Navigating SLAs and Support Requests in Microsoft Azure
Ajayi wemimo
Posted on August 10, 2024
1. How do you sign up for a service level agreement with Azure?
Check SLAs: Look up the SLAs (which are like promises about service reliability) for the Azure services you want to use. These are listed on Azure’s website.
Pick Your Services: Decide which Azure services you want (like Virtual Machines or Storage) and make sure their SLAs match your needs for reliability.
Set Up Your Services: When you set up these services in Azure, the SLA automatically applies based on how you configure them. For example, setting up your services to have backups and failovers helps ensure they meet SLA requirements.
Understand the SLA Details: Make sure you know what’s covered by the SLA, such as uptime guarantees and any conditions you need to meet to be covered.
Monitor Your Services: Use Azure’s tools to keep an eye on your services’ performance and check for any issues.
Get Extra Help: If you need extra support or faster help, consider buying a support plan from Azure. This isn't part of the SLA, but it can be useful for getting help quickly if something goes wrong.
2. How do you submit a support ticket?
- Sign In to the Azure Portal: Go to the Azure portal and log in with your credentials. Navigate to the Help + Support Section:
- On the left-hand menu, click on “Help + support”. If you don’t see it, you can find it by selecting “All services” and searching for “Help + support”.
- Create a New Support Request: In the Help + support section, click on “New support request”.
- Fill Out the Support Request Form: Problem: Choose the issue type that best describes your problem from the options provided. Subscription: Select the Azure subscription associated with the issue. Resource: Select the resource related to the issue or leave it as “None” if it's not applicable. Problem Type: Choose the appropriate problem type and provide details about the issue. Severity: Select the severity level based on how critical the issue is. This will affect the response time you can expect. Contact Information: Enter the contact details for the support team to reach you. Provide Additional Details:
You may be asked to provide additional information such as error messages, logs, or screenshots that can help Azure support understand and resolve the issue more effectively.
Review and Submit:
Review your support request details to ensure everything is correct. Once you’re satisfied, click “Create” to submit the ticket.
Track the Support Request:
After submission, you can track the status of your support request from the Help + support section by selecting “Support requests”. You’ll be able to see updates and communicate with Azure support through the portal.
3. SLAs are paid for products only. Yes or No?
No.
Service-Level Agreements (SLAs) are not just for paid products. They are like a performance guarantee that comes with many Azure services, whether you’re paying for them or using a free version.
- Paid Services: Most of the time, if you’re paying for an Azure service, you get an SLA that promises a certain level of service, like how often it should be working without problems.
- Free Services: Even some free services come with SLAs. However, the promises might not be as strong as those for paid services. For example, a free service might have a lower uptime guarantee.
- Service Credits: If Azure doesn’t meet the SLA, they might give you a credit, which can be a refund or discount. This applies to both paid and free services, although the details can vary.
So, SLAs are not just for products you pay for—they can apply to free services as well.
Posted on August 10, 2024
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