Support Services

Custom Support

Case-Based Support

rackAID provides on-demand support on a per-case basis. We offer four levels of service at three different price points.

	Standard	Priority	Emergency*	Advanced
Hours of Operation	M-F 9AM-5PM	M-F 8AM-7PM	24/7/365	M-F 9AM-5PM
Response Time	2 Business Days	8 Hours Guaranteed	4 Hours Guaranteed	As Scheduled
Support Methods
Hourly Rate	$75.00	$112.50	$150.00	$112.50
Minimum Commitment	1 Hour	1 Hour	2 Hours	2 Hours
Availability

^*Emergency support is available only to qualified clients.

Standard Support

Who's it for?

Our low-cost, on-demand support service is for most technical support needs. More than 80% of all requests fall into our basic support category. Most work on standard operating systems, such as Red Hat and Fedora as well as major control panels like Plesk, cPanel and Ensim, is covered by our standard support. Most of the pre-defined categories on our site fall into standard support. Assistance with advanced clusters, firewall appliances, proxy servers or other more advanced systems may require our advanced support services. During your free service estimate, our staff will inform you what portions of your project may be done by our advanced support team.

Response Time (1 Business Day or Less)

Standard support provides variable response times based on our work loads. Unless otherwise stated, you can assume that the response time will be 1 business day. Service orders confirmed by 5PM EDT will typically be handled the next business day or as scheduled. Should we not be able to respond within one business day, we will notify at the time of your request.

Support Methods

Standard support is delivered through email and web-based support methods only. Our staff may request a phone or chat consultation if they determine it will expedite the work. Keep in mind that most basic support requests do not necessitate a phone consultation. Also note that all chat or phone requests are billed in quarter hour increments. The best way to keep costs down is to use the designated support methods.

Minimum Charges

Standard support has a 1 hour, non-refundable service minimum. New clients or clients with whom we've had prior payment issues may be required to pay a deposit in advance. See our billing terms for full details.

Priority Support

Who's it for?

If you cannot wait, then this service is for you. You are immediately patched through to our advanced support team, who will work directly with you or your server provider to resolve the issues. This service is excellent for those time-sensitive issues. Perhaps your server was pulled for an AUP? Need to stop a someone? This mid-priced service provides rapid access to our support team for nearly any issue.

Response Time (8 Hours or Less)

Priority support is backed by our support service level agreement. We will respond to your issues within 8 hours or less. Response time is considered from the time you confirm your request until the time our staff begins work on your ticket. In most cases we cannot provide a resolution time as we often have to depend on third parties like your server provider; however, our staff will work on your issue diligently until it is resolved. Please see our service SLA for full details.

Support Methods

Web and email-based support are the primary contact methods. Phone support is available but should be limited. Please do not expect our technicians to stay on the line while they work on your case. They will collect the information they need and then call you back when they have new details. We can also work directly with your server or network provider either by help desk, email or phone. All support is billed in quarter hour increments, including any time we spend dealing with third parties.

Minimum Charges

Standard support has a 1 hour, non-refundable service minimum that must be paid in advance. If the work takes more than 10 billable hours, you may ask that your case be down-graded to one of our other support levels.

Emergency Support

Who's it for?

For critical situations that simply cannot wait, our rapid-response emergency support service is available. Perhaps your server has crashed? Maybe pulled for an AUP violation? Or someone has defaced your web site? These critical situations often demand immediate response. Our emergency support service puts you in direct contact with our top technicians to handle your situation. We provide highly dedicated service with smooth transitions between staff changes. Many times our techs will work non-stop until your issue is resolved.

Response Time (4 hours or less)

Support Methods

Email, phone, chat and web-based support are provided. We will work with you and your server/network provider to resolve the situation as quickly as possible.

Minimum Charges

Emergency support has a 2 hour, non-refundable service minimum that must be paid in advance. If the work takes more than 10 billable hours, you may ask that your case be down-graded to one of our other support levels.

Advanced Support

Who's it for?

Cluster design, advanced deployment planning, and other services may fall under our advanced support category. If so, our staff will notify you at the time of your order. Note that appliance management, such as load balancers, firewalls or switches falls into our advanced support category. For larger projects, some work may be split between advanced and standard support, in such cases a detailed estimate will be given prior to the work starting.

Response Time (As Scheduled)

Non-urgent, advanced work will be done on a schedule to be determined. Keep in mind that our advanced staff are in high demand, so for future projects, please try to contact us two weeks in advance to assure availability.

Support Methods

An initial phone consultation is often required. For more complicated projects, several phone consultations may be necessary. Note that all phone support, including calls by our staff to third parties on your behalf, are billed as priority support.

Minimum Charges

Advanced support has a 2 hour, non-refundable service minimum. For deployment planning of larger scale clusters, your work will likely be handled as a major project deployment.