Why It Matters
Every ticket follows a specific lifecycle from the moment it is created until the issue is permanently resolved. Understanding these status transitions is crucial because they don’t just tell the end-user what is happening—they actually control your backend SLA timers. Knowing exactly when a timer starts, pauses, or stops ensures your IT team’s performance metrics remain highly accurate and fair.
How It Works (The Lifecycle Stages)
As a ticket moves through the helpdesk, it automatically or manually transitions through the following core stages:
- New: A ticket has just entered the system (via email, portal, or manual creation) but has not yet been assigned to a technician. The initial “Time to Own” and “Time to Resolve” SLA clocks start ticking immediately.
- Processing (Assigned/Planned): Once a technician takes ownership of the ticket, the status transitions to Processing. This signals to the user that an agent is actively reviewing or troubleshooting the issue.
- Pending: If an agent needs more information from the requester (like a screenshot or a device password) or is waiting on a third-party vendor, they change the status to Pending. Crucial behavior: This automatically pauses the SLA clock so your IT team is not penalized while waiting for someone else to reply.
- Solved: When the agent applies a final “Solution” template, the ticket transitions to Solved. This completely stops the resolution SLA timer. The end-user receives an email prompting them to accept or reject the fix. If they reject it, the ticket bounces back to Processing.
- Closed: The final, locked state of a ticket. A ticket becomes Closed either when the end-user explicitly accepts the solution, or when the system’s “Auto-Close” rule triggers (automatically moving stagnant Solved tickets to Closed after a set number of days).
Next Steps
Head over to your Global ITSM Settings (AssetSonar ITAM → Settings → ITSM) to review your Auto-Close rules. Ensure you have a reasonable timeframe set (such as 3 to 5 days) so that tickets sitting in the “Solved” stage automatically transition to “Closed” even if the employee forgets to click the approval button!
