Understanding Support Contracts #

A support contract provides time-based support to customers. This is separate from licenses – a customer can have a license without support, or support without active licensing (though usually they have both).

What is a Support Contract? #

Each support contract has:

• Start Date: When support begins
• End Date: When support expires
• Support Level: None, Basic, Premium, Enterprise, Consulting, Custom
• Incident Limits: How many support tickets included (or unlimited)
• Channels: Which support channels available (email, ticket, chat, phone)
• Response SLA: Maximum response time (in hours)
• Customer: Who has this support
• Product: Which product it covers (optional – can be account-wide)

Support vs. License #

License = Software Usage Rights

“You can use this software”

Support Contract = Help & Assistance

“We’ll help you use this software”

These are separate:

• Active license + no support = Software works, but no help from vendor
• Expired license + active support = Can’t use software, but can still get help
• Active both = Full experience

Common Support Models #

Model A: Support Included with License

Most common. License + 1 year support bundled. After year one, customer can:

• Renew license + support together
• Renew support only (keep using existing software, get help)
• Let both expire (software keeps working, no updates/help)

Model B: Support Separate Purchase

License is lifetime. Support is annual add-on. Customer buys:

• License once (lifetime usage)
• Support annually (optional)

Model C: No Formal Support

Community forum only. No paid support offered. Suitable for:

• Open source projects
• Free plugins with donations
• Low-margin products

Support Levels #

Basic

Email support, 48-hour response, business hours only.

Premium

Priority email, 24-hour response, includes live chat.

Enterprise

All channels (email, ticket, chat, phone), 4-hour response, 24/7 availability.

Consulting

Dedicated support person, custom SLA, hands-on help.

Related Topics #

• [Managing Support Contracts](#) (Part 10)
• [Support Configuration](#)
• [Support Desk Extension](#)