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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269

    Server Matrix doesn't honor SLA

    [this will be big!]

    I'm very disappointed at Server Matrix

    I'm with them for more than 1 year and have no respect by their Accounting dept.
    Their techs are good but their accounting is one of the worst I've ever seen in my life

    Here are the facts:
    1) I ordered + 512 MBs RAM for my server
    they put this RAM and, after 3 days, the server started having problems (specially seg faults)
    Their techs told it could be the kernel and rebooted with the default RHEL kernel (I use vanilla with grsecurity) and told the seg faults stopped
    It really did... for around 1 hour
    then it started again
    They didn't want to swap the memory without testing it (I asked them to swap and test on some test PC so mine wouldn't have downtime for the testing), so they took my server down for around 15 minutes for the test and concluded the memory had a problem, removed it and scheduled a new date for adding new memories

    ok, that's fine
    the server had around 2 hours downtime because tests, removal of RAM and adding new RAM (notice I'm not counting the first adding for RAM, because this one is the one I requested)

    Problem happens, but since they have an SLA, I asked for credit
    Instead arguing they don't cover hardware problem or something in this line, they just said there wasn't any problem in the RAM
    yes, they said that! Even me quoting the tech saying "the memory has a problem"
    the guy didn't even wanted to argue and told he needed to close the ticket because it was taking much time
    wow

    ok... I let this one pass, since there would be no deal


    2) Came the power failure... my server was down for 4:44 minutes (2 minutes interval monitoring)
    that is 284 minutes or 0,657% downtime (of a 30 days month)

    I made an SLA claim for 40%, since that's what their SLA says:
    Uptime Service Credit Per Month
    99.90% Guaranteed
    99.80% 10%
    99.50% 20%
    99.30% 40%
    99.00% 75%
    98.00% 100%
    Now I was sure they would give me this SLA without arguing, because there's nothing to argue about

    I was wrong
    Today I got a message saying I'd get a 15% credit!

    I thought "they must be kidding", but they weren't.
    Look at the table... someone even see 15% there?

    I asked them THREE TIMES to look at the graphs and tell me how many minutes they see the server down... they never answered this question

    Can you guess the answer?
    It's unbelivable

    They told that:
    a) I had opened too much tickets since I'm with them
    you have excesssive tickets that have been generated on your account
    b) I had made an SLA request a few time later and it was rejected, so they could have charged me $25
    If they read their contract, they'll see that's just in case it's a FRAUD (for example, if I break my server to try to get SLA - and I can guarantee I didn't invade their DataCenter at night to swap my memory by a fault one )
    In fact, there is a $25.00 chrge for SLA claims that are deemed to be frivilous but on the last one it was not assess to you as a management decided not to, and just let the issue go.
    c) I had multiple credit card changed on my account
    multiple credit card changes on your account (4 total) which also is a cause for concern since the credit card changes require authentication on the account whic costs processing fees
    Now I ask:
    WHAT DOES ALL THAT HAVE TO DO WITH MY SERVER BEING DOWN?

    The SLA is VERY clear and it doesn't mention credit card changes, "excessive tickets" or anything like that
    they are CLEARLY using excuses to not pay

    anyone here can't see they're wrong? that they're having no respect at all?

    I'd like to see some different opinion, since for me it's impossible to argue with those facts
    I'd also want to hear from Server Matrix here in public, since I tried everything to solve that on tickets and later on E-Mail for accounting

    Ticket Number: 663812
    And I let it said clearly here that I allow any Server Matrix rep to paste anything that can be seen in this ticket. You can paste anything I said, anything was said.
    I just didn't do that do preserve who's talked to me name

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    North Kansas City, MO
    Posts
    2,694
    How many tickets did you open?

    Aaron
    Aaron Wendel
    Wholesale Internet, Inc. - http://www.wholesaleinternet.net
    Kansas City Internet eXchange - http://www.kcix.net

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Location
    Under The Floor Tiles
    Posts
    566
    ServerMatrix/The Planet is really going down the toilet nowadays... their billing department is in shambles, faulty equipment is flying about, and overcharging and false service claims are a regular occurance. Some rather aggrivated customers are expecting Chapter 11 any time now.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Southern California
    Posts
    751
    I dunno about Chapter 11, looks like they might have just outgrown themselves too quickly...
    SkyLineHost.com
    ▓ ▓ Shared hosting that soars above the competition
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  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2002
    Location
    Oklahoma
    Posts
    825
    I cancelled my tp server after the long downtime with no credit. I found a cheaper, faster server too. I can confirm the posters complaints however, their support/accounting leaves much to be desired at times.
    Devon Dunham (Owner, Sharpnet/DDoS Host)
    Advanced DDoS Mitigation and Server Management Solutions

    Protecting your online infrastructure.

    Est. 1998.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Apr 2003
    Location
    UK
    Posts
    210
    In fairness to theplanet (server matrix) I've been with them 2 years - since server matrix started and I've had very few problems with them (I have 5 servers there now).

    Yes, I was affected by the power outage and I also got a 15% credit. I don't think there'd have been much difference in the time on all the servers so you've probably got the same as everyone else.

    If you are one of those users who constantly submits tickets and changes CC details etc I can imagine them starting to get annoyed with you at some point. How many tickets did you open? and for how many servers?

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    Originally posted by WII-Aaron
    How many tickets did you open?

    Aaron
    in more than one year, around 150 tickets
    it may looks too much, but if you already used their ticket system, you know they close tickets many times and we can't re-open it, so we need to open a new one

    *edit*
    there're also tickets for reboot (around 5), others asking when the reboot console would be done, outage reports, reverse DNS, IP ordering, SLA claims, domains registration, asking for new hardware, etc.
    so they're not "please, help me with that" tickets (I should have 20~30 tickets like that)
    Last edited by Lem0nHead; 04-19-2005 at 09:03 PM.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    Originally posted by djstonefish
    In fairness to theplanet (server matrix) I've been with them 2 years - since server matrix started and I've had very few problems with them (I have 5 servers there now).

    Yes, I was affected by the power outage and I also got a 15% credit. I don't think there'd have been much difference in the time on all the servers so you've probably got the same as everyone else.

    If you are one of those users who constantly submits tickets and changes CC details etc I can imagine them starting to get annoyed with you at some point. How many tickets did you open? and for how many servers?
    I changed my credit card 4 times because they weren't getting to charge that
    They even have pulled the plug for around 12 hours and just put it again after 13 other hours, because the accounting was closed when I got a new credit card
    Later I've found that the problem wasn't with my credit card (I was getting to buy domains for example) nor with limits... the problem was that they weren't getting to authorize the charges, or something like that

    I've 1 server with them and other with 15minuteservers
    I'm needing one new server each 3 months and it's almost time to order a new one... I'd have choose them again if it didn't happen

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    Originally posted by DD-SNC
    I cancelled my tp server after the long downtime with no credit. I found a cheaper, faster server too. I can confirm the posters complaints however, their support/accounting leaves much to be desired at times.
    do you care to share the DC?
    15ms?

  10. #10
    stay away from hostcreations, interserver and theplanet/servermatrix.

    Go with nac (15minuteservers.com) awesome response time! who can beat responses from support team within minutes. They handle everything right away. They dont make you wait for hours on end. They definently arent lazy like hostcreations, interserver, theplanet and servermatrix.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    PA
    Posts
    1,914
    I personally would like to see what servermatrix's side of this is. Obviously the poster is in the right I would feel professionally if a company is going to offer an SLA and the client has proof of the outage (which clearly is proven) then they need to be making good on their guarantees. YourHost does frequent these forums with server promotion ads and I would think he should be noticing this thread hopefully.

    I myself have had a server from servermatrix in the past for approximately a year or so (got rid of it in Jan of 2005). In any case never had to ask for SLA credit though so can't speak on that regard.

    To the o/p I wish you the best in either getting them to make good on this or finding a host who will be as good and does honor their guarantees.

    -Justin

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Posts
    77
    Sorry to hear about your experience. That does suck. I'm a new TP customer and am hoping I don't have any problems with them. So far, I find their ticket response time SLOW and also am puzzled why tickets are closed automatically after a 48 hour period (whether or not the ticket has been resolved) without the ability for us to re-open them. That makes no sense.

    I think telling you that you had "excessive tickets" and not honoring their SLA was uncool.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    it's sad to see good DC getting bad

    when I signed up for SM, I was sure it was one of the best DC around, considering its price
    now I'm getting bad experience with them

    I really can't understand why this happens, since the opposite is the expected (with more clients, you buy in large scale, get lower prices and higher profit... then you need to keep investing the money on more workers, etc.)
    it seens they're missing the part of investing on more workers

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Apr 2002
    Location
    USA
    Posts
    5,783
    150 tickets in a year?

    Yeah I would say that is a little much for 1 server. I have 3 servers there and total of my tickets have been 34 in 2 years.
    I have 70 servers over at Gnax and I have about 150 -200 tickets there in 3 years and part of them are tickets ordering new servers.

    So yeah 150 for 1 server seems a little over the top to me.

    Now the 15% on the SLA with no explanation seems a little strange, maybe you should try giving them a call and talking direct with Jeff or whoever your account rep and seeing if you can iron the problems out. I don't think posting here is going to earn you any brownie points with them.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Posts
    3,374
    Originally posted by flashwiregsn
    Some rather aggrivated customers are expecting Chapter 11 any time now.
    uh...that's a little out of line, don't you think?

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    Originally posted by Techark
    150 tickets in a year?

    Yeah I would say that is a little much for 1 server. I have 3 servers there and total of my tickets have been 34 in 2 years.
    I have 70 servers over at Gnax and I have about 150 -200 tickets there in 3 years and part of them are tickets ordering new servers.

    So yeah 150 for 1 server seems a little over the top to me.

    Now the 15% on the SLA with no explanation seems a little strange, maybe you should try giving them a call and talking direct with Jeff or whoever your account rep and seeing if you can iron the problems out. I don't think posting here is going to earn you any brownie points with them.
    again:
    it may looks too much, but if you already used their ticket system, you know they close tickets many times and we can't re-open it, so we need to open a new one

    *edit*
    there're also tickets for reboot (around 5), others asking when the reboot console would be done, outage reports, reverse DNS, IP ordering, SLA claims, domains registration, asking for new hardware, etc.
    so they're not "please, help me with that" tickets (I should have 20~30 tickets like that)

  17. #17
    Originally posted by Venus3
    So far, I find their ticket response time SLOW and also am puzzled why tickets are closed automatically after a 48 hour period (whether or not the ticket has been resolved) without the ability for us to re-open them. That makes no sense.
    Well, actually the ticket would not close if you added something to the ticket thread. It would get close as it is assumed that if there is no problems within the 48 hours period then the problem is resolved.

    When I get such a notice and the problem persists, I will add to the ticket and have them check again. There was once I did say 'Keep this ticket open' and they did.

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Jan 2004
    Posts
    1,184
    I have to say 150 tickets would be normal for the first year server.

    New users then to open up more tickets on the beging in every biz.


    There ticket system handles way more than only support so 150 would be quite normal for the first year.

    Monitoring
    IP request
    reboot
    billing
    sales
    support
    os reload
    kernel updates (wich they provide)
    managed services/servers (wich they provide)
    Question on maintence
    and etc...

    I have never asked for a refund yeat but I fell that If I needed/deserved I would have asked.

    For the ram part they only have 12 our 24 hours sla on hardware (can't remeber witch one)

    So that should cover only TP (is I think 2 hours sla) hardware

    A important and one of the most is how you treat the tech's if you are nice if you are rude if you are hmmmm... child'z ?


    Also 150 tickets over a year is normal but like 15-20 tickets per mo. is a little over the "normal".


    Any way good luck

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    Chicago, IL
    Posts
    6,957
    I didn't think ServerMatrix had a hardware SLA that would cover only a 2 hour downtime, etc. I thought it was closer to a 24 hour hardware SLA.

    As for the power outage, how weren't you paid the full SLA? That doesn't make sense. What is the URL you got that from, maybe I am missing something?

    Not honoring an SLA just makes it hard for those of us who do. That is simply crooked. If they do in fact owe more on the SLA and they aren't paying I would consider that a much greater offense than having a "redundant" power system that can't sustain a single outage. Blatently lying to a customer by not offering the service you promised is about as low as it gets and is what makes people wary about this industry. it hurts all of us, not just those hosted at The Planet.

    As for the tickets and card changes, where does it state in the terms you agreed to that there is some limit to the number of tickets or credit card changes? I don't care if it is "excessive" if there is nothing against it in the TOS.
    Karl Zimmerman - Founder & CEO of Steadfast
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  20. #20
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
    Location
    New Hampshire
    Posts
    773
    They didn't honor my SLA requests, I've filed a BBB complaint. I doubt they'll respond though. Once things settle down for me I'll be looking for a more stable provider for my important sites.

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Oct 2003
    Posts
    90
    Originally posted by BudWay
    I have to say 150 tickets would be normal for the first year server.
    150 is a huge amount, that's like a ticket every other day. I have been with tp for 2 years with several servers and i have done 11 support tickets in the past 2 years.

  22. #22
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
    Posts
    149
    Despite all the problems lately with tp/sm i havent had any problems with my server at all, it is fast, connection is very nice and I havent needed to submit a ticket to them for months. 150 tickets is alot in my eyes, 12 tickets a month, nearly one every other day, even though that is alot of tickets they cant give less or refuse sla credit because you submitted too many support tickets, lol thats ridiculous.

  23. #23
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Location
    Fort Worth, TX
    Posts
    2,586
    To the poster: I would definitely "call" them up and find out what is going on.. something doesn't add up.

    pstation: There are 365 days in a year.. that is like posting a ticket ever other day... 150 x 2 = 360
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  24. #24
    Join Date
    Feb 2004
    Posts
    1,269
    yep
    instead of discussing what is so much tickets or not (even me explaining about their ticket system that you can't reopen tickets and then need to open a new one and tickets for everything - buying new hardware, domains, etc.), the point is that even if I've opened 10 tickets a day, that shouldn't change anything when I ask for SLA
    unless it's clearly state in their TOS... and it isn't

    I won't call them because it will end up going to the same person and they will say "that's our final decision" like they did a while ago with another thing they were wrong

  25. #25
    Join Date
    Apr 2005
    Posts
    77
    Unless they have a written policy (that you agreed to when you signed up) regarding the amount of tickets you can submit, I don't see why it would matter how many tickets you've submitted.

    TP/SM advertises itself as a "managed" provider. That's one major reason some of us (like me) have signed up with them. I'm new to the dedicated server arena and I should be able to ask as many questions as I need to about my server without any penalty for doing so.

    I think filing with the BBB was a good move. I hope you are able to resolve this with them. Good luck and please keep us posted.

    Teresa

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