Help Desk

Tag, you’re it! Identifying your computer has never been easier.

Let’s start this off with a quick quiz: Do you know the serial number of your computer? Do you know how to find it? How about your phone? Or your tablet?

Apple, Dell, Lenovo, or any service partner will need to know your device’s serial number if you want to get your device fixed or serviced. Similarly, you will get asked for your device’s serial number if you contact the Help Desk so we can pull up information on that specific computer.

If you know how to find the information through your computer’s operating system, great! But, what if your computer doesn’t turn on or you don’t know where to look in your OS? Well, you’d need to pull out a magnifying glass and scour your computer looking for it because they are often hidden on the device. Do you want to know where it is on an iMac, for example? Underneath the bottom of the stand and that’s not the easiest place to get to.

So why bring this up? Well, if you’ve received a computer, monitor, or tablet from ITS in the last six months, you may have noticed a small label on the back of it.

The SWAT tag

Say hello to the sticker that is going to make getting help so much easier. No longer will you need a magnifying glass. No longer will you need to literally turn your iMac upside down. Just check the back for the label and find the Asset Number.

A variety of devices with their SWAT tags

If you’re creating a ticket on the Support Portal, you can even add that device in your request.

Adding your asset to a Support ticket

If you can’t find the device listed as your asset, search for it in Other Assets using the Asset Number.

Adding your device to the Support ticket with Other Assets

By adding the device to the ticket, the Help Desk can start investigating your request right away.

These Asset Labels will make tracking who has what far easier too, including which charger belongs to which device, making life easier for departments that manage their own pool of devices.

So all of this is great news for recent devices, but what about existing ones? Well, ITS will apply a label to Swarthmore-owned computers and tablets as they make their way to the Help Desk or as the Help Desk makes desk-side visits, and those devices will gain all the benefits we talked about earlier.