The dictionary of Problem Causes is used to capture the basic root cause analysis information and allow for effective disposition of Issues. The defined Causes also allow for the separation of Issues by category (e.g., system failures, operator errors, external impacts, etc.) A well-defined dictionary of Problem Causes is required to enable effective reporting and assessment of a contractor's performance on the Contract. 

This article introduces the following topics related to Problem Causes:

Creating Causes

Follow these steps to create a new Problem Cause.

  1. From the Main Menu, select Define Causes from the Issues and Support stack.
    1. This will open the Problem Causes dictionary.
  2. Click the New button at the top of the view to open the New Problem Cause form.
  3. Populate the required form fields: 
    1. Name - The new Problem Cause should have a clear and concise Name, easily interpreted by Users.
    2. Parent - If the new Problem Cause should be a descendant of an existing Cause, select the existing Cause from the Parent drop-down menu. If no Parent is selected, the new Cause will be a top-level Problem Cause.
    3. Category – Describes the nature of the problem cause. Options includes:
      1. No Problem
      2. External
      3. Operation
      4. Installation
      5. Internal - Indicates asset/equipment failure; See note below.
    4. Description - Enter a concise description for the new Problem Cause.
  4. Select the OK button at the bottom of the form.


Selection of an Internal Problem Cause indicates a failure of the device/deployed Asset. This selection triggers downtime calculations, where downtime is measured from the "Issue Occurred" point to the "Issue Resolved" point, for that Case. The other Problem Cause categories do not calculate downtime. 

Note: In terms of reporting, uptime/downtime can be seen within the certain availability views. These include the Availability/MTBF by Type view and the Availability by Item view, both accessible from the Overview stack within the Main Menu. Similar reporting for Asset records is found under the Asset Issues and Asset Failure Rates views.


Editing Causes

Once created, a Problem Cause can be edited as needed to best support maintenance operations and reporting. Follow these steps to edit an existing Problem Cause.  

  1. Access the Main Menu from the top-level navigation toolbar.

  2. From the Issues and Support stack, select Define Causes. This will open the Problem Causes dictionary.

  3. Locate the desired Problem Cause. Use filtering options or the search field, as needed, to locate the desired Cause within the dictionary.
    1. Please note that search results will identify the Parent Problem Cause.
  4. Select the desired Problem Cause.
  5. Click the Edit button from the top of the grid view to open the Edit Problem Cause form.
  6. Edit the Cause attributes (i.e., Name, Parent or Description) as necessary.
  7. Once all desired edits are complete, click the OK button at the bottom of the form to save the changes.

Deleting Causes

InfraLink implements "soft delete" functionality for Problem Causes. That is, when a User deletes a Cause, the application marks it as "deleted" but maintains the complete record in the database. Please note that deleting Problem Causes will in turn delete all descendants of that Problem Cause as well. Follow these steps to delete Problem Causes.

  1. Access the Main Menu from the top-level navigation toolbar.
  2. From the Issues and Support stack, select Define Causes. This will open the Problem Causes dictionary. 
  3. Locate the desired Problem Cause. Use filtering options or the search field, as needed, to locate the desired Problem Cause within the dictionary.
    1. Please note that search results will identify the Parent Cause.
  4. Select the Problem Cause to be deleted.
  5. Click the Delete button at the top of the grid view.
  6. InfraLink will ask if you are sure you wish to delete the selected entry and its descendants. Click Yes to delete the Problem Cause(s).



Restoring Deleted Problem Causes

As InfraLink implements "soft delete" functionality for Problem Causes, the Instance Administrator can restore a deleted Cause if necessary. Follow these steps to restore deleted Problem Cause.

  1. Access the Main Menu from the top-level navigation toolbar.
  2. From the Issues and Support stack, select Define Causes. This will open the Problem Causes dictionary. 
  3. Within the Filters panel, locate the Deleted Items filter and select Include Deleted from the drop-down menu options.
  4. Click the Apply Filter Command button to apply the filter selection.
  5. Deleted Problem Causes will be listed within the grid view in gray italics.
  6. Select the deleted Cause to be restored. 
  7. Click the Restore button at the top of the grid view.
  8. InfraLink will ask if you are sure you wish to restore the selected entry and if you wish to restore any descendant Causes, as well.
    1. Click Yes to restore the deleted Problem Cause(s).
    2. Click Yes and Restore All Children to restore the Problem Cause and deleted descendants.