Item: Spiceworks Help Desk
Rating: 7
Author: David Yates

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We recommend Spiceworks Help Desk for smaller clients that are managing their IT issues in-house. Not incredibly intuitive in its business process and flow, it nonetheless is an excellent way for an SMB to start tracking [its] equipment and issues. The reports allow an organization to see what users or systems are creating the most issues and allow you to zero in on how they are trending.

Pros and Cons

Easy to deploy either cloud or on-premise.
Access from any device via [a] web browser interface.
Integrates with active directory.
Reasonably customizable (even the cloud version) for specific use cases.

Integration with Spiceworks Community and Partners not always desirable, but there anyway.
Does not support ITIL guidelines.
3rd-Party product integration lacks some ability to fine-tune data flow.

Most Important Features

Easy implementation for the small organization needing simple help desk services.
Totally free makes it an easy sell to [the] management of organizations that may not have a formal IT budget or full-time department.
Access via browser makes it easy to manage or assist firms remotely.

Return on Investment

Positive - Allow organizations to implement structured Help Desk procedures.
Positive - IT can begin to quantify their tickets and uncover needs within the organization.
Positive - IT can develop a solid roadmap with [the] management of future needs, equipment refresh schedules, etc.
Positive - IT can pinpoint employees who may need extra training or updated equipment based on historical ticketing data.

Alternatives Considered

Freshdesk, Datto Autotask PSA, SherpaDesk and Zoho IT Management

We found that for entry-level SMB in-house needs that Spiceworks had an impressive range of features and options at an unbeatable price-free! For our in-house and multi-tenant needs, we use a different product that is more appropriate to our particular needs, but with no cost and easy implementation, it is impossible to not trial Spiceworks Help Desk and see how it will work for you.

Key Insights

Do you think Spiceworks Help Desk delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Spiceworks Help Desk's feature set?

Yes

Did Spiceworks Help Desk live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Spiceworks Help Desk go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Spiceworks Help Desk again?

Yes

Likelihood to Recommend

We find it most helpful in a single-entity small-business/for-impact organization environment. We have not found it particularly effective when used with organizations supporting larger or on-contract IT teams. Our only exception to this is when budgetary requirements of other commercial products are outside of an organization's budget, and then the totally free aspect of Spiceworks can be particularly helpful.

Spiceworks Help Desk- A Great Deal Even if They Charged for It!

Overall Satisfaction with Spiceworks Help Desk