Inept Out sourced script monkeys

[gurner]

How about this, anyone ever had a really bad experiance with a big name manufacturer tech support script reader that has caused untold damge because of their ineptitude?

this case is regarding a customer we deal with who own several *big name* servers, and as such servers because of the manufacturer way of supporting them, the hardware is not covered by ourselves, rather they have to go to *big name*

Well a DC there overheated at the week end and proceeded to refuse to boot, after some preliminary basic checks i had to conceed he would have to call *big name* (i was told to, because of the hardware policy)

this was at 9am, 3pm now, we get a call back saying the server is running again.

Except, it has been completely wiped, formatted, fdisked, whatever. It is a brand new bare back install of Win2k3, no trace of AD having ever existed.

Fortunately there was a backup DC, but imagine our joy now having got it back on the LAN and having RDP re-activated. The part covered under support, the OS, now has us dcpromo'ing it, getting DHCP running (before clients start falling over) e.t.c. (worked out quicker than a backup restore)

Web filters falling over coz they were only configured to poll one DC (the broken one, that sort of thing)

oh joy

Gurner

http://www.divineparadox.co.uk

 

[edfair]

I understand your pain. I've seen several where the support followed the script suggestions and the customer wasn't wary enough to ask the right questions.

I ask my customers to let me sit in on the support call, or make the call myself, so the right questions get asked. I've had several booted to 2nd level support because the questions I ask are beyond what the script handles.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[bcastner]

As a bare metal reinstall of the server OS apparently resolved issues, your claim that it was "overheating" or a hardware issue seems suspect. I agree with you the client should not have followed blindly the tech support suggestions given, but that is what you offered them as the "repair".

And, if you have a support contract for the server OS and cannot do a bare metal reinstall, you should revise your backup and disaster planning plans, or be fired.

 

[edfair]

With the restrictive contracts that customers now have to sign I can understand the problems getting the system back up.
In some similar cases my services are limited to "best effort" by mutual agreement. This is a trust issue between me and my customer. I explain the problems, some possible solutions, and the probable issues that can befall them. And they have to understand that I can't perform miracles to resolve issues that their suppliers force them to accept.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[strongm]

>they have to understand that I can't perform miracles

Experience with a number of clients over the last twenty years indicates that they are indeed prepared to believe this - right up to the moment something important breaks ...

 

[edfair]

It isn't a recent phenomonon. I had the same issues 40 years ago. Just with different technologies.
Then the question becomes "Do you want me here to hold the crying towel and possibly pull some of the chestnuts out of the fire, or do you want to go it alone, because you were warned"? I don't charge extra for mopping up tears.

Ed Fair
Give the wrong symptoms, get the wrong solutions.

 

[gurner]

i dont know exactly what the manufacturer support got them to do, as it looked like a hardware issue, the contract sold to them stated that as they bought the server themselves from manufacturer (not HP), rather than one of our HP builds then they would have to contact them.

and said manufacturer only seem to do a hardware replacement if the end user contacts them and goes through their frustracting obvious scripted call.

We get a call, 'our servers overheated last night, and won't boot', their account manager here goes 'is it a D***?' we go is it a D***?

the answers yes, so we are told, tell them to call the manufacturer

Backup and Disaster plans are the end users responsibility, we are not anyones system maintainer, we are there as support to their issues, such as Help my email doesn't work and 'I cant figure out why'

Or the internet has gone down (love that one, ha)

well we probably put the Router in or installed Exchange, yep, did according to notes, lets help them.

We are a 3rd line support to products supplied by ourselves, Cisco, HP, M$, e.t.c. contacted to an internal IT department at the end user, so if a techie there is not aware of the impact a manufacturer is pushing them towards then i hardly think a support department that would have happily helped but was forced not to because of circumstnaces needs to lose any staff.

Gurner

http://www.divineparadox.co.uk