SmartHost is committed to providing exceptional support for our web hosting, WordPress hosting, and cloud server solutions. Understanding the availability and scope of our support services is crucial for the seamless operation of your services with us. This guide outlines our support hours, response times based on the severity of issues, and available communication channels.
Quick Guide
Support Options Overview
| Service | Severity Level | Availability | Response Time | Support Channels |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cloud VPS Servers | Severity 1 (Service Offline) | 24×7 or 8×5 depending on plan | 4 hours | Email Phone (with comprehensive plan) |
| Severity 2 | 7am to 11pm Mon-Sun | 6 hours | Email, Phone | |
| Severity 3 | 7am to 11pm Mon-Sun | 8 hours | Email, Phone | |
| Severity 4 | Business hours (Mon-Fri, excl bank holidays) | 8 hours | Email, Phone | |
| WordPress Care Plans Shared Hosting | Severity 1 (Service Offline) | 7am to 11pm Mon-Sun | 4 hours | Email, Phone |
| Severity 2 | 7am to 11pm Mon-Sun | 6 hours | Email, Phone | |
| Severity 3 | 7am to 11pm Mon-Sun | 8 hours | Email, Phone | |
| Severity 4 | Business hours (Mon-Fri, excl bank holidays) | 8 working hours | Email, Phone | |
| Fix My WordPress | – | 7am to 11pm, 7 days a week | 2 hours | Email, Phone |
| Domain Name Support (Without Hosting) | – | Business hours (Mon-Fri, excl bank holidays) | 8 working hours | |
| Billing and Accounts | – | Business hours (Mon-Fri, excl bank holidays) | 8 working hours | Email, Phone |
Further Reading
Cloud VPS Servers
SmartHost offers a tiered support system for Cloud VPS Servers to handle everything from critical service disruptions to minor issues, with support availability either round-the-clock or 8×5, based on your selected plan. Critical issues, marked as Severity 1, promise a 4-hour response time, ensuring swift action is taken to restore your services. Lesser severity levels extend the response time and adjust the support availability, but rest assured, email and phone support are consistently at your disposal.
WordPress Care Plans and Shared Hosting
For clients utilising our WordPress Care Plans and Shared Hosting plans, support is structured to ensure your services remain uninterrupted. With support starting from 7am to 11pm, seven days a week, we address the most urgent issues (Severity 1) within 4 hours, scaling to 8 hours for issues of lesser urgency. This framework guarantees that support is readily available when you need it the most, offering both email and phone communication methods.
Fix My WordPress
Our “Fix My WordPress” service is designed for rapid response, operating from 7am to 11pm, seven days a week, and providing a 2-hour initial response time. This service is ideal for urgent WordPress support, offering quick resolutions to keep your site operational.
Domain Name Support and Billing and Accounts
For domain name support and billing/account inquiries, SmartHost ensures assistance during business hours from Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays. With an 8 working hour response time, our team is ready to help you with any questions or issues via email and phone.
At SmartHost, our commitment to providing timely and effective support is paramount. We understand the critical nature of your online presence and strive to offer services that meet your needs with efficiency and reliability.
Severity Levels
SmartHost categorises support tickets based on severity levels to ensure timely and effective responses to issues affecting our services. This system allows us to prioritise issues based on their impact on your operations. Here is a detailed explanation of each severity level, ensuring clarity for non-technical users.
Severity 1: Critical Impact – Service Down
- Description: This level is assigned to issues where your service is completely down or inaccessible. It represents a critical impact on your operations, with no available workaround.
- Response Time: 4 hours for Cloud VPS servers (24×7 support), and 4 hours for WordPress Care Plans and Shared Hosting plans (7 am to 11 pm, seven days a week support).
- Support Availability: Includes emergency phone support for Cloud VPS servers if a comprehensive support plan is in place, ensuring direct access to our support team.
Severity 2: High Impact – Major Functionality Affected
- Description: Issues that severely impact key operations or functionalities of your service, but the service is not completely down. This might include significant performance degradation or functionality loss that impacts your ability to operate effectively.
- Response Time: 4 hours, available 7 am till 11 pm, seven days a week for both Cloud VPS servers and WordPress Care Plans.
- Support Availability: Email and phone support are available to address these high-priority issues promptly.
Severity 3: Medium Impact – Limited Functionality Loss
- Description: These are issues that affect some aspects of your service but do not have a severe impact on your overall operations. This may include partial service disruptions, minor performance issues, or problems affecting non-critical functionalities.
- Response Time: 8 hours, with 7 am till 11 pm, seven days a week support available.
- Support Availability: Support for these issues is accessible via email and phone, ensuring that medium-impact concerns are resolved efficiently.
Severity 4: Low Impact – Minor Issues
- Description: Severity 4 issues are categorised as minor problems or questions that do not affect the service’s core functionality or performance. These concerns may include cosmetic issues, minor bugs, or general inquiries.
- Response Time: 8 working hours, with support provided during business hours from Monday to Friday, excluding bank holidays.
- Support Availability: Even though these are low-priority issues, SmartHost ensures that they are addressed promptly during regular business hours, with support accessible via email and phone.
By structuring support requests according to these severity levels, SmartHost ensures that each issue is addressed with the appropriate level of urgency. This approach allows us to provide efficient, targeted support, helping maintain the reliability and performance of your services.
