For modern businesses, application downtime can have severe consequences – lost revenue, lower productivity, reputational damage, and more.
Microsoft Assure support, the 24/7 support offering for Dynamics 365, helps customers maintain business continuity by providing always-on assistance for disruptive issues.
An Always-On Safety Net
Microsoft Assure delivers continuous 24/7 global support for Dynamics 365 customers via phone, web, and chat. Some key features include:
Immediate Access to Support Engineers
Get instant access to skilled support engineers around the clock to diagnose and troubleshoot critical Dynamics 365 issues.
Fast Response Times
Assure provides 1-hour response time for disruptive incidents that impact application availability and business operations.
Ongoing Issue Tracking
Support tickets raised via Assure are closely tracked until effective resolution of the underlying problem.
Root Cause Analysis
Engineers drill down to determine root causes of recurring incidents to develop permanent fixes.
With Assure, customers gain a reliable support safety net to limit disruption.
Maintaining Availability in Emergencies
During major incidents that affect Dynamics 365 availability and performance, Assure helps stabilize operations quickly:
Identifying Failure Points
Engineers work to pinpoint the source of failures – database, network, integrations, etc. – to focus on remediation.
Applying Known Fixes
Assure maintains extensive internal knowledge bases to apply proven fixes to common incidents.
Engaging Development Resources
For unique issues, support engineers can escalate to Dynamics engineering teams to develop fixes.
Communicating Progress
Regular status updates are provided throughout the mitigation process until full restoration.
With these capabilities, Assure resolves emergencies faster to restore services.
Prioritizing Business-Critical Apps
Assure offers differentiated support levels so organizations can align response times to their most critical applications:
Defining Severity Levels
Severity levels (P1-P4) are established to designate the relative business impact of incidents.
Mapping Apps to Severities
Dynamics 365 instances are mapped to appropriate severity levels based on their business criticality.
Tuning Response Times
Different response times – from 1 hour for P1 issues to the next business day for P4 – are configured based on severity.
Optimizing Support Resources
Tiered severities allow Assure to optimize support resources to focus on higher-priority apps first.
This priority-based support enables aligning responses to business needs.
Restoring Operations During Planned Maintenance
Beyond unplanned incidents, Assure also provides assistance for scheduled platform maintenance events:
Reviewing Maintenance Details
Upcoming maintenance notifications are reviewed to determine scope, timing, expected impact etc.
Developing Backup Plans
Contingency procedures are developed to switch to backup systems if maintenance overruns.
Monitoring Progress
Engineers closely track maintenance progress and Dynamics health during the event.
Guiding Restoration
After maintenance concludes, Assure helps validate services restoration and troubleshoot any issues.
These support capabilities help minimize disruption during planned downtime.
Getting Back on Track Post-Incident
Once incidents are mitigated, Assure continues to provide support to fully restore normal operations:
Conducting Root Cause Reviews
Detailed reviews are conducted to establish root causes and prevent future recurrences.
Implementing Compensating Controls
Where permanent fixes require longer timelines, temporary compensating controls are implemented to reduce exposure.
Tuning Performance
Database, network and application configurations are tuned to optimize performance.
Retraining End Users
Refresher training is provided to end users on utilizing Dynamics after an outage. This ongoing assistance accelerates recovery post-incident.
Delivering Continuous Improvements
In addition to reactive issue resolution, Assure also helps customers improve Dynamics platforms proactively:
Performing Health Checks
Regular health checks assess Dynamics configurations, resource utilization, data integrity etc.
Recommending Optimizations
Support engineers recommend steps to optimize performance, strengthen security, reduce bottlenecks etc. based on health check findings.
Advising on Releases
Guidance is provided on timing for Dynamics version updates, new feature releases etc. based on business needs.
Sharing Best Practices
Microsoft’s extensive customer engagement provides useful tips and tricks to follow best practices. These proactive practices enhance resilience over time.
