Applied Imagination

Custom Computer Solutions

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Proactive Matrix

Prime Support Proactive Program Matrix

Core Program includes Network and Desktops

NETWORK HEALTH ASSESSMENT

Quite important for new customers, optional for existing customers. Time can be budgeted for us to complete the Network Health Assessment, or we can supply the forms for a self appraisal. Depending on customer needs and desires, the Network Health Assessment typically requires four to eight hours to complete and covers such areas as follows:

  • Business Needs Assessment - relevant questions that will help us to understand how your organization leverages IT to support your corporate objectives.
  • IT Needs Assessment - a list of questions to be presented to each key stakeholder (individually or as a group), understanding that different groups use the systems in different ways.
  • Security and Regulatory Compliance Needs Assessment - Covers 20 areas of concern.
  • Site Assessment - Documentation of Server, LAN, Firewall, PC, VPN, WAN, Remote Access, Internet Access, and other service needs.
  • Inventory - Critical Hardware, Software, and Database resources
  • IT Policy - Internet, e-mail, instant messenger, password security, PC software standards, new employee startup, employee termination, disaster recovery, system provisioning, data classification, asset management, IT administration.
  • Software License Entitlement - helps to alert you to inadvertent illegal license level excursions.
  • Network Capacity, Documentation and Health
  • Backup and Recovery Strategy
  • Anti-Virus / Anti-Spam Assessment
  • Patch Management
  • Information Security Policy
  • Threat / Risk Analysis

 

SERVER MONITORING AND SERVICES

Servers & Server Applications:
Monitored items for servers and server applications.
Availability and Connectivity
Hardware Metrics: CPU, Hard Disk Capacity, Memory
Log File Monitoring
Patch Level Monitoring and Advanced Patch Management (using Windows Server Update Service - WSUS)
This does not require the purchase of a WSUS server or software. The cost is included in the Prime Support
Proactive Program.
NETWORKING APPLIANCES MONITORING: Routers/Switches
Monitored items for the routers and switches.
Availability and Connectivity
Monitoring beyond availability and connectivity will be determined by the capability of the customer's
equipment.

 

BACKUP MONITORING

Monitored items for Backup.
Monitoring of on-site backup solution - success / failure using Log file monitoring
Monitoring beyond success / failure may be possible depending upon the capability of the customer's software.

 

BASIC SECURITY MONITORING AND SERVICES

Monitored items for Security and Services.
Advanced Monitoring by Applied Imagination, Inc.'s Network Operations Center:
Firewall Availability monitoring
Log file monitoring
Anti-Virus monitoring on servers & definition updates on servers
Warranty Expiration and Asset tracking and management
DESKTOP MONITORING AND SERVICES
Monitored items for the desktop.
Workstation Availability and Connectivity
Hardware Metrics: CPU, Hard Disk Capacity, Memory
Anti-Virus monitoring on desktops & definition updates on desktops
Patch Level Monitoring and Basic Patch Management using Windows Server Update Service (WSUS).
Purchase of WSUS server and software is not required for Prime Support Proactive Plan customers. These
services are included in the subscription.

 

OTHER FEATURES

Availability of ISP / Internet Connectivity
VPN - connectivity and errors
E-commerce site availability
Printer Monitoring - monitoring of paper and toner levels
UPS Monitoring

 

LABOR SERVICES

Reactive Support - Unscheduled
We typically suggest adding at least two hours of discounted labor with the Prime Support Proactive Plan. This
will enable us to start working as soon as we detect a potential problem. Other cost saving discounts are
available to our managed services clients.
Additional discounts available to Prime Support Proactive Program customers:
We are now offering the option to purchase discounted pre-paid blocks of time.
Blocks of 5 hours are available at a discounted rate and can be added to the program.
The block hours carry over month to month but unused hours reset to zero every quarter.
Customers who are Time and Material and are not under contract, are subject to a trip charge of 1/2 hour at the
prevailing rate. There are no trip charges for managed services customers.

Preventative Maintenance
One goal of the Prime Support Proactive Program is to consistently deliver a high level of support. To further this goal, we have developed checklists which define best practices for the maintenance and support of the more popular software and hardware products used by business. For example, our Exchange 2003 Server checklist is a 12 page document. This method leaves nothing to chance and insures that we consistently deliver the highest level of support.
We are able to schedule periodic maintenance using our Network Operation Center scripting capability. For example, defragmenting a hard drive is helpful in keeping a computer running at its peak, but it is frequently overlooked. We have the ability to schedule and script recurring maintenance using the advanced capabilities of our software.
Server and Network Maintenance - via remote control to save you more time and money.
We perform monthly cross-checking scans to ensure your servers anti-virus software is working properly.
Prime Support Proactive Program customers are eligible for a discounted labor rate when we are working remotely. Using our remote control capabilities, we can resolve many Firewall, Server, Backup and Exchange and other E-mail server problems.
Other Labor
No trip charges for managed services customers within a specified radius
Customers who are Time and Material and are not under contract, are subject to a trip charge of 1/2 hour at the prevailing rate.

 

REPORTING

Quarterly Reports to help explain what we have been doing and what's going on with the network
Executive Summary will be supplied in the form of an email with a PDF attachment.
Asset tracking
Incident summary report
ISP Availability
Firewall Availability

 

PLANNING & BUDGETING

Scheduled Quarterly meetings to discuss:
Questions about the network and performance of network resources.
Plans for business and how the latest technology can be of assistance.
Latest trends in computer equipment.
Performance enhancing upgrades to get the most out of your IT investment.
A heads up regarding new technology that may be worth budgeting for.
Trends and recurring problems we have detected to help avoid trouble.

 

SERVICE RESPONSE

Phone call or email to customer within 15 minutes of problem detection.
Start troubleshooting within 2 hours for Category 1 problems or 4 hours for Category 2 problems. Category 3 problems are queued for response as soon as possible.
The Response Time is based on a best effort. Response Time is different from Resolution Time, there is no
commitment on Resolution Time and there are no contractual penalties if the Response Time is exceeded.

 

OPTIONAL BUNDLES

Help Desk
Since the Prime Support Proactive program includes two hours non-scheduled reactive labor, the Help Desk
option will make labor available at a discounted rate and save the two hours for emergency remediation of any problems that are detected.
Although it is variable, dependent upon customer needs, we suggest 15 minutes per user per month or bundles of three hours. This time rolls over and accumulates until the start of a new quarter, whereupon the time resets.