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Essential Support The EssentialNET Support Service is provided by a skilled team that is dedicated to the provision of support excellence. The Technology Management Centre maintains all the necessary tools required to provide the service best suited to the products we sell and support and the customers support requirements. All of our services are under continual review in order that we can continue to provide a support service to our customers that maintain and exceed customer expectations.

Philosophy The Essential Support Philosophy Our Aim *  We want you to experience an excellent standard of service every time you contact us, through knowledgeable and helpful staff utilising efficient, cost-effective systems and processes *  We take account of, and respond to, our customers' needs *  We ensure that in every aspect of our work, each individual is responsible and accountable for the quality of their work *  We aim to be professional, honest and open, and accept responsibility for our actions *  We aim to clear, complete and accurate information on our products and services *  We will always consider any new ways to improve our service and welcome any comments you want to make to help us achieve this aim *  We will strive to ensure all our customers are satisfied, and will measure satisfaction levels on an annual basis and publish those results *  We ask for the views of our customers and partners, and take account of those views in our work *  We monitor our performance against our customer service standards, and aim to continually improve the service we offer *  We will ensure that if a complaint does arise it is dealt with promptly, openly and fairly. We carry out regular reviews of complaints about our service and take action to improve it, if required *  We will treat customer information in the strictest confidence Procedures Essential Support Procedures Customer Take On Each customer will receive a client take on document which will outline the service to be provided, list the equipment under maintenance and all relevant contact points. Call logging and tracking Each customer will receive a call logging procedure outlining how to log and track a call with EssentialNET Escalation Each customer will receive a call escalation procedure outlining how a call is escalated internally, and how a call can be escalated externally. Complaints Each customer will receive a complaints procedure outlining the how a complaint should be made and the procedure EssentialNET will use to analyse and provide recourse to that complaint. Product Specific Support Details EssentialNET maintains individual support documentation for each of its product sets or services which outline in details the service provided and the specific SLA's against that service. Continual Improvement Cycle EssentialNET continually strives to improve its service. EssentialNET believes that the only way it can achieve this is through continual reviewing of its service with its customers. EssentialNET will hold, at minimum, quarterly support meetings with each of its customers understand how we have performed over that period and to identify ways in which we can improve the service. Support Levels Essential Levels of Support 1st Line Support First Line Support is the first-line user response and is provided by EssentialNET involving answering and recording user calls, identifying and classifying the problem, and determining the affected products. Level 1 Support includes the following:- *  Receive and log user calls *  Provide primary support for installation activities and installation-related problems *  Provide primary support for post-installation reconfiguration *  Provide initial problem determination *  Distribute product update information and release notes to users on request *  Verify contract coverage *  Answer "frequently asked questions" *  Verify software release level and send updates *  Follow escalation guidelines 2nd Line Support Second Line Support requires broad and in-depth product expertise and has full responsibility for problem troubleshooting and development of solutions and workarounds. Level 2 Support includes the following:- *  Receive and log user calls *  Troubleshoot problems using diagnostic utilities *  Provide backup support for installation activities (including configuration problems, installation-related problems, and post-installation reconfiguration) *  Provide substantive problem determination (such as hardware, software, driver, configuration) *  Resolve hardware problems *  Gather and analyze trace information and communicate/document next technical action required *  Document "most often asked questions" *  Decode error messages and provide corrective action *  Thorough knowledge of product interdependencies and relationships *  Provide patch release verification and distribution *  Maintain knowledge base and distribute technical bulletins *  Determine if failure was caused by configuration 3rd Line Support EssentialNET has direct access to Riverbed Level 3 technical support as required for escalation purposes. Level 3 support requires engineering-level technical expertise, and is responsible for providing timely and accurate product defect descriptions and resolution plans. Level 3 support includes the following:- *  Engineering support *  Analyze trace and processor dump information *  Develop, test, and release code fixes and patches *  Analyze trace and processor information *  Identify and reproduce code-level problems *  Thorough knowledge of product interdependencies and relationships *  Provide patch release verification and distribution *  Maintain knowledge base and distribute technical bulletins *  Provide on-site support for critical problems situations *  Determine if failure was caused by configuration *  Follow escalation guidelines Priority Levels Essential Prioritisation Technical Support Priority Levels EssentialNET work with customers to assign a priority setting to submitted problems that matches as closely as possible to the Priority Levels assigned by the corresponding technology supplier. The priority defines time frames for resolution goals and escalation potential. This ensures that the appropriate resources within EssentialNET and the supplier resolve the problems as quickly and efficiently as possible. All cases are prioritized according to their impact to the customer - Priority 1 (P1) through Priority 4 (P4) - with P1 being the most important and urgent. The Definitions provided here for each priority are fairly standard within the industry. The severity of a given case can change, being upgraded or downgraded, depending on troubleshooting progress. Priority 1 - Critical Priority 1 cases severely impact the customer's ability to conduct business. This may mean that the customer's systems are down or not functioning and no procedural workaround exists. Most suppliers will respond to a P1 case within one hour. The objective is to get the customer back online by whatever means necessary within 24 hours and to downgrade the problem severity accordingly. Continuous efforts are made to isolate, diagnose, and deliver a solution or repair. When the severity level has been changed to Priority 2 or Priority 3, the appropriate guidelines should be followed. Priority 2 - High Priority 2 cases are high-impact problems that disrupt the customer's operation but there is capacity to remain productive and maintain necessary business-level operations. The problem may require a fix on the customer's system prior to the next planned commercial release of the software. Most suppliers will respond within four hours following receipt of a case during normal business hours, otherwise on the next business day. The Support team makes continues efforts to isolate, diagnose, and deliver a workaround or solution during business hours (Monday through Friday). Priority 3 - Minor Priority 3 issues are medium-to-low impact problems that involve partial loss of non-critical functionality. The problem impairs some operations but allows the customer to continue to function. Most suppliers will respond within eight hours following the receipt of a case during normal business hours, otherwise on the next business day. Priority 4 - Informational Priority 4 issues include minor problems and all other errors. The inconvenience is slight and can be tolerated. Most suppliers will respond within eight hours following the receipt of a case during normal business hours, otherwise on the next business day. Escalation Commitments EssentialNET provides systematic escalation management to customers with current service plans. Most suppliers escalation process notifies levels of management throughout the life cycle of the technical issue. This ensures that the appropriate resources resolve outstanding technical problems as efficiently as possible. Contact Support Contacting Essential Support Calls can be raised via the following methods during the hours of coverage. By phone +44 (0) 1737 215784 By email support@essential-net.co.uk Via the Web www.essential-net.co.uk On the EssentialNET Home Page, click on the "Support" tab, then "Contact Support" For more information click on the Links above