Resolving Issues
Storage Software Support
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June 4, 2010 -Every business, no matter if it’s a small company with just five computers or a large enterprise with thousands of machines around the world, uses storage and backup software to prevent accidental loss of important data.
There are various storage software solutions available on the market, but most businesses choose to entrust their data storage and backup to the niche leaders – CA, Symantec, and Acronis. All of these companies offer comprehensive storage software products, which will match the needs of practically any business. However, the software itself is not the only thing that matters – customer service and technical support are equally important. Here is an overview of how CA ARCserve Backup, Symantec Backup Exec, and Acronis Backup and Recovery differ in their available software support options.CA ARCserve Support:
CA is a company that pays a lot of attention to customer support quality. According to their website, their goal is 100% customer satisfaction. Currently the counter shows 92% satisfaction with ARCserve support, which is very encouraging.The software has its own dedicated support page - http://arcserve.com/us/support.
On that page IT technicians can find:
•Product documentation
• Software and hardware compatibility information
• Upgrade and implementation resources, which include Patch Manager
• One stop product support
• Product videos
• Contact options and global user community
• Links to customer education and maintenance program pages
Technical support and customer service is available online 24/7 and by phone during regular business hours. CA’s customer service is available in different countries (global contact information is provided on the website) and their staff is multilingual.
The response time is very competitive – one hour for Severity 1 cases (24/7), two business hours for Severity 2 cases, four business hours for Severity 3 cases, and one business day for Severity 4 cases.Another way to get an extremely fast response from ARCserve technical support team and to be the first to find out about any hot issues, new patches, and updates is to follow @ARCserveBackup on Twitter.
IT managers should also remember that CA has a separate support portal for all their software – support.ca.com, where all the necessary information can be found in just a few clicks.All information about the support features is provided in a PDF datasheet that can be downloaded from support.ca.com.
Symantec Backup Exec Support:According to Symantec website, the company’s Enterprise Support Services offer a portfolio of options designed to maximize uptime and reduce the client’s internal IT costs. The company’s general support policies are explained in the Customer Quick Reference PDF, which is available on the support page of Symantec website.
The policies are as follows:
•Three levels of technical support – Basic, Essential, and Business Critical
• Initial response by technical support staff within one business hour for Basic level customers, 30 minutes for Essential level, and 15 minutes for Business Critical tier
• Continuous efforts for Severity 1 cases available for Essential and Business Critical level customers, even after business hours
• Online case management on https://mysupport.symantec.com
Symantec Backup Exec has a dedicated online page. To access it you need to go to Business – Support – Product Support – Backup Exec. On this page IT staff can find knowledgebase articles, tutorials, troubleshooting advice, product documentation, software and hardware compatibility lists, software alerts, and a link to the community forum. Also there is a Downloads section that has all the necessary patches, drivers, and hotfixes.
All that makes Symantec support a good option for businesses, although perhaps the Basic tier is not as good as the CA Business Critical Support offer. So if your company decides to use Symantec software, you might want to consider their premium support offers – Essential or Business Critical.
Acronis Backup and Recovery Support:
Acronis is another backup and storage software provider whose products are often chosen by businesses because they are reliable and easy to use. In addition to that Acronis offers very attractive support options. There is basic support that is available to home and business users online, which includes 24/7 access to knowledgebase articles and online library documentation. Also there are two premium support options
available – Acronis Advantage Standard and Acronis Advantage Premier. The true benefit of Acronis support system is that the first year subscription of either the Acronis Advantage Standard or Premier level of service is included for all corporate customers.
According to Acronis website, the Acronis Advantage program offers:
• A personalized and flexible array of services
• Premier service levels featuring fast response times to critical issues
• Direct interaction with knowledgeable Acronis support professionals
• Available online training and demonstration content from field sales engineers
• Help for organizations in meeting their service level agreement (SLA) and Continuity of Operations Programs (COOP) requirementsAcronis Advantage Standard includes 12/5 support services Monday through Friday, 8am-8pm EST via phone, chat, and email with one of their dedicated support professionals. In the event of a critical system error, an engineer will respond within one business day.
Acronis Advantage Premier includes 24/7 support services available via phone, chat, and email. Acronis Advantage Premier customers receive priority support in the event of a business-critical system error (Severity 1 cases), customers will receive the initial response within one hour.
There are also three additional features:
Support Wizard - a web-based tool designed to give rapid access to an issue-specific knowledge base that will help solve problems and pre-load the support issue into a response system for a faster turnaround.
Expanded Knowledge Base Library - newly updated with articles detailing how to install products, technical solutions, and tips on how to maximize the capabilities of Acronis products. An enhanced search engine speeds up access to relevant articles.
Pay Per Incident - an expanded program that allows customers to purchase a single priority support incident, handled by one of Acronis’ dedicated support professionals.
As for the Acronis support website, it offers everything that is provided on competitors’ websites, including updates and patches, live chat, community forum, and more.
Conclusion:
Just like any other customer service options, storage software support options are very similar in principle, no matter the product. All software vendors have interactive online support, phone support, and help via email and chat. Some websites are easier to navigate than the others, but most of them provide enough information to help the IT technician to assess and perhaps even fix the issue. However, when a problem can’t be fixed using internal means and especially if it’s a Severity 1 case, it’s very important to be able to reach the technical support team as soon as possible and receive qualified comprehensive help no matter the size of your company and the software you are using.
In addition to these leading publisher support options, your technology reseller can be a valuable resource for you to use when navigating technical support. Let your technology reseller do some of the heavy lifting for you when you are having technical support issues, and if they are not meeting your expectations, let Productive demonstrate their level of service when handling technical support.As a specialized software reseller, Productive offers a unique approach when assisting their customers when technical support is needed. When customers use Productive as their first point of contact, Productive is able to advocate on their behalf. When technical support issues are handled with Productive in the lead, they tend to be resolved more quickly with a higher level of customer satisfaction. Productive understands the support process inside and out and use’s this knowledge to get issues resolved efficiently. Contacting Productive with an issue is very straight forward, simply call 800-726-4099, or email help@productivecorp.com.
When considering to purchase storage software, IT managers have to remember that it’s more than just the software that makes a deal look competitive and attractive. Make sure that you are aware of all support packages the software vendor can offer before purchasing the software and perhaps even try reaching their support service to ascertain its quality and reliability.
About Productive Corporation
Productive Corporation is a specialized software reseller that helps small and medium businesses across North America with software initiatives in security, storage and infrastructure. We provide subject matter expertise, access to technical support, and relevant content for IT staffs in the Mid-Market.
