---
title: "Use the Outpost tray app"
description: "Get help from your IT team with the Outpost tray app. Open tickets, chat live, install software, restore files, and manage Outpost Sync."
url: "https://support.outpostplatform.com/tray/using-the-tray/"
product: "tray"
type: "how-to"
status: "draft"
ai_summary: "End-user guide to the Outpost tray app. Support view: contact details, This PC, Open Ticket, replies, Start a live chat, help articles, ratings. Software view: Install, Request with a reason, Remove. Backup view and Restore Files. Sync view: Open Folder, Pause Syncing, Keep Offline, Download All Files. Restart prompts and Exit. Tickets and chat need Enterprise or MSP."
availability:
  plans: ["home-lab", "essentials", "enterprise", "msp"]
  platforms: ["windows", "linux", "macos"]
  preview: false
source: "https://gitlab.com/outpostplatform/docs/-/edit/main/src/content/docs/tray/using-the-tray.mdx"
license: "CC BY 4.0"
---

# Use the Outpost tray app

The Outpost tray app is how you reach your IT team from your computer. This
page shows you how to ask for help, install software your team offers, get
back files you deleted or changed, and keep your synced files where you need
them. What you see depends on what your IT team has turned on, so some views
may be missing or say they are off.

## Open the tray app

- **On Windows:** select the Outpost icon in the notification area, next to
  the clock. You may need to select the arrow that shows hidden icons first.
  You can also open **Outpost** from the Start menu.
- **On Linux:** open **Outpost** from your applications menu, or select the
  Outpost icon if your desktop shows tray icons. The app opens in your web
  browser.
- **On a Mac:** select the Outpost icon in the menu bar.

The card that opens has a rail of views down its side: **Support**,
**Incidents**, **Software**, **Backup**, **Sync**, and **Device Info**. It
opens on **Support**.

To keep the card open while you work, select **Open in a window**.

## Find your IT team's contact details

The **Support** view shows how to reach your IT team: phone, email, support
website, chat channel, and hours, as your team has set them. Select **Copy**
next to a phone number or email address to copy it.

Your team will often ask which computer you are using. Select **This PC** to
see the details they usually ask for, such as the computer's name, model, and
serial number, and select **Copy** next to one to copy it.

## Open a ticket {#tickets}

1. In the **Support** view, select **Open Ticket**.
2. Choose a **Category** and a **Priority**.
3. Enter a **Subject**, a short summary of the problem.
4. Enter a **Description**: what is happening, any error messages, when it
   started, and what you have tried.
5. Select **Submit Ticket**.

Your ticket appears under **Your Tickets**. Below the buttons, the card shows
the name your ticket is filed under, after **Tickets are filed as**. If the
name is wrong, tell your IT team.

If your computer is offline, you can still open a ticket. It is saved and sent
when the computer reconnects.

If **Open Ticket** is unavailable, Outpost cannot confirm who is signed in at
the computer, so it cannot file a ticket for you. Contact your IT team another
way.

### Reply to a ticket

1. Under **Your Tickets**, select the ticket. Tickets with new activity are
   marked **New**.
2. In the ticket window, type in **Add a reply…** and select **Reply**.

### Rate a resolved ticket

When your team resolves a ticket, the **Support** view may ask **How did we
do on ticket** followed by its number. Select a star rating to open the short
survey in your browser, or select **Dismiss**.

## Chat with a technician {#live-chat}

1. In the **Support** view, select **Start a live chat**. Under the button,
   the card may show how many technicians are available and how many people
   are waiting.
2. Wait for a technician to join. The chat shows your place in the queue, then
   **Connected** and the technician's name.
3. Type in the message box and select **Send**, or press <kbd>Enter</kbd>.
   Press <kbd>Shift</kbd>+<kbd>Enter</kbd> for a new line.
4. When you are done, select **End chat**, then **End chat** again to confirm.
5. Tell your team how it went: select **It helped** or **It did not help**.

You can select **Back to support** at any time without ending the chat. The
button then reads **Return to your chat**.

If nobody answers in time, the chat is marked **Missed** and saved to a
ticket, and a technician follows up. Nothing you wrote is lost.

When chat is not offered, the card says why:

| Message | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| **Live chat is turned off for this PC by your IT team.** | Your team has not turned on chat for this computer. Open a ticket instead. |
| **Live chat is not available on this PC.** | Your organization's Outpost plan does not include live chat. Contact your IT team another way. |
| **Nobody is on the support desk right now.** | No technician is available. Open a ticket instead. |
| **You are not connected right now.** | Your computer is offline. A ticket you open is sent when it reconnects. |

Your past chats are listed under **Your Recent Chats**.

## Search help articles

If your IT team has published help articles, the **Support** view has a **Help
articles** section. Type in **Search help articles** and select an article to
read it.

## Install or remove software

The **Software** view lists the software your IT team offers, on two tabs:
**Installed** and **Available**. Type in **Search software…** to filter
either tab.

**To install software:**

1. On the **Available** tab, find the app and select **Install**.
2. Select **Install** again to confirm.

The app downloads and installs. The card shows its progress and tells you
when it is installed.

**To request software that needs approval:**

Some apps, such as licensed ones, show **Request** instead of **Install**.

1. Select **Request**.
2. In **Why do you need this?**, explain what you need it for. Your IT team
   reads this to decide.
3. Select **Send request**.

The app shows **Requested** until your team answers, then **Approved** or
**Denied**. Once your team has a ticket for the request, select the status to
open it.

**To remove software:**

1. On the **Installed** tab, find the app and select **Remove**.
2. Select **Remove** again to confirm.

Apps your team requires show **Required** and cannot be removed. If the card
says **Software on this device is managed by your IT team.**, you can see the
catalog but cannot install from it. Ask your IT team for what you need.

## Check your backup and restore files

The **Backup** view shows whether your computer's files are backed up:

| Status | Meaning |
| --- | --- |
| **Your files are backed up** | The last backup finished. The card shows when. |
| **Backing up…** | A backup is running. |
| **Not backed up yet** | The first backup has not run yet. |
| **Your backup needs attention** | Backups are failing. Outpost keeps trying. Contact your IT team if it does not clear. |
| **Backup is off** | Your IT team has not turned on backup for this computer. |

**To restore your own files:**

1. In the **Backup** view, select **Restore Files…**. If the button is not
   there, your IT team has not turned on self-service restore.
2. In **Restore files as they were on**, choose the date of the backup to
   restore from.
3. Choose a folder on the left, and select the files and folders to restore on
   the right.
4. Under **Restore to**, choose **Original location** or **Restored files
   folder**.
5. Select **Restore**, then **Restore** again to confirm.

You can restore only files from your own folders. A restore never overwrites
anything:

- **Original location** puts files back where they were. If a file with the
  same name is there now, it is kept, and the restored copy is saved beside it
  with "(restored)" in its name.
- **Restored files folder** puts files in a new folder inside **Restored
  files** in your profile.

While a restore runs, the **Backup** view shows its progress. To stop it,
select **Cancel Restore**, then **Cancel Restore** again to confirm. Files
already restored are kept.

## Use Outpost Sync

Outpost Sync gives you a folder that follows you to every computer you sign in
to. The **Sync** view shows its status, how much of your storage it uses, and
when it last synced. If your IT team has not turned it on, the view says so.

| Button | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| **Open Folder** | Opens your Outpost Sync folder. |
| **Pause Syncing** | Stops syncing until you select **Resume Syncing**. |
| **Choose Files to Keep Offline…** | Opens **Keep files offline**. Ticked files stay on this computer and open with no connection. Everything else downloads when you open it. Unticking a file frees space and never deletes it. |
| **Download All Files** | Downloads everything in your folder to this computer. |

## Restart when asked

When updates need a restart, the card shows **Restart needed**, with the
reason and, where your team set one, the time the computer restarts
automatically.

- Select **Restart now** to restart straight away. Save your work first.
- Select **Remind me later** to put it off. When you have used all the delays
  your team allows, the button reads **No more delays available**.

## Close the tray app

The card's close button only hides the card. To quit the tray app, open
**Device Info** and select **Exit**. It starts again the next time you sign
in. On Windows, you can also open **Outpost** from the Start menu, which
starts it and opens the card.

## Related

- [Consent prompts and session notices](/tray/consent-and-notifications/)
- [The Outpost tray app](/tray/)