Freshservice supports four products: Freshservice (for IT & Business Teams), Freshservice for MSPs, Freshservice for Business Teams, and Freshservice IT Asset Management.
This document provides a brief overview of these products and highlights their key differences.
Overview
Freshservice
(For IT & Business Teams)
A cloud-based IT Service Management (ITSM) solution that helps IT and Business teams streamline service delivery within their own organization, with a focus on user experience and employee satisfaction.
Freshservice for MSPs
A purpose-built offering of Freshservice designed specifically for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to manage service delivery across multiple external clients. For more information, see Freshservice vs. Freshservice for MSPs.
Freshservice for Business Teams
Built on the Freshservice platform and designed for non-IT teams. Enables teams such as HR, Finance, and Legal to sign up independently of IT and manage their operations autonomously. For more information, see Freshservice vs Freshservice for business teams (FSBT).
Target users
- Organizations where business teams want to run their service delivery operations independently of IT.
- Ideal for departments such as HR, Finance, Admin, and other internal teams.
Freshservice IT Asset Management
A Freshservice product for discovering, tracking, and managing hardware, software, and cloud resources. For product capabilities, see What is Freshservice IT Asset Management. For app development details, see Freshservice vs. Freshservice IT Asset Management.
Freshservice vs. Freshservice for MSPs
Key differences in terminology
Freshservice for MSPs use slightly different terminology to represent similar concepts. The table below outlines these distinctions.
| Term used in Freshservice | Term used in Freshservice for MSPs | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Requester | Contact | Requester refers to employees of an organization who raise IT issues. In Freshservice for MSPs, these are Contacts—employees of the MSP’s client organizations who raised service requests |
| Workspace | Client | In Freshservice, a Workspace represents a separate area for different departments (e.g., IT, HR). In Freshservice for MSPs, this is referred to as a Client. The underlying attribute for a client remains as workspace_id. |
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Which modules can I use to build an app for the Freshservice for MSPs product?
A: Currently, app development for the Freshservice for MSPs product is supported only with the service_ticket and service_user modules.
Q: How will I know which placeholders, data method, events method, interface method, and product events are applicable when developing an app for a Freshservice for MSPs product?
A: Throughout the documentation, you’ll find labels such as Freshservice and Freshservice for MSPs next to method names, indicating their availability for the respective products.
Q: I’ve developed a global app using modules like service_ticket and support_ticket, and I want to publish it only on Freshdesk and Freshservice for MSPs products — not on the Freshservice (for IT & Business Teams) product. How can I do that?
A: During app submission, when you upload the zipped app file, the platform automatically detects if your app contains modules supported by Freshservice for MSPs. If it does, you’ll be given the option to choose the products you want to publish the app on — for example, Freshservice, Freshservice for MSPs, or Both.
Q: I have already published my global app that uses the service_ticket module. How can I make it available for the Freshservice MSPs product as well?
A: You can make your app available for the Freshservice MSPs product when submitting a new version of the app. When you upload a new version of your app, the platform will automatically detect if it includes modules supported by Freshservice for MSPs also. If it does, you will be given the option to extend the app to Freshservice for MSPs as well by selecting the Both option.
Freshservice vs. Freshservice for business teams (FSBT)
Core positioning
- Freshservice (ITSM): Full ITSM suite.
- Freshservice for Business Teams (FSBT): Simplified ticketing and workflows tailored for non-IT teams.
Key differences
The table below summarizes the key differences between ITSM and FSBT
| Criteria | Freshservice (ITSM) | Freshservice for business teams (FSBT) |
|---|---|---|
Module availability | Freshservice supports all the available modules. | Freshservice for business teams only supports service_ticket and service_user modules. Note:Although service_ticket exists in both ITSM and FSBT, any IT-specific apps for incident, alert, on-call, problem, change, or release management will not be available in FSBT. |
| Cost | The cost is inclusive of ITSM functionalities. | The cost is lower than ITSM Freshservice accounts, as the functionality is more lightweight |
| App Compatibility | Apps built for all modules are supported. | Apps built for service_ticket & service_user are only supported. |
| Default/primary workspace | Default or primary workspace is always an IT workspace. | IT workspaces aren’t supported. Default or primary workspace is always a business workspace. |
| Features |
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Module availability in Freshservice for business teams
Freshservice for business teams account supports only two modules:
service_ticket
In this account, for the service_ticket module, you can only build an app that can use the following front-end placeholders and product events.
service_user
For the service_user module, you can build an app that can uses any of the available front-end placeholders and product events.
Developer guidelines
When developing apps for Freshservice for Business Teams (FSBT), consider the following,
Build for what’s available
- When developing apps for Freshservice for Business Teams (FSBT), verify module availability, supported placeholders, and product events to ensure your app is fully compatible.
Scope
- Although service_ticket exists in both ITSM and FSBT, do not build apps for FSBT that rely on incident, alert, on-call, problem, change, or release management, as these are IT-only capabilities.
App description
- If an app is published on both the ITSM and FSBT marketplaces, write an app description that is inclusive and relevant for both IT and non-IT teams.
- Avoid using IT-specific terms unless the feature applies only to ITSM.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Which modules are supported for apps in Freshservice for business teams?
A: Only apps built with the service_ticket and service_user modules are supported for Freshservice for business teams accounts.
Q: Why do I see only a limited set of apps when trying to install from the marketplace?
A: When using a Freshservice for business teams account, the marketplace displays only the apps that are compatible with the modules supported in that account.
Q: How will I know which placeholders, data method, events method, interface method, and product events are applicable when developing an app for a Freshservice for business teams product?
A: Throughout the documentation, you’ll find labels such as Freshservice and Freshservice for business teams next to method names, indicating their availability for the respective products.
Q: Has the FDK been updated for Freshservice for business teams accounts?
A: There is no change or update to the FDK specifically for Freshservice for business teams accounts.
Freshservice vs. Freshservice IT Asset Management
Use this section when you build or publish apps for Freshservice IT Asset Management.
Supported modules
| Freshservice (ITSM) | Freshservice IT Asset Management |
|---|---|
| All Freshservice modules (based on account type) | common, service_device, service_physicalasset, service_resource |
This product is not the same as the itam_version attribute (BASIC or ADVANCED). That attribute only tells you whether a Freshservice account uses the legacy service_asset module or the newer asset modules. Freshservice IT Asset Management always uses the newer asset modules.
- common — Include at least one supported asset module with common in the app manifest.
- service_device
- service_physicalasset
- service_resource
These asset modules support front-end placeholders, data methods, and common serverless events (app set-up, external, and scheduled events). They do not support product-specific events.
Not supported: service_ticket, service_user, service_change, service_asset
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Which modules can I use?
A: common, service_device, service_physicalasset, and service_resource.
Q: How do I know which placeholders, data methods, interface methods, and events apply?
A: Use the product labels in the docs, such as Freshservice and Freshservice IT Asset Management.
Q: Can I publish my app for this product?
A: Yes, if the app uses supported modules. During submission, when you upload the app ZIP file, the platform detects those modules and lets you choose the products to list the app under.