Work with Service Call, Equipment, and Task Attachments

You can add attachments, such as documents and images, to service calls, equipment, and tasks in Service Management. The attachments will be available to view and change from the attachments list for a service call or task in MobileTech.

You can add and view attachments on your mobile device, and also change, or "mark up," attachments on your mobile device.

If an attachment is associated with a:

• Service call: You can open it from the Attachments tab for the service call. 
• Equipment: You can open it from the Attachments tab for the equipment either from the Service Call > Equipment tab or from the Customer > Location > Equipment tab.
• Task: You can open it from the Attachments tab for the task.

Files that are attached to service calls and tasks are displayed together with their descriptions and file extension types, such as PNG, PDF, DOC, or XLS. So if more than one document is associated to the service call, you can easily see the file types.

You can attach any file type on Android and Windows devices, including .doc and .xls files.

On all devices, you can copy other files types, such as Microsoft Word documents or PDFs, into MobileTech to be attached to a service call. For more information, see Copy and paste an attachment to a service call or task .

These procedures discuss attachments that are associated with existing service calls and tasks. To create a service call, see Create or Edit a Service Call , and then see the instructions below to add attachments to a service call. To create a task for a service call before you add an attachment to a task, see Complete Tasks for a Service Call . 

For instructions about how to add attachments to service calls in Service Management, see the information about document management in the Service Management documentation.

Service call and task attachment information is described in these sections:

Add an attachment to a service call

You can take photos or record videos to add to service calls, or attach existing images and files.  See Additional attachment options in MobileTech are available after you have added the attachment.

1. Select Service Calls. Select a service call, select More.
2. Choose the Attachments tab.
3. Choose Add. 
4. Enter a description for the attachment.
5. Choose the Attachment tab, and then choose the menu icon.
6. Select Choose Picture or Select File or Paste. (The actions that display are dependent upon your device.) Go to the location where the picture or file is stored. Select the picture or file, and then choose Open. The attachment is displayed in the Attachment pane.
7. Choose Save. After you attach a file, the file description and type are shown on the Attachments tab for the service call.

View or change an attachment on a service call

You can view and mark up attachments that originate in Service Management or in MobileTech. File formats for attachments, such as PNG or PDF, are displayed when you choose the Attachments tab for a service call. So if more than one document is associated to the service call, you can easily see the file types. See Additional attachment options in MobileTech that are available after you have added the attachment.

If an attachment is too large to be downloaded during normal processing, an Attachment pane will display this information. You also can use this pane to manually download the attachment.

1. Choose Service Calls. Select a service call, choose More, and then choose the Attachments tab.
2. Select an attachment.
   • Choose More to see information about the file. You can change the description of the attachment, if needed, and then save the changes.
   • Choose Markup to mark up the attachment. For example, if the attachment is an image of a piece of equipment that needs a part replaced, or to call out damage to the piece of equipment, you can mark up the area on the image. You can also write on the image.
3. Save the changes.

Add an attachment to equipment

You can take photos or record videos to add to equipment, or attach existing images and files.  See Additional attachment options in MobileTech that are available after you have added the attachment.

1. Select Service Calls. Select a service call, select More OR go to Customers, select the customer, select Location, and then select the location.
2. Choose Equipment and then select the equipment.
3. Choose the Attachments tab.
4. Choose Add. 
5. Enter a description for the attachment.
6. Choose the Attachment tab, and then choose the menu icon.
7. Select Choose Picture or Select File or Paste. (The actions that display are dependent upon your device.) Go to the location where the picture or file is stored. Select the picture or file, and then choose Open. The attachment is displayed in the Attachment pane.
8. Choose Save. After you attach a file, the file description and type are shown on the Attachments tab for the equipment.

Add an attachment to a task

You can view attachments for tasks that originated in Service Management, and you can add new attachments to tasks from your mobile device. You can also use your mobile device to mark up attachments for tasks. See Additional attachment options in MobileTech that are available after you have added the attachment.

1. Choose Service Calls. Select a service call, choose More, and then choose the Tasks tab.
2. Select a task, choose More, and then choose the Attachments tab.
3. Select an existing attachment to view or change. Go to step 4 to create a new attachment.
   • Choose More to see information about the file. The task ID and date are displayed and can't be changed. You can change the description of the attachment, if needed, and then save the changes.
   • Choose Markup to mark up the attachment. For example, if the attachment is an image of a piece of equipment that needs a part replaced, or to call out damage to the piece of equipment, you can mark up the area on the image. You can also write on the image.
4. Choose Add. 
5. Enter a description for the attachment.
6. Choose the File tab, and then choose the menu icon.
7. Select Choose Picture or Select File. (The actions that display are dependent upon your device.) Go to the location where the picture or file is stored. Select the picture or file, and then choose Open. The attachment is displayed in the Attachment pane.
8. Choose Save. After you attach a file, the file description and type are shown on the Attachments tab for the task. The attachments also are displayed on the Inspection report.

Copy and paste an attachment to a service call or task

Although you can attach images to service calls and tasks, depending on the device that you use, you sometimes can't directly attach other types of files to service calls and tasks. However, you can copy other types of files and paste them into MobileTech to be saved as an attachment to a service call or task.

For example, suppose you use an iOS device and your organization requires you to fill out PDF templates for service calls. After accessing the template from your email or a website or other shared location, you can open the file in a PDF editor app, enter information in the template, save and flatten the modified PDF, and then use the iOS Open in menu to copy and paste the PDF into MobileTech.

The copy and paste options may vary, depending on your device and the apps you've installed. For information about copying and pasting specific types of files, consult the documentation for the apps that you use to open those files.

1. Open the document on your device. Long tap on it to display the available actions, and choose to open the file in an associated program, such as a PDF editor or word processing app.
2. Edit the information as needed and save your changes, flattening the document if necessary.
3. Choose the Share button, and then choose Open in > Copy to MobileTech. If MobileTech is open, you'll see a message that says, "Paste file wherever you want."
4. Open the service call or task to attach the file to:
   • To open a service call, choose Service Calls. Select a service call, choose More, and then choose the Attachments tab.
   • To open a task, choose Service Calls. Select a service call, choose More, and then choose the Tasks tab. Select a task, choose More, and then choose the Attachments tab.
     
     
   

   If MobileTech isn't open, you'll have to navigate to the Attachments pane the next time you open MobileTech.

5. From the menu, choose Paste to paste the file into MobileTech.
6. Name the document and choose the Save icon. The file will be synced as an attachment to the service call or task.

Additional attachment options in MobileTech

Before syncing

After you have attached an image or file in the Attachment window, but you haven't synchronized your device:

• Service Call - You can delete the attachment.
• Equipment - You can delete or view the attachment. When viewing the attachment, additional options that are device-specific are available.
• Task - You can delete the attachment.

After syncing

After you have attached an image or file in the Attachment window, and you have synchronized your device, you have additional options that can be found by choosing the menu icon.

The following options are available, depending on your device's operating system:

• Clear - Removes the existing attachment. You can then choose to Capture Picture, Choose Picture, Select File, or Paste.
• Open - Opens the attachment in another app.
• Copy - Copies the attachment to the clipboard.
• Print - Prints the attachment.
• Email - Emails the attachment.
• Export - Allows you to save to the file system.