What is the difference between an incident and a problem?

An incident is the disruption the user experiences and is handled by restoring the service. A problem is the underlying cause of one or more incidents and is handled by investigating and removing that cause.

What is a known error?

A problem whose cause has already been identified and that has a documented workaround while the permanent fix is implemented.

Can I see how many tickets a problem caused?

Yes. The problem list shows the number of tickets linked to each one.

Problem Management and Root Cause Analysis

ITSM processes

Stop fighting the same fire every week. Problem management groups incidents that keep repeating, investigates why they happen and documents the permanent fix.

Problem list with status, priority, impact, linked tickets and owner — Problem management

What it is and how it helps

An incident is resolved by restoring the service; a problem is resolved by removing the cause. When the VPN drops every day at peak hours or a printer fails again and again with the same error, Swift Support lets you open a problem (for example, PRB-2026-004), link the affected tickets to it and follow it up until the root cause is found and fixed.

Each problem has a status (for example, investigating, known error or resolved), priority, impact, assigned agent, creation date and the number of related tickets. The list can be filtered by status, priority, impact and owner, and includes a shortcut to see only open problems.

The root cause analysis (RCA) is documented inside the problem. While there is no permanent fix, the known error status lets you record the workaround so the service desk can apply it right away. Reports include dedicated templates for active problems and problems with a documented root cause.

Key capabilities

Linked tickets

Relate every incident caused by the same problem and measure its real reach.

Root cause analysis

Document the investigation and the identified cause inside the problem itself.

Known errors

Record workarounds while the permanent fix is implemented.

Priority and impact

Assess each problem by urgency and the scope of what it affects.

Status filters

Investigating, known error, resolved… and a shortcut to see only open problems.

Dedicated reports

Templates for active problems and problems with a documented root cause.

How it works

01

Spot the pattern

Reports, the dashboard or Bruno AI reveal incidents that keep repeating.
02

Open the problem

Record the problem with its priority and impact and link the related tickets.
03

Investigate the cause

The owner documents the analysis; if there is a workaround, it is marked as a known error.
04

Fix and close

The permanent fix is usually delivered through a change; once confirmed, the problem is resolved.

Why it matters

Fewer incidents, not just faster incidents

Problem management is the difference between a reactive help desk and a mature IT operation. Every root cause removed reduces the team’s future workload, improves service availability and increases user satisfaction.

Fewer recurring incidents
Documented technical knowledge
Prioritization by impact

A basis for planned changes
Evidence for audits
ITSM maturity metrics

IT team analyzing information in a working meeting

FAQ

Questions about Problems

If your question is not here, write to us and we will gladly answer it or show you the module in a demo.

Email us

contacto@swift-support.net

An incident is the disruption the user experiences and is handled by restoring the service. A problem is the underlying cause of one or more incidents and is handled by investigating and removing that cause.
A problem whose cause has already been identified and that has a documented workaround while the permanent fix is implemented.
Yes. The problem list shows the number of tickets linked to each one.