Managing Known Errors and Workarounds

Managing known errors and workarounds means recording what has been learned so services are restored faster and risk is controlled until a permanent resolution is delivered. The known error record is part of problem management, which converts recurring pain and risk into investigation, known errors and preventive action.

• Describe the symptoms and the affected services clearly.
• Document safe workaround steps and test them before publishing, since untested workarounds are a named pitfall. Invite the people who use them to test whether they are usable in practice.
• Define validation and an expiry for each known error, so temporary fixes do not silently become permanent and risks and limitations are not hidden.
• Link known errors to incidents, changes and knowledge. In the article's example, support staff use a validated workaround while the service owner decides whether the permanent fix justifies its cost.
• Measure workaround success, time saved and expired known errors together. Use workaround success as the starting signal, but compare it with time saved before deciding whether an intervention worked, and review trends with both providers and consumers. Evidence of risk should lead to an owner and a proportionate action.