Scope of Support

As covered in the Terms of Service, by default the X4B does not provide support regarding the installation or configuration of application software (such as mail and web server software), nor do we provide support regarding the configuration of your server. That's not to say we won't help you if it's something simple we know something off hand or knowledgebase articles for common requests. For these issues, please consult the various other resources we make available (including the Knowlegebase). If you are providing a service to your customers X4B does not offer tech support for those customers. X4B support is additionally only provided in the English language.

We provide support related to the physical operation of your X4B services, such as: ensuring that your network traffic is properly routed and our services are online and functioning well. That is we deal with all issues that fall within the scope of our services and infrastructure. This is usually performed without support interaction through pro-active monitoring. We do not monitor the operation or connectivity to your backend service.

Unmanaged Services (default)

For clients with an unmanaged service plan, our staff manage the network & SaaS we provide to you. We provide you the customer with best effort support in regards to your operation of the service provided. We do not provide you with management or advice (beyond that which we know off-hand) in regards to your provided backend service(s)/server(s)/applications(s). All services by default (unless otherwise arranged) are unmanaged. Management is available at an additional hourly cost on Unmanaged services (consultation).

This means that it is the customers responsibility to:

  1. Setup your backend server, services or product (which we do not provide)
  2. Support & manage your backend server or product (which we do not provide)
  3. Have a reasonable level of technical know-how as necessary to operate the purchased service

Support for unmanaged services is provided on a best-effort basis. To make the best use of the available resources we advise that you take the time to gather technical readouts / diagnosis of your problems before opening your support ticket. This will ensure that you can get in-depth support as soon as humanly possible rather than simply a request for more information.

Want to get a good support outcome? Below are our recommendations for writing a good support ticket:

  1. Check the Knowledgebase. Perform a search by keyword, or search Google if you need.
  2. Provide technical readouts showing your issue. For example instead of posting "my service is down" try instead providing a ping, traceroute or tcp check (e.g nmap or online service) showing this. If your output includes resolved DNS names its recommended (and depending on the ticket may be required) to include non-resolved and resolved versions of the reading.
  3. Confirm that you have checked common causes. Include the method that you used to check these. Technical readouts are a good idea.
  4. Be polite and professional. Remember that you are a human talking to another human asking for help, we want to help you but shouting or swearing won't help.
  5. Check your end first. We have extensive monitoring on the services we offer and personnel to respond to any issue detected. While it's not impossible for there to be an issue on our end (even undetected) it's rare.
  6. Perform as much investigation as you can. Our resources are limited and are best spent on complex investigations, not providing links to publicly available resources or searching Google on your behalf.
  7. Use priority wisely. A customer who over-uses high priority does not get faster responses.
  8. If your matter is urgent put thought into how to minimise impact in the interim while we investigate and respond.
  9. Use English

Management (consultation) jobs for unmanaged services

Management is available on an hourly basis for services as required. This is currently billed at $45/hour when pre-booked during business hours (unless otherwise arranged). The management program works on a cost recovery basis and is non-negotiable. If you need lower cost management you are welcome to persue 3rd party service (at your own risk of course). There may be additional costs beyond the hourly rate if your job requires the purchase of licences, software or is scheduled on short notice.

If your job is a setup job, that is you need a trained engineer to setup your service on your backend service for you and your service is considerably standard we will attempt to complete the job within 1 hour. Typical setups are achievable within an hour.

Management / Consulting Agreement for unmanaged services

A formal management job agreement will need to be signed and submitted before the job can begin.

A summary of the terms contained within this agreement are below:

  1. Before the job begins we will endeavour to provide a time estimate. This is how long we believe the job to take. We will advise you during the job if this is expected to change.
  2. We will require a suitable deposit in the form of account credit of at-least 1 hours rate before the job will begin. This will be discussed and agreed upon.
  3. The hours and costs incurred (e.g licences) are non-refundable in nature.
  4. As we do jobs at a cost-recovery rate only jobs must relate to the services on offer. For general consulting please contract a freelancer.
  5. Due to the variety of jobs performed we reserve the right to refuse jobs we do not believe we will be able to complete successfully. This is not an agreement to perform every possible job.
  6. Payment of any outstanding hours upon the completion of the work must be made in a timely manner not longer than 3 working days. Failure to pay outstanding balance may result in service suspension or termination. Please communicate with us if you are having any financial difficulties in advance of the matter becoming critical so terms can be adjusted.

An agreement will be generated for you by our support representative. Please contact us via support ticket from your account with a description of the job you need performed to start the process.

Professional Services (by quote)

Clients using one of our DDoS Protection services may select a managed service plan that allows our staff to provide maintenance, security, and troubleshooting on a scale appropriate to their needs. Typically we deliver these through 24x7 3rd party management personnel, automated service monitoring and on call in-house staff for elevated matters however we can customise provided services to your specific needs.