RT: Request Tracker, Part 1

Overview

There are a number of options available for helpdesk/ticketing systems, and they range in price and complexity from free and very simple to extremely expensive and involved. Some popular options include Remedy, Clarify, Quantum, and Request Tracker (RT). The author's preference leans towards RT, coming in at free and extremely flexible on the cost and complexity spectrum. RT works well in small, mid-sized, and some larger environments. RT uses a back-end database, a perl-based main engine, and front-end web and mail interfaces. The recommended database for use with RT is MySQL, but it also works with PostgreSQL. The recommended web interface is the Apache web server with mod_perl or mod_fastcgi.