Our Support team helps our customers worldwide with our solutions, Creo (3D CAD), Windchill (PLM), Simulation (Ansys), ThingWorx (IoT), Vuforia (Augmented Reality) and more.
It has become time to post the second blog entry from Technical Support and I thought it would be nice to give you five pieces of advice with “good-to-know”-tips and pointers on how you receive help in the quickest possible way. I hope the advices will be of use.
1. Stay Updated – with Afterthought
PTC continuously releases new software updates known as date codes, such as Creo Parametric 3.0 M100, where M100 is the date code. When you have an active maintenance contract with us, you not only have the right to our support, but also the right to all PTC software updates to the programs you have a license for. Every date code includes bug fixes and it is good to keep your programs updated and not run old software. However, prior to updating, it is good to make sure you have the right system support for the new software. Depending on which program to install, you can check the version of the browser and java, graphic card driver, disk space, and more. Check out the PTC website or our Knowledge Base for more information on platform support.
2. Prepare to be Helped – Perform Self-Tests
The most common questions we will ask you when you have encountered a problem are the following: Is it possible to reproduce the error? Does your colleague experience the same issue? Can the failure be reproduced for other models? Have you tried a different browser? What software versions have you got installed? Before contacting us for help, please perform some tests and check with your colleagues, so that we have detailed background information when helping you find a solution.
3. Log Your Case Online – Be Specific
The fastest way to get help with an issue is to log a case on our website. Be thorough and fill in information regarding the software version and date code. Furthermore, it helps if you fill in the exact error message and attach a print screen, because then we know what the issue is right away and can find a solution more quickly. We also encourage you to write a step-by-step description of how the error occurred so that we can test whether we can reproduce it on our installations. A well-detailed case can shorten the time to reach the solution.
Try to limit phone calls to the most critical cases, when the entire Windchill PDMLink system goes down or when you are hindered from working due to program bugs. In this way, you can be sure that you can reach us on the phone when you really need to.
4. Regular Server Checks – Prevent Problems with Windchill PDMLink
Do you carry out regular checks of your Windchill PDMLink server? Do you continually check your Windchill PDMLink installation to ensure that the system is running properly and to avoid any errors that may occur before they happen? We can check it for you! We offer two package deals:
PDS Servers Check Essentials contain the most essential maintenance points to check the status of Windchill PDMLink and its server. We control the status of the server/servers, check publishing statistics and clear publishing queues, validate file vaults, review system logs, cleanup temporary files, keep track of disk space, and more.
With PDS Server Check Professional you get all that is included in the Essentials package, but also checks that are customized to your specific needs. This may include purging of files, such as old user workspaces that take up disk space, cleaning of old users, and more. Together we can discuss and decide what is needed in your environment.
If you do not have any contract with us regarding server checks, please contact us or your account manager.
5. Knowledge Base – the Source of Knowledge
No list of tips from our support is complete without mentioning our own Knowledge Base where we continuously add useful information of the programs we support. Here you will find everything from installation and configuration guides, to common errors, as well as tips and tricks. What is new is that there are videos uploaded for some of the guides, which makes it even easier to follow the steps in the wizards. I hope it will be of use to you! You can access the knowledge base on our website under the Support tab.
That is all for now. Do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Support via Heidi
