Web Hosting Talk : Web Hosting Main Forums : Colocation and Data Centers : RapidSwitch - UK - anyone getting annoyed?

[bhost-limited]

Hi everyone,

Is anyone getting frustrated by RapidSwitch's recent "upgrade" to their co-location service?

I have received the below message from them. They tried to force us to move all our machines with about 2 weeks notice. I had to fight them to get a later date to move our machines. This is not customer service, when they try to force us to move our servers exactly when suits them.

We were quite satisfied with the previous colo arrangements, and they just tried to get us to sign a new contract in the process of moving to this new "upgrade". Nowhere in the below message did they tell us it would require another 12 month commitment.

I wonder if anyone else is getting annoyed by their level of service and whole demeanour / approach to this change. If anyone from RapidSwitch is reading this, feel free to sort this mess out.

Here's what they sent us (on 16th May):

Good afternoon,

I am very pleased to announce that we will be able to migrate your rack service onto our new resilient network and also bring it into line with the industry standard. This will improve upon, among other things, the security, environmental resources and also, as I’ve already mentioned, the resilience of the network infrastructure that your rack service is currently hosted in.

You may be aware that over the better part of the last year, RapidSwitch has been building out more data centre space at the Spectrum House facility in Maidenhead. This facility has been live for a few months now and we’ve had some great feedback from prospective clients that have seen the area along with existing clients who have migrated over to it already. The area is completely kitted out with lockable racks, has multiple layers of security that provide air-locks of access, and runs at a cool 21±2 degrees Celsius. It is also only a few steps away from our two new build rooms, which makes working for longer periods on equipment a more comfortable experience. The rack services that we offer in this location also benefit from 1 hour’s technical assistance per month, per rack. This is part of our ongoing commitment to providing the best level of service for our clients.
The new network has been setup in response to the issues experienced in the last 6 to 9 months with the old Cisco VSS Cluster configuration. We have been working very hard to design and test a large range of vendors and solutions and we have now implemented a completely resilient connection for our rack services. This allows us to provide two connections into our customers’ racks, one active and one passive, at no additional charge to your current specification.

We are really pleased to announce that we are now able to provide you with a window to transfer your existing rack(s) to the new network infrastructure within the new, high-specification hosting suite. We have allotted a 1 week window for you to transfer your equipment between your existing rack and your new rack. We appreciate that this will take some organisation so you will shortly be called by one of our representatives to discuss anything that we can put in place to help you complete this migration as well as to explain and discuss how you can use the new network architecture to improve the resilience of your systems. We want to help you migrate your equipment to the new network with as little impact on your business as possible so, if we need to schedule work to be done in the early hours of the morning then we will ensure that access periods are available for you to do so.

Your allotted week is 28th May - 3rd June

The benefits of the new, high-spec area are:
- Brand new, resilient network with multiple paths to the outside world at no additional charge.
- Increased redundancy, capacity and lower latency infrastructure.
- 21±2 degrees running temperature, a full 4 degrees cooler than your current environment allowing equipment to run more efficiently
- A completely separate physical hosting environment, segregated by multiple layers of PAC tagged entranceways
- 100% lockable rack environment in accordance with the industry standard, utilising the latest Rittal racks.
- Secure, unaccompanied access available 24x7 at short notice for your nominated representatives

This is a brand new, high-specification service that we’re really excited to be able to provide to you. We have seen a fantastic uptake of this new service in the last few weeks and we want to be able to offer all of our existing clients the same level of service that we are now in a position to offer new clients. We look forward to working closely with you to help you to arrange a smooth transition to this new high-specification service.

Regards,

Paul Tacey-Green
Operations Director

[Shepsie]

I haven't heard anything about this and I've been with them for 2 years coloing a couple of 1u units.

[sleepycal]

Sounds typical of RapidSwitch to be honest. They aren't exactly renowned for their approach towards customer service lol.

The first question I'd ask (if I was in your position) would be how long the new facilities have been operational for, because the last thing you want is to be a 'test bunny' :|

[Rob-Rackedeu]

Basicly they have built out a second stage of their datacenter now and i assume are moving all rack customers over to it. To keep the first part for server rentals / single server colocation.

I have already handed my notice in with RS, but due to a long list of reasons that we belive they do not meet our requirements.

From your point of a view i guess them now allowing 24/7 access without the waste of a tech to stand next to you while you work is a benefit.

The old system simply did not work as far as im concerned. A small number of times i was told i was not allowed rack access and that i had to "trust" their engineers to fix what ever it was i needed doing. Err no thanks.

Anyhow we have bailed on them at long last.

[Shepsie]

What kind of prices are you paying for 42U rack with bandwidth and power?

[PCS-Chris]

Frustrated doesn't cut it. We were forced to move our rack a month ago with the same email. I will not go into details here, suffice to say we will not be taking out another rack with them in future.

Customer service = Non existent.

[bhost-limited]

So they claim the 12 month contract thing was merely because we needed extra power, though they could have been more explicit about this - most of our suppliers don't insist on a 12 month additional commitment for a minor upgrade like power. They claim it is so I can enjoy guaranteed pricing for the period.

Either way, their whole approach and attitude sucks. Be wary of this company.