BMC Helix ITSM

Minimal User Permissions & Viz User

We recommend that you create a new user within your external tool, to be used only for Viz. This is the user information you will enter when setting up your tool connection within Planview Viz. By creating a new user, you will ensure that the correct permissions are granted.

In general, your Viz user account should have sufficient permissions to read artifacts in your tool. 

Your user should have a secure password or token. Please be aware that Viz will not allow you to save a tool connection utilizing a weak password/token, such as 'tasktop.'

See instructions on how to create a new user in BMC Helix ITSM. 

List of minimal user permissions:

• User must have sufficient permissions to read artifacts in Helix ITSM (and therefore read access to the corresponding forms associated with those artifact types).

For REST connections to Helix ITSM versions below 18.08, users must additionally have read access to the following forms: 

• AR System Metadata: field
• AR System Metadata: field_char
• AR System Metadata: arschema

Note: If the user has admin permissions or has been granted Unrestricted Access, no additional steps are needed to enable permissions for these forms. 

Connecting to the BMC Helix ITSM Repository

Standard Authentication

Required Fields:

• Location/Connection URL
  • Example Format: 
    • https://<localhost>:<port>/api (REST API)
      • By default, port is 8008.
      • Port can be found in this file: 
        • BMC 9.0 - 9.1.03: C:\Program Files\BMC Software\ARSystem\jetty\etc\jetty-selector.xml
        • BMC 9.1.04+: C:\Program Files\BMC Software\ARSystem\jetty\etc\jetty-http.xml
• Username 
• Password

Optional Fields:

• Use REST API: This field has been deprecated and will produce errors if checked on the UI. 
• Substitute Artifact Location
  • Only for REST API or Smart IT.
  • See details below.
• AR System Server: This field has been deprecated as SOAP API is no longer supported. 

Substitute Artifact Location 

Due to a Helix ITSM limitation, Viz does not have sufficient information to build the correct artifact location field for REST without the Substitute Artifact Location field filled out on the Helix ITSM tool connection screen. This field essentially "overrides" the default artifact location field, so that Viz can create a valid URL for REST.

There are two "placeholders" that must be used to correctly format the input for this field:

• _identifier_ for the regular Helix ITSM UI

• _smart_it_identifier_ for the Smart IT UI

These placeholders signify where in the URL the identifying information about an artifact goes.

Substitute Artifact Location format:

• For REST API: http://<host and port of Mid Tier Location>/arsys/forms/<AR system location>/_identifier_
• For Smart IT on REST: <Smart IT Location>/_smart_it_identifier_ . 
  • The <Smart IT Location> might look like the following:
    • http://<host and port>/ux/smart-it
    • http://<host and port>/smartit

Supported Work Items

Supported Containers