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Message Templates

Service Desk > Configure > Message Templates

The Message Templates page defines reusable, standard messages you can send as emails or display as messages in the Inbox of other users. These message templates can be selected when you specify a sendEmail() step or sendMessage() step within any service desk procedure. Message templates can also include ticket property variables and procedure variables.

Note: Service Desk installs pre-defined message templates. These pre-defined message templates are used by one or more pre-configured service desks and procedures installed using the Desk Templates page. You can change their contents and your changes will be preserved. But if you rename or delete these pre-defined message templates they will be re-created during the next maintenance cycle of the VSA.

General

Click New to display the Add Message Template window, or click a row in the middle panel, then click Edit to display the Change Message Template window. Enter the following attributes:

  • ID - The name of the message template.
  • Description - A brief description of this ID.

Note: Any value you enter in the following four fields can be overridden by a value in the corresponding fields of a sendMessage() or sendEmail() step in a procedure.

  • Subject - The subject of the message template.
  • To - The recipients of the message template. Multiple recipients are delimited by commas or semicolons.

    Note: Any user name included in the To field of a message template is automatically converted into that user's corresponding email address. For example, if the user jsmith has a corresponding email address of jsmith@acme.com, then the same message template—with jsmith in the To field—can be used by a sendMessage() step to send a message to jsmith and also used by a sendEmail() step to send an email to jsmith@acme.com. Email addresses for each user are maintained using System > Users.

  • From - The sender of the message template. The From address of an outbound email is specified using the following order of precedence:
    1. If there is a From address in the sendEmail() step of a procedure, then that address is used.
    2. Else the sendEmail() step uses the From address provided by a linked Service Desk > Message Template, if the link exists and a From address is specified.
    3. Else the sendEmail() step uses the Reply Email Address of the Service Desk > Incoming Email and Alarm Settings > email reader linked to the service desk. This link between the email reader and the service desk is set using the Service Desk > Desk Definition > Properties > General > Standard Field Defaults > Email field.
    4. Else the Default Sender Email address set in System > Outbound Email is used.
  • Body - Enter the body text of the message template. Use the following toolbar buttons to add special formatting to the text:
    • Word 60% / HTML 100% - Hyperlink selected text. You may need to reset links copied and pasted from another source.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Copy selected text from Microsoft Word and paste into text pane.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Insert a table.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Insert a horizontal line as a percentage of the width, or set a fixed width in pixels.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Indent text.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Outdent text.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Set selected text to subscript.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Set selected text to superscript.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Remove formatting of selected text.
    • Word 75% / HTML 100% - Insert special characters and symbols.

    Note: You can not add an attachment to a message template.