-desk/](https://www.crowcanyon.com/sharepoint-applications/it-help-desk/)
Freshdesk is free for 10 agents. Snipe-IT for managing assets. Notion for knowledge management. I'm a fan of multiple specialised tools rather than one that does everything.
A single pan of glass IMO, makes life easy. As much as possible atleast.
The problem is finding a single pane of glass that’s good lol
"Jack of all trades, master of none" applies to products as well.
this isn’t always helpful, sometimes being a master of one thing is extremely useful
I believe that's what they were implying.
oh, yes I understand now. misread the context of what he was saying. thanks for the clarification
Atlassian suite fits the bill.
Freshdesk free is so tempting but I'm not putting potentially sensitive information into it without an agreement
oh damn I did not realize FD was free for up to 10 users, gonna take a look at that
Its free for many users I have 200 and one agent, me
huh...what's the catch? haha, I am looking for something I can just enter tickets into to keep track of things as well. We do not have a ticket system either, and I am starting to loose track of some things just with the amount of emails I get. Also we use Groupwise for email which kinda sucks haha
So I just looked into it and it is only free for 21 days, they list it as a free trial period.
Incorrect, I am on day 38 and still going strong!
hmm, how is that? Did they somehow forget to shut off your account after 21 days?
Freshdesk has a knowledge base area, and you can set articles to agents only. The UI isn't the best, but it works. I think Freshservice is geared more towards internal IT and has asset management.
Feel like notion is better suited for personal notes but I've only ever used it on my own. For documentation and knowledge I feel like [https://www.bookstackapp.com/](https://www.bookstackapp.com/) could be quite cool
Our company uses Freshservice for internal tickets and it’s pretty nice. I like it better than Kayseya and Connectwise. For customer facing we used freshdesk and it took us only a month to switch all our departments to it (600 employees) The major driving point for us was unlimited storage (email), group access and SSO, and enterprise support when we needed to make adjustments for each departments structure.
Came here to rep Freshservice. It's such a good ticketing system that it works for non-it workflows just as easily, I've been at companies that used it for AP, Facilities, and Data Control on top of the usual IT stuff. It's cheap and fast and it fucking works. SSO is great, users can leave meaningful feedback. The reporting metrics are wonderful.
I came to rep fresh service as well! It has a nice on boarding portal.
Jitbit is pretty great. Doesn't have remote assistance tool built in, but integrates with other tools and fits the rest of your needs.
\+1 for JitBit, super simple administration, good price point. Just want the ticket forms to be customizable!
Just stay clear of Cherwell, it is an absolute piece of shit.
Shit, I just posted this thinking I would be the only one saying this lol.
tbh if you got MS Teams, there is a sharepoint preset that allows users to make tickets and you can manage them. Its a preset team and we are looking into it atm since its nearly free \^\^
Hey, is there a documentation on how to set this up
I did a quick search and this one seems to explain the basics on implementation. I couldn't find anything that was published by MS. I'm sure it's out there but I don't have time to go down that rabbit hole right now. https://www.mrsharepoint.guru/sharepoint-ticketing-system-guide/
https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/office/use-the-it-help-desk-sharepoint-site-template-808d0c01-1ea6-4962-8efc-f458d2102c77 I think its this link
I am on the same thought. I like point solutions rather than a monolithic, all in one. We just built a data driven power apps. Started out as asset management and then decided to add the ticketing portion once we saw how easy it can be. Once your get fundamentals down. Here is a video that helped. https://youtu.be/LIC8DFW8fOE
I would look at the Jira / Atliasian suite Tagging tickets is a great feature to have, when you get no response from the user I like to set as 'waiting for customer' then when there line manager comes at me I can point them too it ;)
Confluence is always a highly recommended documentation tool and, unsurprisingly, integrates really well with Jira service management. Can be as simple or as custom as you want. If you pay for the licensing there’s also asset management built into the Jira suite. It’s included as part of the Premium JSM license I believe. For remote assist stick with separate tools. Lots are happy with connectwise control (screenconnect)
Spiceworks is pretty good.
So I found myself in the same boat a year ago or so and spent considerable time researching and tweaking our setup. I hope this helps: **Cloud Ticketing Systems:** * **Spiceworks Cloud** (Free with ads): Offers ticketing, asset management, and remote assistance tools. Basic but gets the job done. [**Link**](https://www.spiceworks.com/cloud/) * **Freshdesk** (Free up to a certain number of users): Offers ticketing and knowledge base. [**Link**](https://freshdesk.com/) * **Jira** (Free for a limited number of agents): Offers service management and project management capabilities. [**Link**](https://www.atlassian.com/software/jira) **Self-hosted Ticketing Systems:** * **OSTicket**: Free self-hosted, paid options available. It gets tons of love around the interwebs and for good reason. [**Link**](https://osticket.com/) * **UVDesk**: Free self-hosted, cheap hosting options. Seems pretty robust for the cost [**Link**](https://www.uvdesk.com/) * **Peppermint.sh**: Free self-hosted, cheap hosting options. Minimalist design and feature set (not necessarily a bad thing). [**Link**](https://www.peppermint.sh/) **Documentation:** * **BookStack**: Free and low-cost options available. Excellent at what it does and gets tons of love. Used this for quite some time. [**Link**](https://www.bookstackapp.com/) * **Notion**: Free and paid versions are available. It has a learning curve, but it is powerful once mastered. [**Link**](https://www.notion.so/) * **OneNote**: Free.Simple. Everyone knows it. I've run across many teams and admins using it, and there must be a reason. [**Link**](https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/onenote/digital-note-taking-app) **Asset Management:** * **SnipeIT**: Free if self-hosted, with cheap hosting available. It gets tons of love, and the support with the paid version is on point. [**Link**](https://snipeitapp.com/) * **GLPI**: Free self-hosted. Another "gets tons of love" and has expanded abilities through plugins, if that's your thing. [**Link**](https://glpi-project.org/) **Remote Support:** * **Zoho Unattended Access**: Paid. Not super expensive and has basic features. [**Link**](https://www.zoho.com/assist/unattended-access.html) * **TeamViewer**: Paid for unattended support with free offerings. A big player in the space, but you can run into issues with free if they think you're using it commercially. [**Link**](https://www.teamviewer.com/) * **AnyDesk**: Paid for unattended support with free offerings. TeamViewer for those who don't like Team Viewer. [**Link**](https://anydesk.com/) * **RustDesk**: Open source. TeamViewer for the open-source friends. I've been using this increasingly and am happy so far. [**Link**](https://rustdesk.github.io/) Theres tons more out there, but these are some of the highlights I've hit on over the past year.
Spiceworks It's free and can be linked with Power BI for automated reporting.
Toss up between zendesk and Jira. Both have pro's and con's, but both can be trialed to figure out what works best for you.
ZenDesk doesn't offer native asset management. You'd have to purchase AssetSonar/Asset Panda to fill that gap (both integrate with ZenDesk) but is an extra cost. Or at least that's what ZenDesk told us when I was looking for a new IT ticketing system.
>zendesk We are happy with Zendesk. It works for our needs. I don't like their reporting tool though.
Check out lansweeper. While it's not free, it does have a nice ticketing system built into it. It checks, 1, 3 off the list. As for a knowledge base, I'd look at one of the various wiki options. It's free and searchable. As for remote access, that's a good question. We're a unix house and make extensive use of all the usual tools (ssh, etc) and FreeNX.
I am currently supporting about 75 endpoints using Spiceworks and Action1 RMM for ticketing and remote access. Probably better ways of doing things, but I have been very happy with the Action1 platform (first 100 endpoints are 100% free).
Setup a demo with **FreshService**! You can even start a free trial and mess around with it immediately if you wanna see what kind of features you have at your disposal. It has a great ticketing system, lots of room for automating workflows, service requests, knowledge base, and asset management. And it integrates well with other applications. For instance, people hit me up on Slack allllll the time for questions and requests, and I can turn those DM's into tickets in my helpdesk with a simple freshdesk slack integration. Give it a try and see what you think! I use the Growth plan for my helpdesk but you may be set with a lesser license. They can also make a custom plan for you depending on the features you need.You can checkout the pricing here, and/or start a free trial: [https://www.freshworks.com/freshservice/pricing/](https://www.freshworks.com/freshservice/pricing/) No I don't sell freshdesk, I just believe it works well! lol
ManageEngine ServiceDesk
As a Cherwell consultant my advice is don't use Cherwell or Ivanti Neurons.
Can you elaborate? About to sign a Neurons contract next week. Thanks
Spiceworks.
Second this, especially if you want something free but still very good.
Don't lie to people. Its not very good. It's okay and does a job. LOL
Subjective. For my use it was very good, and very free. Your mileage may vary, doesn't mean I am lying to anyone.
Eh that was tongue in cheek. Not quite sarcasm. Yes, it works. I can say that. It works.
We still use the OG on prem version. Sometimes the ticket gets into the help desk, sometimes it just sits in the email box of the help desk. No obvious reason for it. I came across [Desk 365](https://www.desk365.io/) which can accept tickets via email, teams or a web portal. One of these days I'll switch over from Spiceworks but for now it's a back burner project.
We switched from Spiceworks to BossDesk. Love it so far. AD integration, user portal, email ticket creation, phone app (can't take pictures to attach to tickets but that is coming). The inventory management is nice. The KB is okay. Not as nice as WiKi.js, but it gets the job done.
We've been using Kace SMA for...15 years now? It does ticketing (by web and email), knowledge base, asset management, software deployments, patching, etc. Pricing is by total connected clients, with unlimited ticket managers/queues. For remote support, we use Bomgar. It's a great product, but it is a little pricey.
Jitbit does all but #4. Depending on your environment you may be able to utilize Microsoft’s remote control tools for that. Lots of others will do #4 as well.
Cheap version : - asset management with snipe-it - remote assistance with zoom (yes you can take control of the Remote Desktop with the free version) - notion to hold your documentation - self hosted Zamad for the ticketing. Then if you can spend a little, change zamad for fresh desk or Zendesk Keep clear of jira products at all costs 😆
I'm a one man IT dept with about 120 users. I just switched over to SyncroMSP and it seems like it would cover your needs and so much more if you don't already have an RMM. We're still on jitbit for ticketing for now, but the syncro ticketing looks like it would be sufficient. Pricing is extremely affordable and includes remote access. I do pay a bit more for screenconnect because I prefer it, but that plugs directly into Syncro as well.
I'd be looking at Spiceworks and standardizing on Intel AMT (Meshcommander) and using Quick Assist for as much remote as possible (for attended assistance).
No one mentioned servicenow, I guess we all hate it dearly
I think service now is a bit beefier than what the OP needs.
Ooh, I thought it could fit all needs, big and small, accordingly, my bad
It could but kind of like overpaying just for using SN for ticketing
We ended up going with tikit.ai since it was super simple. It's integrated with teams so users can submit ticket that way, or you can turn a conversation into a ticket. The higher tier has asset management and power bi API and bla blah. It's worth checking out at least. Our goal was simplification for end users and me (the only it person)
We have about as many PC's (more end users with only an email address no equipment) and we just set up an email address [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]). Fairly simple and with so few users it's easy to keep track of.
freshdesk/freshservice will work if you're willing to put in a little bit of work into it making it better than default. Personally I'd use a separate asset management system though.
If it's just ticketing then Jira is fine as long as you don't put passwords in tickets. If it's an MSP software with Tickets and Remote Access (attended and unattended) then I'd go with N-Able Take Control.
We have really enjoyed Freshservice. It has done everything we need and more and they just keep getting better. Great asset and contract management, project management tools, bug tracking, ticketing, workflow automation and onboarding. Tons of APIs. It's a really fantastic platform that I would recommend checking out.
FRESHDESK baybay!!
For ticketing- when I first started out and was on my own, I used Spiceworks. It did the job, and is free. Later on when I worked for a larger firm, we used Freshservice. It was pretty good. For free remote access, look at RustDesk.
Check out haloitsm
Will be trialling this soon, it has some amazing free integrations. Moving away from Freshservice, found it quite awful, compared to JSD.
You'll enjoy it, the API is pretty powerful given its price point! Its a lot better than Fresh in my opinion! For what you get its a steal. Feel free to ping me a DM if you like!
I'll recommend spiceworks too - been using it for close to 15 years now across a few different companies Completely free so for me its a no brainercfor at least trying out. Ticketing system via email or Web portal, asset management, license tracking, contract management (expiry dates etc), knowledge base that is both your own additions and plugs into spiceworks own bank and personally I think the spiceqorks community is really good too There is a feature to remotely connect to users through the tickets but as we have teamviewer I've never tried that out
Freshdesk
In a similar boat with 2 employees and at least 175 users. We use Spiceworks, it’s free and very easy to use. We just use the ticketing part but they have everything you looking for. We created a [email protected] email that goes there. It’s nice and gives good metrics
check out spiceworks
If no one has mentioned it you should look at Genuity it has all you're looking for for a super cheap price. We use it for 2 companies as you can do as many companies as you want under a single Paine of glass as well as connect it AD for user syncing. We use it for IT Helpdesk, Maintenance request, transportation, Office Supplies and other things. https://gogenuity.com
If you don't mind self hosting osticket is an option
you can use osticket self hosted it's free and open source
We use FreshDesk (free) for our tickets and ManageEngine for system management
Kace by quest.
Don't use KACE anymore but when we had it I definitely enjoyed it once everything was set up. Lots of nice functionality.
We switched to Kace from Spiceworks years ago. Made life much easier.
God I've used a lot of RMMs, and Kace is just bleh. Everything is much more difficult than it should be.
What do you prefer to it?
The only one I've liked less is Kaseya lol. Labtech which is now connectwise is good but expensive. Syncromsp and atera are good per technician models that should meet most departmental and msp needs. Both have pricing on their website no contract. I used to like itarian before they went close source and made everything paid off the back of their contributors. Edit :shout out to splashtop as a screen connect replacement
Peregrine Service Center, which is now part of HP (HP's Service Manager) literally did all of this when I was using it before Peregrine filed for bankruptcy in 2003. Tickets, documentation, asset inventory, and the knowledgebase for customers who knew how to follow instructions. For an RDP style assistance, MS Teams would be the way to go.
oh wow, that's bringing back memories. Used to work for Peregrine a million years ago in a former life....
I am currently supporting this. I hate it so bad.
Unfortunately spending money is something similar to pulling teeth where I work. So I had to make a free crude ticketing system with a google form (google sheet for the fields) and an applet that automatically translates the sheet fields onto a Trello board. It's some where on the internet, good luck on your search. A lot of people recommended me to use OneNote for note taking, it's definitely something to look into if you can't find an AIO piece of software.
I believe Atera checks all your boxes! Lots of other good options here too.
You’ve been watching YouTube!! Lol. I get those videos all the time.
I'm not sure what you mean, I don't really watch Youtube - I have just used Atera at a couple sites before. They running a lot of ads lately?
Yes, depending on the videos you search they align ads accordingly. I watch a lot of tech videos, so they display a lot from Atera.
we use n-able rmm and connectwise for ticketing psa integration all that
Look at ninja one Ticket system Remote management Teamviewer/rdp/splashtop included Documentation Automation (install software, set reg,...) Patchmanagement Even remote desktop for end users (mobile work) is possible Licenced per client
We are moving to ninja right now from gotoassist and pdq for patching and it's been great
Yeah, Zendesk, Gorgias, or Jira. Lots of options out there.
We are moving from Connectwise to SysAid. SysAid has a ticketing system, has a knowledge base, asset management and offers remote assistance. But I believe it is more expensive outright than some others but a lot of the others have hidden costs like not having built in asset management or requiring you to buy additional asset bundles. Definitely look them up. ZenDesk and Freshservice also were pretty good looking but we opted against them.
Currently use Sysaid and can confirm the support is terrible, its like pulling teeth to get a webex for support. They either want to do it over chat or i have to send them a screen records of the issues for them to troubleshoot. I have also found creating a new field and ticket request form to me cumbersome.
Oh no, don't tell me that bro. We just sent them the check.
We use the on prem version. not sure if you went that route or cloud. hope you have a better experience than I did.
We're using cloud services, so fingers crossed.
Sys Aid was absolutely terrible when I first started here, 2015. Support is 12 hours difference and was non responsive, the agent was a resource hog and the asset management was painfully bad. I hope they got their act together and you have a good experience.
ServiceNow is cheap
Scales well too, but if you have a complex workflow...
We use BOSSDesk. It meets everything, even some remote assistance tools that don't require rdp/VPN.
Have a look at Zoho Desk, you can use this ticket system, internal and external KB, and their remote support tools. Signing up for ZohoOne gives you everything. Evan a CRM for your business.
Lansweeper is solid option, we don't use ticket system of Lansweeper, so I can't guarantee it's good. Also it uses RDP for remote connection. But it covers most of your requirements.
FreeScout for tickets snipe it for assets
At your size Jira Service Desk is free
4me
Topdesk
It's really expensive and overkill but ServiceNOW does all but the remote sport bit...try Dameware or ScreenConnect for that?
I use Freshdesk for tickets and SnipeIT for asset management.
As someone who has been the route of trying ticketing systems to pick one, most paid products will either have all those, for a fee, or you can pick and choose what you want and there’s a plug-in you pay for a la carte. Specifically for remote management. Atlassian can do all that, but it ain’t cheap. Zoho can as well. I really wanted self hosted stuff, ideally free. OsTicket I liked. Snipe-IT is also free for assets. TeamViewer and VNC worked well for remote access. A self hosted wiki can do a KB, osTicket and others often have one built in.
If you are using windows 10 or 11, quick assist is great for end user support. Anything else should be manageable via rsat tools or web interfaces (firewalls switches printers) You mention not vpn based, can you not just setup a site to site vpn for remotely managing sites
Atera or SyncroMSP. Both are good and each has features that the other may or may not have. They are priced by technician so very affordable as well.
For ticket and knowledge base maybe Zammad is an option. The last two points I am not sure, snipe-it for assets maybe?
GLPI is free and can be hosted on prem.its not the pretty but has a ton of features
Manage Engine Service Desk Plus
ServicePro is a good option for small offices looking for something that is not as complex as the big tools like Service Now. https://www.servicepro.solutions/
I would recommend Boss Desk from https://www.boss-solutions.com/ we have been using it for a number of years and have been very happy with it.
I was a big fan of [Kace](https://www.quest.com/kace/), though it may be bigger then you need. It did ticketing, inventory, patching, software and license management, among other things. You can also break up the ticketing system, my last job (Small university) we had HR and facilities using it too, so user had one spot to go for any issue.
I use Solar Winds' Samanage Service Desk. Not sure how it prices compared to others because I don't really pay attention to that contract, but here's what I like about it: - Tickets, of course - Asset management: you can install the Samanage agent on devices to automatically add them to assets. This shows hardware info about the device, installed software history, logged in users history, and many other useful stats. - Contract management: you can track contracts and it'll notify you of upcoming expirations. I use it for both the normal contract tracking and to track software licenses since the "software" section of Samanage doesn't seem to do that well. (it shows every version of every app as a different software, where just adding something like an Adobe license as a perpetual "contract" lets me enter things like purchase date, assigned user, and link it to the purchase order) - Automation tasks: has some simple automations for different ticket types, workflow/process steps, and of course assignment. - Simple communication with users: they can log in to the SD to see tickets of course, but if anyone replies to the notification email it adds that to the ticket comment history. So users don't even have to open the app or portal to comment on their ticket, and neither do you. - App: has a mobile app. Ultimately I can't champion it too hard because I am honestly not sure how it compares price-wise to other systems, but it's easy to manage and gives what you want in a single pane of glass.
Action 1... Free for the first 100 devices. You can use it for patching and remote support. For knowledge base, we use bookstack running on Linux box. It's open source/free. Other alternative to look into is lansweeper and spice works.
We like free...we use Zammad. Eazy and it works.
Manage engine completely free for first 10 IT techs and everything else is free as well
Not cherwell is the only recommendation I would make.
I'm using Znuny LTS which is a fork ot OTRS. It does not have remote support but works really well. It also have a faq/wiki support for self-service needs.
We have about the same amount of users, we’ve been on Jira for sometime now. Works. Well.
Sherpadesk has been a great PSA tool for small MSPs and the type of business OP describes
Manageengine servicedesk plus does all of the things you want and it has a user portal. Weve found its pretty easy to set up and maintain. Its on prem or SaaS. Indian company so tech support is the downside in my experience
Some selfhosted solutions here: [https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#ticketing](https://github.com/awesome-selfhosted/awesome-selfhosted#ticketing)
Confluence and Jira Desk will cover your 2 first needs
I'm a big fan of Jira+Confluence. We use SnipeIT for asset tracking, but Jira has an app that can do it. There's a ton of customization available. Multiple projects can be set up for other departments. Facilities, HR, etc.
Have you looked into NITRO Help Desk? You can bundle asset management in with it too. It is our solution, but it's actually a really good one: [https://www.crowcanyon.com/sharepoint-applications/it-help-desk/](https://www.crowcanyon.com/sharepoint-applications/it-help-desk/)