What is a workaround?
ITIL 4 Foundation, objective 7. Seven ITIL practices in detail medium
Draft — not checked yet. This question was written from the published exam objectives and cites the clause it comes from, but nobody has yet read it against that clause and signed for it.
It is kept out of search results and out of mock exams until they have. Read the source below before you take the answer as settled.
The options
Not correct A permanent fix applied under an emergency change to remove the cause of recurring incidents
That is a resolution, not a workaround. Once the cause is removed the problem is resolved and no workaround is needed.
Correct A solution that reduces or eliminates the impact of an incident or problem for which a full resolution is not yet available
Correct. A workaround addresses impact rather than cause, and it is legitimate precisely because a full resolution is not available — some workarounds also reduce how often incidents occur.
Not correct A record describing a problem that has been analysed but not yet resolved
That is a known error record. Workarounds are often documented in known error records, but the record is not the workaround.
Not correct A temporary reduction in the agreed service level, formally accepted by the customer
This describes a negotiated change to the service agreement, which is service level management territory. A workaround restores usable service without renegotiating what was promised.
Why
Workarounds are the practical bridge between problem management and incident management: documented in problem and known error records, they let the service desk restore service quickly on future incidents without repeating the diagnosis. They should be reviewed and improved over time, since a workaround can become the long-term answer.
Where this comes from
- Cited
- ITIL 4 syllabus clause 7
- What it says
- A workaround is a solution that reduces or eliminates the impact of an incident or problem for which a full resolution is not yet available.
Practise this
Reading one question is not practice. The trainer will draw a set from objective 7 and space the ones you get wrong.