Best Practice: Reconcile the Bill with Agency Consumption Reports

The agency should always begin consumption management of GETS services by reviewing and understanding the reports that document its use of these services and reconciling that information with its monthly invoice.

For LAN services, the agency should review the LAN Services Invoice Detail Report found on the GETS Portal. It includes:

  • Agency and Cost Center
  • Site Name, Address, and Code
  • Report Category
  • Resource Description
  • Asset Tag
  • User Name and ID
  • Invoice Number
  • Rate and Amount Charged
  • Usage Dates

For WAN services, the agency should first review the WAN Services Invoice Detail Report that includes:

  • Agency and Cost Center
  • Site Name, Address, and Code
  • Report Category
  • Resource Description
  • Circuit ID
  • Invoice Number
  • Rate and Amount Charged
  • Usage Dates

Additional WAN reports are available to determine circuit usage, including the WAN Hot/Cold Utilization Report (available from the AT&T manager for the agency) and the Agency Vital Net Report (available from the GTA CRM for one agency employee).

Best Practice: LAN – Right-size EUC Devices

The LAN Port RU is directly related to the number of the agency’s end user computing (EUC) devices that are active and connected to the network. Therefore, the agency should implement EUC best practices to right-size consumption.

Best Practice: WAN – Implement Hot/Cold Capacity Management Process

The agency should select and monitor transport circuit speed and capacity based on business requirements and application needs:

  • If a circuit is “hot” (50% or above monthly average), the agency should first determine if the overutilization trend is a one-month occurrence or a multi-month trend. If overutilization continues over two or more months, the agency should upgrade the circuit.
  • If a circuit is “cold” (1 percent or below monthly average), the agency should determine if the circuit is still needed and disable or disconnect.