Skip to main content

Class Collaborate Support Services Guide

Last updated: October 5, 2022.

Introduction

The purpose of this document is to provide information on the client services Class Technologies provides as well as policies and procedures for administering client support. Included are definitions of the life cycle of supported products and support classifications. Options for the types of support available to clients are defined as well as the terms under which support may be provided.

Supported Products

Class Technologies together with its subsidiaries (the “Company”), currently makes Support Services available for certain of its products. Support Services are based on the support category to which each version of the product has been assigned by the Company. Support Services are subject to the terms of the applicable software license agreement between the Company and the applicable licensee (the “Agreement”).

PART 1: Standard Support Policies & Procedures

 

Support Eligibility

To be eligible to receive support, customer must be in compliance with Software License terms and all invoices for the support period must be paid in full.

Support Process

 

For our standard support program, two employees per customer will be provided access to the Class Collaborate web-based Support Management System. Those employees will receive a notification email with access instructions when they are activated in our support system. All support cases must be submitted electronically through our support site – cases submitted via direct emails or phone calls will not be serviced. Submitted cases should include all required information, sufficient explanation of the problem, and any supporting documents.  

Once a support case has been submitted, it will be automatically routed to the appropriate Collaborate technical support specialist. Any time the case is updated by a Collaborate support specialist, an email notification will be sent.

Definitions of Severity Levels

Severity Level 1

A severity one (1) issue is a catastrophic production problem which may severely impact the client’s production systems, or in which client’s production systems are down or not functioning; loss of production data and no procedural work around exists. Response time for Severity Level 1 is within one (1) hour.  

Examples include:  

  • Collaborate is inaccessible for majority of an institution  
  • Collaborate links are not functioning

When a Severity 1 issue is reported, the Company will assign resources to remedy the error. If access to the Product is required, we ask that you provide access to your system and other software for the duration of the error correction procedures.

Note: Severity Level 1 only applies for Production Environments.

Severity Level 2

A severity two (2) issue is a problem where the client’s system is functioning but in a severely reduced capacity. The situation is causing significant impact to portions of the client’s business operations and productivity. The system is exposed to potential loss or interruption of service. Response time for Severity Level 2 is within four (4) hours. 

Examples include: 

  • Collaborate is significantly suffering slower performance
  • Collaborate performance is degraded for majority of institution
  • Collaborate recordings are inaccessible
  • Connectivity issues for majority of an institution

 

When a Severity 2 issue is reported, the Company will assign resources to remedy the error. If access to the Product is required, we ask that you provide access to your system and other software for the duration of the error correction procedures. 

Severity Level 3

A severity three (3) issue is a medium-to-low impact problem which involves partial non-critical functionality loss. The situation impairs some operations, but allows the client to continue to function. This may be a minor issue with limited loss or no loss of functionality or impact to the client’s operation and issues in which there is an easy circumvention or avoidance by the end user. This includes documentation errors. Response time for Severity Level 3 is within one (1) business day. 

Examples include: 

  • Some users are experiencing poor performance
    • Audio isn’t working
    • Microphone isn’t working consistently
    • Connectivity issues for less than 20% of a session

Severity Level 4

Severity Level 4 implies that the Software is operating normally but the client may be in need of instructional assistance or is requesting functionality that is not currently included in the Software. Response time for Severity Level 4 is within one (1) business day.  

Note: Severity Level 1, 2, and 3 will take priority over Severity Level 4 cases. 

Definitions of Support Response Times

  • Severity Code 1 issues will be responded to within one (1) hour when submitted during business hours. 
  • Severity Code 2 issues will be responded to within four (4) hours when submitted during business hours. 
  • Severity Code 3 issues will be responded to within one (1) business day.  
  • Severity Code 4 requests will be responded to within one (1) business day.

PART 2: Non-Standard Support: Institutional Personalization, Enhancement, and Customization Support

Issues Requiring Institutional Diagnosis or Existing Customization Support

Issues for which origination or resolution may involve diagnosis related to integration, client-specific installation, or related to existing customization, shall be immediately escalated to SME specialists for diagnosis and resolution.

Documentation and Knowledge Support

 

Documentation and knowledge support will be provided, enhanced, or generated as needed or by request, for existing functionality including existing customization. 

Product Updates, Maintenance, and Hotfix Application

Clients receive regularly scheduled updates for Class Collaborate during a monthly maintenance cadence. 

1.

The regularly scheduled maintenance windows for customers are as follows:

  1. Canada and US hosted customers: Thursday from 2:00am –  6:00am US Eastern
  2. Europe customers: Thursday from 12:00am (midnight) – 4:00am GMT 
  3. Asia Pacific customers: Thursday from 1:00am – 5:00am Australian Eastern

Note: maintenance windows are subject to change and communicated via a support bulletin. New maintenance hours will be shared in advance of changes. 

2.

During maintenance periods the system may be unavailable. Maintenance periods are only used as required. Maintenance updates of significant duration or introducing major functionality updates will be communicated one week in advance to allow for proper coordination of client updates and training.

3.

Other planned service interruptions will be communicated to clients at least two business days in advance.

Case Resolution

 

After the initial response to requests for non-standard support, Support will respond to subsequent requests within one (1) business day of:  

  • Case creation
  • Email replies to  emails concerning your case
  • Notes added to cases using web-based self-service
  • Voicemails or messages left with licensee’s service reps

Support’s targeted resolution times are:

  • One (1) subsequent business day for issues with a response followed by a commercially reasonable effort until resolution is reached for all non-Routine Issues (“Complex Issues”).  
  • Targeted response times are applicable for implementations operating in certified configurations.

Initial Problem Escalation Process

As customer problem cases are submitted, they are automatically forwarded to the appropriate Collaborate L1 support specialist. In most cases, the L1 support specialist should be able to assist the customer in resolving the issue. Should additional resources and expertise be required, those resources will be consulted as follows: 

  • L1 Assignment – the initially assigned Collaborate support specialist will work with user to attempt to resolve the problem. 
  • L2 Assignment – if the L1 support specialist determines that additional expertise is required or the support consultant is unable to resolve the problem within the target resolution time, the case will be escalated and additional L2 resources with specialized expertise will be assigned to the case. 
  • L3 Assignment – if the L2 specialist is unable to resolve the problem within a reasonable period of time, the case will be transferred to a senior product development team member for research and resolution. Class Collaborate management will be automatically notified of any L3 cases. 

Support Hours

 

Telephone Support: Licensee is eligible to receive support in English from the Company. The Company may make support available in other languages from time to time, subject to the language capabilities of its technical staff. Licensees may request to be assigned to a Technical Support Manager who speaks their language. Where possible, the Company will attempt to provide this service. Licensees accept that this may cause some delays while an available resource in their language is located, and thus may elect to have a faster response in English.  

Telephone-based support is available twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week, three hundred and sixty-five (365) days a year. 

 

Web-based Self Service: Licensee is eligible to submit and add notes to cases as well as access to documentation, release notes, and knowledge resources. Additionally, End User support is available through our web-based service portal.

Case Communications by Email: After a case has been created either by telephone or web-based self-service, ongoing communication may take place by email, provided the licensee does so by replying to emails coming from  and does not alter the subject line. 

Support Obligation Limitations

Support services are limited to the diagnosis and correction of errors and “bugs” in Class Collaborate Software Product. Class Collaborate will have no obligation to provide any support services to Customer if: 

  • Support service is related to the use or operation of any third party reporting tools not directly provided by Class Collaborate through a Software License Agreement.
  • Support relates to or involves any software products, hardware products, or data not provided or approved by Developer, including performance problems that cannot be specifically attributed to Software.
  • Support directly relates to problems inherent with third party software licensed from other vendors; 
  • Support directly relates to problems associated with alterations or modifications of the Licensed Software by the User or a third party.
  • Customer has not installed or used the Licensed Software in accordance with instructions provided by Developer.
  • A party other than Developer (or a party authorized by Developer) has serviced the Licensed Software and the Licensed Software no longer conforms to its specifications.
  • Support is not related to a problem, but instead, customer is requesting consulting, training, or design advice (note: these services may be provided to customer under separate agreement).
  • Customer is not in full compliance with the terms of the Software License Agreement. 

Contact our Support Team

Open a Support CaseEmail Support Team

Support Number: 888-975-1112 | 24/7 End-user support  |  Premium SLA: 24 hours  |  Standard SLA: 72 hours
Class Support Services Guide