UBUNTU SERVER SUPPORT SERVICE DESCRIPTION
Purpose and objectives
Ubuntu is a computer operating system with versions for the desktop and server. New versions are released every six months for use with PCs. In consideration for the Fees paid by the Customer, Canonical will provide support for Ubuntu Server Edition within the definitions set out below.
The purpose of this Service Description is to define the support relationship between the Customer and Canonical by clarifying roles, setting expectations and providing mechanisms for resolving issues. This Service Description also covers performance and other topics pertinent to the Service. This Service Description is a schedule to the Services Agreement.
Definitions
'Canonical Responsibilities' means the actions required from Canonical in order for the issue to be resolved.
'Case' means a problem, question or bug that the Customer brings to Canonical for resolution.
'Certified System' means an Ubuntu system which has passed the Canonical Certification tests and is publicly stated as being compatible or certified for use with Ubuntu.
'Customer Responsibilities' mean the actions and information required from the Customer in order for the Case to be resolved.
'Definition' means a description of the overall issue category and the level of symptom suffered for the specified Severity level.
'Effort Level' means the amount and priority of work undertaken by Canonical to resolve a Case.
'Entitlement' means a subscription to the support Service for a single computer.
'Landscape' means the web-based systems management tool for Ubuntu servers and desktops.
'Resolution' means an outcome either a work-around or a full solution. A work-around will consist of a number of step that, when performed, mitigate the problem. A solution means a complete removal of the problem whether in the current version of Ubuntu or a later version.
'Response Time' means the time from receipt of the Case to when the Support Engineer sends an acknowledgment of the Case as defined by the Severity Level associated with the Case.
'Scope' means a description of the categories of Case and the specific level of symptom suffered for the specified Priority Level.
'Severity Level' means the level of criticality for an issue as specified by Canonical.
Support Engineer' means a Canonical support engineer responsible for providing the Service.
'System' shall mean a customer's computer whether laptop, desktop or server.
Service initiation
Upon acceptance of the Order from the Customer Canonical will issue support accounts which are used by the Customer's technical contacts for service delivery. These accounts give the technical contact's access to the on-line portal and support telephone number for their region. The Customer is entitled to two technical contacts per Account and may change these contacts at any time by requesting the alteration in writing from the Account holder specified on the Order Form
Each service Entitlement enables the Customer to receive support for a single computer System. In order to activate the Entitlement the Customer must install the Landscape management client and authenticate the System to the Landscape service. Specific details on how to set-up the Landscape service are provided during service initiation.
Scope of coverage
Canonical will provide installation, configuration, maintenance and management support for Ubuntu Server Edition on appropriate computer systems. Canonical will support the Customer on any version of Ubuntu Server Edition that suits the Customer's requirements as long as it's within its life-cycle.
Canonical will provide a reasonable level of assistance to the Customer to install Ubuntu on computer systems built from an officially supported computer architecture. Canonical is not able to guarantee that Ubuntu can be installed on all computer systems. For the avoidance of doubt, Canonical is able to make a higher level of effort with hardware issues that take place on Systems that have been specified by Canonical as Certified.
Canonical will support all the software defined within the standard server support list. A full list of supported packages for each release is provided upon request.
The Ubuntu distribution is a collection of many elements of Open Source software. Canonical will not be able to resolve all issues, even on packages that are supported. For any supported application Canonical will attempt to provide a Resolution which will consist of a workaround or a full solution. However, Ubuntu is a complex software product and specific issues may be difficult to resolve, so no guarantee on resolution or time to fix can be provided.
Contacting Canonical
The primary method for reporting Cases is through the support web portal. This enables the Customer to enter, edit and respond to current Cases, the site will notify them by email of alterations to Cases and it provides the capability for the Customer to review previous Cases.
Additionally, the Customer may contact the support centre by telephone during the coverage hours to report an Case or obtain updates on the status of a Case. All Cases are assigned a ticket number and responded to automatically. All correspondence and telephone calls are logged with a time-stamp for quality assurance.
Level 1 and Level 2 issues must be reported by telephone so that the highest level of response can be provided. When reporting an Case the Customer must specify how the issue is effecting their use of Ubuntu. The Customer must co-operate with Canonical to provide all reasonable information deemed necessary by Canonical to resolve the Case.
Each Entitlement enables the Customer to ten (10) support Cases during any annual period of service. A single support Case consists of a discrete problem, issue or request although it may consist of a number of interactions with Canonical Support Engineers.
Severity levels
Upon receipt of a Case report, whether by telephone or through the web portal, a Support Engineer will commence efforts to verify the Case and set the Severity Level. Canonical will work with the Customer to assess the urgency of a Case and to assign the appropriate Severity Level.
Having set the Severity Level, the Support Engineer will respond as soon as possible to the Customer and within the Response Time for the Severity Level. The Support Engineer will work on diagnosing and resolving the Case within the Effort Period appropriate for the Severity Level.
The tables below shows the method for reporting Cases, the level of response from Canonical to the Case report and the level of effort Canonical will use to resolve the Case for each support service.
Standard Response Levels
|
Severity Level |
Response Time |
Effort Period |
Method |
|
Level 1 |
4 hours |
Continuous effort |
Telephone |
|
Level 2 |
1 business day |
During coverage hours |
Telephone |
|
Level 3 |
2 business days |
During coverage hours |
On-line or Telephone |
|
Level 4 |
4 business days |
During coverage hours |
On-line or Telephone |
Advanced Response Levels
|
Severity Level |
Response Time |
Effort Period |
Method |
|
Level 1 |
2 hours |
Continuous effort |
Telephone |
|
Level 2 |
4 hours |
During coverage hours |
Telephone |
|
Level 3 |
1 business day |
During coverage hours |
On-line or Telephone |
|
Level 4 |
2 business days |
During coverage hours |
On-line or Telephone |
Response definitions
When setting the Severity Level with the Customer Canonical's support team will use the definitions below. In addition, the operational procedures are as follows:
|
Severity level |
Definition |
Responsibilities |
|---|---|---|
|
Level 1 |
Core functionality not available |
Continuous effort will be provided by the appropriate Support Engineer(s) and/or a Development Engineer(s) to produce a work-around.
As soon as core functionality is available the Severity level will be lowered to Level 3 and a permanent Resolution developed. |
|
Level 2 |
Core functionality severely degraded |
Canonical will use reasonable efforts during coverage hours to produce a work-around. The Support Engineer will aim to produce a work-around that is sufficient to adjust the priority level to Level 3 where a permanent Resolution will be developed. |
|
Level 3 |
Standard support request |
Canonical will use reasonable efforts during the coverage hours to provide the Customer with a work-around as soon as possible balanced against higher Severity Level Cases. Having provided a work-around Canonical's support Support Engineers will work on developing a permanent Resolution to the Case. |
|
Level 4 |
Non-urgent issues |
This Severity Level covers non-urgent problems including cosmetic issues, feature requests or information requests. In the case of a cosmetic or feature issue an Support Engineer will review the issue to determine whether the issues is a product enhancement for a future release. Information requests will be reviewed and responded to with a reasonable level of effort during coverage hours. |
Hours of business
Hours of coverage for support services depend on the product purchased. The following options are available
|
Standard |
Customer's time-zone specific |
Monday – Friday (excluding public holidays) |
|
Advanced |
24 hours a day |
Monday - Sunday |
Customers purchasing Standard support may select the time-zone for their coverage from those detailed below, which are specified on the Order Form. Hours of coverage will be adjusted in accordance with locale specific daylight saving alterations. Additionally, coverage will not be available for public holidays within Canada.
|
|
Americas |
UK & Eire |
Europe |
Russia |
Pacific rim & Australia |
|
Difference from UTC |
-8hrs - -5hrs |
+ 0hrs |
+1hrs |
+3hrs |
+10hrs |
|
Hours |
09:00 – 21:00 |
09:00 – 17:00 |
09:00 – 17:00 |
09:00 – 17:00 |
09:00 – 17:00 |
Customers purchasing Advanced support are covered at all times during the week (Monday to Sunday) throughout the year, including public holidays in Canada.
Monitoring and management
Canonical will provide access to a monitoring and management system that Canonical's support Support Engineers can use to resolve Cases. All Systems covered by the Service must have Landscape installed and activated (see Service Activation) on them during the Service Period.
An Account's technical contacts are provided with login details to Landscape which gives them full administrative access to the service for the registered machines within their Account. Landscape enables the technical contacts to monitor, manage and maintain the Systems remotely through a web browser.
Service Review
Canonical will undertake a service review meeting with the Customer annually to cover any questions or problems that have taken place during the period. The Customer may also request a service review meeting at any time.
Escalation
The Customer may escalate an issue at any time through their Account Manager. Alternatively, Canonical's support team is available during standard business hours for issue escalation.
If the Customer does not receive an update within 12 hours of contacting either escalation point issues can be escalated to the Level 2 contacts.
Finally, if no update is received within 8 hours from contacting the second level of escalation issues can be escalated to the Level 3 contacts.
|
Escalation Level |
Operational Contact |
|
Level 1 |
Support Team +1 514 940 8895 |
|
Level 2 |
+1 514 940 8895 |
|
Level 3 |
Operations Director operations-director@canonical.com +1 514 940 8895 |
