All help desk request calls should be directed to 312-341-HELP (312-341-4357). Users calling from off-campus locations can use this toll free number: 866-276-3906.

Help desk agents are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, so there's never a time when you won't be able to get a live agent on the phone. In practical terms, you'll sometimes get faster service when you call at off-peak hours (early in the day, evenings, weekends), but you won't have to leave a voicemail message or call back later.

The main purpose of this recording is to let you know right away that you've reached the RU help desk and make sure your question is directed to the correct support staff person. The first thing you'll hear when you call the help desk is a brief recording with a greeting and a short list of menu options. The next available agent will pick up your call, usually within a minute or less.

DoIT is working with our service provider to develop extensive documentation about the Roosevelt computing environment that service agents will have access to when they take your call, which means that they will be able to answer questions not only on standard computing topics but also systems and procedures unique to RU. In addition, we will be keeping them updated on special circumstances affecting the RU user community, such as server downtime and network outages. The agents also have at hand contact information for key technical staff at Roosevelt, so if they can't answer your question themselves they'll be able to refer it to someone who can. The more experience Presidium agents gain in handling RU help requests, the more knowledgeable they will become about the needs of our community.

No. Our service provider maintains call centers in Virginia and Kentucky. No calls are directed to off-shore locations.

We have loaded basic information about all RU faculty, staff and students into the database that we will be using to track help requests. All the agent needs is your name in order to quickly call up your other basic contact information, including your location, phone number and email address, which then is attached to the record with the details of your request. This not only saves you the trouble of having to repeat that information over the phone each time you call, but it also ensures that other technicians who work on that ticket will have quick access to your contact information.

All technical requests that were previously directed to the old help desk can now be referred to the new service, including basic questions about widely used applications such as Windows, Office, email (both staff and student), Blackboard and Banner, as well as reports about hardware problems, interruptions in network services, problems with labs and classrooms, and upgrade requests.

Whenever possible the telephone support technician will answer your question immediately. Problems that cannot be resolved during the initial phone call will be recorded in the ticket tracking system by the agent and referred to Roosevelt staff for action. Normally details of the escalated request will be available to local staff within moments of your call.

A web-based database application is used to record each help request. This system is designed to generate email notifications to keep you posted about the current status of your request. Please hang on to these messages until your problem has resolved. Also, the new RU Technology Help Desk web site features an interface into the database, providing you with access to information about your current and past support requests. The URL for this page will be announced soon.

The new RU Technology Help Desk support site can be accessed directly from any web browser. From that page you'll be able to browse or search the knowledge base of technical articles, and download user guides and other documents. In order to check the status of our own requests you'll need to log in. All RU students and staff have accounts on this system. For assistance in logging in, see the support site login help page.

As an alternative to submitting your request by telephone, you can also send your request in writing by filling out a web form or by initiating a chat session with the help desk agent. Both these services are available on the RU Technology Help Desk site (click the Request Help icon).

A central feature of the help desk service is an extensive knowledge base recording details on a wide variety of technical topics. This browseable, searchable library of documentation is available at any time from the RU Technology Help Desk support site. In some cases you may be able to answer your own question without having to contact a help desk agent.

The problem with email requests is that it is frequently missing important information that technicians need to resolve the problem, requiring followup questions and the email equivalent of "telephone tag." If you want to submit your request in writing, please use the online form located on the support web site. Just click the Request Help link on that page (you'll need to log in if you have not already done so) and fill in the provide form.