Last Updated 15th January 2008

1. Server Availability / Website Uptime

a. Hosting Photography maintains a 99.9% uptime service level. This percentage is calculated on a monthly frequency by Hosting Photography and External Monitoring Systems. If Hosting Photography fails to meet its uptime service level as a result of the infrastructure that we maintain then a performance credit for every hour will awarded to the customer.

Exceptions are listed in Section 5.

b. If the customer identifies an issue with server availability and it is a result of the infrastructure that we maintain Hosting Photography will award a performance credit per hour to the customer, based upon the time that the ticket was open until the issue was resolved.

Exceptions are listed in Section 5.

2. Network Connectivity

a. There are a number of factors influencing response times for a website, most of which Hosting Photography have no control over. Such factors include network response times on networks in which Hosting Photography has no control over; these could be providing network links between our servers and the connecting computers.

While Hosting Photography strives to maintain 99.9% network connectivity we cannot guarantee uptime for these networks. Our service level agreement and commitment is therefore covered in Section 1. Server Availability / Website Uptime.

3. Maintenance

a. Hosting Photography frequently maintain the software and hardware of the servers hosting the customer websites. This is done free of charge to enable us to provide a ongoing service in this ever changing technology market. Any planned changes will be communicated to the customer 48 hours before the change will occur. Changes are performed at quiet periods; this is between 00:00 and 08:00 EST on weekends. We cannot guarantee that this quiet period for one customer is a quiet period for another. Change windows are open for negotiation; Hosting Photography reserves the right for the final decision.

4. Support

a. Trouble Tickets are the primary tool to use to gain support. Trouble tickets can be created at one of four impacts from the Customer Support Portal.

Response Time: Time taken for initial reply / acceptance of ticket.
Resolution Time: Time for issue to be resolved.

High : Response time 8 Hours. Resolution time 48 Hours.
Normal : Response time 24 Hours. Resolution time 96 Hours
Low : Response time 48 Hours. Resolution time 192 Hours.

b. Email can also be used for support. Emails are answered within 24 hours of receipt. There are no response or resolution times for emails. Next Level Digital Services reserves the right to request a trouble ticket to be created depending on the nature of the issue. Emails can be sent to support@hostingphotography.com

c. Support can be gained via live help. There are no response or resolution times for live help or emails. Hosting Photography reserves the right to request a trouble ticket to be created depending on the nature of the issue.

d. 1 Performance Credit will be awarded for every 12 hours over the target resolution time per issue, and 0.5 performance credit awarded every 12 hours over target response time (accepting the ticket). Multiple tickets from the same customer relating to the same issue will only receive performance credits based upon the one issue and not each ticket. Tickets relating to issues covered under section 5 of this SLA are not awarded to tickets opened for those issues. Customers should notify support via email to claim performance credits within 48 hours of the service outage.

Exceptions are listed in Section 5.

5. Exceptions

a. Circumstance beyond reasonable control, including, without limitation, acts of any governmental body, war, insurrection, sabotage, embargo, “Acts of God” (i.e. fire, flood, earthquake, tornado, etc…), strike or other labour disturbance, interruption of or delay in transportation, unavailability of or interruption or delay in telecommunications or third party services, failure of third party software or inability to obtain raw materials, supplies, or power used in equipment needed for the provision of the Service Level Agreement.

b. Backbone peering point issues (i.e. UUNet having router issues in Virginia that results in unavailability of internet service for the entire east coast of America)

c. Scheduled Maintenance for Software / Hardware upgrades.

d. Hardware Failure - Faulty Hardware is rare but cannot be predicted or avoided. Hosting Photography only use branded hardware components to improve reliability and response times.

e. Software Bugs / Flaws – Exploits and bugs may develop that cause security issues or downtime.

f. DNS issues that Hosting Photography cannot control.

g. Telecommunication issues that Hosting Photography cannot control.

h. Network floods, hacks, attacks from outside parties or individuals. Failure or error of any Hosting Photography monitoring or measurement system.

i. Customer acts or omissions, including without limitation, any negligence, wilful misconduct, or use of Hosting Photography service(s) in breach of Hosting Photography Policy and Service Guidelines (Terms of Service), by customer or others authorised by Customers.

6. Hardware

a. Hosting Photography stands behind all equipment on our network. Faulty hardware is rare, but cannot be predicted or avoided. Hosting Photography will replace all faulty hardware affecting performance levels or unavailability within 48 hours, which includes hardware issues that cause server crashes or speed issues. Router failure is an exception to this SLA guarantee, and may require on-site Cisco engineers or backbone provider emergency personnel to correct the problem. Router failure is governed by current Hosting Photography contracts with Cisco and backbone providers in regard to the emergency repair service in case of such an issue. Hosting Photography will replace all faulty hardware on dedicated servers (rented or leased servers), at no charge to the Customer, with an unlimited free replacement policy.

7. Performance Credits

a. Performance credits are based upon a discount of the next month’s hosting fees, and are awarded for the next upcoming billing cycle.

1 Performance Credit = 2% of Monthly Hosting Fee.

b. The total amount credited to a Customer for Hosting Photography not meeting SLA service levels will not exceed the service fees paid by Customer for such services for the period in question. Performance credits will not exceed 50 in one given billing cycle.

c. Customers should notify support via email to claim performance credits within 48 hours of the service outage.

8. Account Cancellation

a. Your account can be cancelled by submitting an email to support 48 hours before the next billing cycle (before your next monthly payment is due).

b. If the account is cancelled within the first 30 days a full refund for the hosting services will be given within 7 days of cancellation. Domain Name registration fees cannot be refunded. This does not apply to Customers in breach of the Terms of Service.

9. General

a. Hosting Photography reserves the right to change any or all of the above service level agreements. All changes will be public at this location. Hosting Photography will update customers any change occurring to this SLA within 48 hours of the change occurring via the members section.

b. Hosting Photography cannot be held liable for system downtime, crashes, or data loss. We cannot be held liable for any predicted estimate of profits in which a customer would have gained if their site was functioning. Certain services provided by Hosting Photography are resold. Thus, certain equipment, routing, software, and programming used by Hosting Photography are not directly owned or written by Hosting Photography. Moreover, Hosting Photography holds no responsibility for the use of our customer accounts. If any terms or conditions are failed to be followed, the account in question will be automatically deactivated. We reserve the right to remove any account without advanced notice for any reason without restitution as Hosting Photography sees fit.