Service overview
As part of our ongoing efforts to improve your experience on the IT Support site, we’ve streamlined how to find IT tools and services. The Virtual Agent efficiently searches through hundreds of pages to deliver precise results in seconds.
Whether you're looking for instructions on how to install and use software, details about training courses, our incident management process or our policies, the Virtual Agent makes it easy to find what you need.
The Virtual Agent will help you:
- Troubleshoot or learn how to perform certain tasks with step-by-step instructions.
- Check the status on incidents.
- Choose the appropriate catalog request for a service IT Services provides.
Who can use it
All users can use the Virtual Agent directly from the chat in the IT Support website after logging-in to the IT Support site.
How to request the service and use it
There is no need to request access to the service. All users logged into the IT Support site can use the virtual agent directly from the chat:
| Click on the purple chat icon on the bottom right side of the page. The Virtual Agent will automatically kick in once the chat is initiated so you can ask your question. |
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Alternatively, it is possible to add the McGill IT Support app to Teams.
From then on, you can simply click on the icon to initiate a new chat, directly within Teams. |
TIP: Don’t forget to pin it!
You can pin the McGill IT Support chat to the left sidebar so it stays readily available. To do so, locate it in the ellipsis (...), right-click on the icon and select Pin.
Cost
There is no cost associated with the use of this feature.
Availability
The service is available 24 X 7, except during planned maintenance or outages. Virtual Agent will have its own line on the system status page.
Check the system status page for unplanned downtime.
Frequently asked questions
How do I restart a conversation with the virtual agent if I’ve made a mistake or want to go back?
Type “restart” into the conversation to end the current conversation and start a new one.
The virtual agent isn’t helping me, how can talk to an agent?
Type “agent” into the conversation and you will be prompted to transfer to a live agent during the IT Service Desk support hours.
How do I end a conversation?
Type “bye” into the conversation and the conversation will end.
Why is the Virtual Agent only available in English?
At the moment, the Virtual Agent is an English only tool. Significant work is required to translate our Knowledge Base in order to properly train the Virtual Agent to handle questions in French.
Best practices & policies
Personal information
Please do not share personal information (such as personal phone number or address, login credentials, usernames and password, financial information etc.) with the Virtual Agent as such information is not required to provide IT support.
Training & documentation
There is no training required to use the tool.
Support
If you are dissatisfied with the information provided by the Virtual Agent or encounter a problem, simply ask the Virtual Agent to put you through to a Service Desk consultant for assistance.