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The Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL) is a customizable framework of good practices designed to promote quality computing services in the information technology (IT) sector. As an IT Service Management (ITSM) framework, ITIL provides a systematic approach to the provisioning and management of IT services, from inception through design, implementation, operation and continual improvement. The processes identified and described within ITIL are supplier and platform independent and apply to all aspects of IT infrastructure. Since the mid 1990s, ITIL has been generally considered a de facto international standard for IT Service Management.

The names ITIL and IT Infrastructure Library are Registered Trade Marks of the Office of Government Commerce (OGC), which is an Office of the United Kingdom's Treasury. The content of the books is protected by Crown Copyright.

As part of the overall OGC suite of publications, ITIL does not provide guidance or best practices on project or program management. It does, however, recognize that they are key to a successful ITIL implementation.

ITIL has recently undergone a refresh, and this page presents information about the newly published version 3 (ITIL v3), the lifecycle core books for which were published on 30 May 2007. The major difference between v3 and its predecessor v2, is that v3 has adopted an integrated service lifecycle approach to IT Service Management, as opposed to organising itself around the concepts of IT Service Delivery and Support.

ITIL Service Management Practices ('ITIL v3')

In December 2005, the OGC issued notice of an ITIL refresh, commonly known as Information Technology Infrastructure Library v3 (ITIL v3). The project culminated in the publication of five new core texts and a web based glossary on 30 May 2007. The ITIL Refresh project is being led by Sharon Taylor, chief architect of the ITIL Refresh, and president of the Aspect Group..

A key change to ITIL under version 3 has been a repositioning of the framework from the previous emphasis on process lifecycle and alignment of IT to "the business", to the management of the lifecycle of the services provided by IT, and the importance of creating business value rather than just the execution of processes. Consequently, it was rebranded ITIL Service Management Practices in order to represent service management 'best practice'. It is a publicly stated aim of the refresh to include more reference to ROI.

Version 3 structure

ITIL v3 comprises a set of core texts supported by additional complementary and web based materials. While the version 2 volumes were only available in English, limiting their use in non-English speaking countries, the core titles in version 3 are being translated into other languages. Among the initial target languages are Portuguese, Spanish, Japanese, Hindi/Urdu, Arabic, Mandarin and Dutch. This initiative is being led by the IT Service Management Forum, with resources and support from OGC.

ITIL v3 core volumes

• Service Strategy focuses on the identification of market opportunities for which services could be developed in order to meet a requirement on the part of internal or external customers. The output is a strategy for the design, implementation, maintenance and continual improvement of the service as an organizational capability and a strategic asset. Key areas of this volume are Service Portfolio Management and Financial Management.
• Service Design focuses on the activities that take place in order to develop the strategy into a design document which addresses all aspects of the proposed service, as well as the processes intended to support it. Key areas of this volume are Availability Management, Capacity Management, Continuity Management and Security Management.
• Service Transition focuses on the implementation of the output of the service design activities and the creation of a production service or modification of an existing service. There is an area of overlap between Service Transition and Service Operation. Key areas of this volume are Change Management, Release Management, Configuration Management and Service Knowledge Management.
• Service Operation focuses on the activities required to operate the services and maintain their functionality as defined in the Service Level Agreements with the customers. Key areas of this volume are Incident Management, Problem Management and Request Fulfillment. A new process added to this area is Event Management, which is concerned with normal and exception condition events. Events have been defined into three categories:
  • Informational events -- which are logged
  • Warning events -- also called alerts, where an event exceeds a specified threshold
  • Critical events -- which typically will lead to the generation of Incidents
• Continual Service Improvement focuses on the ability to deliver continual improvement to the quality of the services that the IT organization delivers to the business. Key areas of this volume are Service Reporting, Service Measurement and Service Level Management.

ITIL v3 uses the word "continual" as opposed to ITIL v2's references to "continuous" service improvement (CSIP). Continual implies an activity that is undertaken on a phased, regular basis as part of a process. Continuous is more suitable for the definition of activities intended to operate without pause, such as the ultimate goal of availability.

There are a number of other titles available for ITIL version 3 including an Introduction, Study Guides, Key Element Guides details of which can be found within the Official ITIL site. This site also contains details of the examinations available for ITIL Version 3.

Some people may find the language ITIL uses to be obtuse. For example below is a quote for the Service Delivery Section of the Foundation course.

SERVICE AVAILABILITY: involves all aspects of service availability and unavailability, and the impact of component availability, or the potential impact of component availability on service availability.

References

1. Van Bon, Jan: "The Guide to IT Service Management, Vol. I", page 131. Addison-Wesley, 2002
2. Office of Government Commerce. ITIL Refresh Statement

External links

• Official ITIL Website
• The ITIL Open Guide

• Articles with a promotional tone from December 2007
• Information technology management
• Standards
• Method engineering