Where is Azure Support available?
Support is available in markets where Microsoft Azure is offered. Some specific services may not be covered in all regions immediately after General Availability (GA).
For which languages does Microsoft provide support?
Microsoft provides support in nine languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Traditional Chinese, Korean, and Japanese.
Microsoft provides 24×7 support in English for all severities and in Japanese for severity A only. Support is available during local business hours only for all other supported languages and severities. Support outside business hours will be provided in English (with translation services). You may choose to wait for the next business day to receive support in your language.
Do I get 24x7 support?
Microsoft provides 24×7 in English for severity A and B and in Japanese for severity A. Developer support includes on severity C, the lowest severity level.
For all other supported languages, Microsoft provides assistance during local business hours only. During non-business hours, you can request to have an English-speaking engineer support you, with the option of using our free-of-charge translation services, if needed. You can also choose to wait until the next business day to receive help in one of the supported languages other than English.
What is considered local business hours for support?
For North America, Business Hours are defined as 6:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Pacific time, Monday through Friday excluding holidays for North America. Business Hours change by country and by the local holiday calendar. For most countries in the world, Business Hours refer to the hours between 9:00 A.M. and 5:00 P.M. during week days (weekends and holidays excluded)
Do I need a support plan if I need assistance with a technical issue experienced with Microsoft Azure?
Yes, you need an Azure paid support plan to receive one-on-one technical support. More information about the existing support plans can be found at the Azure Support Plans page.
What are my options to receive technical support if I don’t have a support plan?
You can raise questions on our Azure Forums. The forums are an online resource where you can connect with other Azure customers and experts to ask questions, share experiences, or find solutions. There are two forum options: MSDN and Stack Overflow. MSDN is a Microsoft online property; Stack Overflow is not associated or affiliated with Microsoft.
- Technical support benefits may be available even if you don’t have a support plan. If you are a member of certain programs like MPN, MSDN or BizSpark, you may be eligible for limited Azure Support benefits from those Programs. Please refer to your service terms and conditions to understand your support options and benefits.
- Your Azure subscription includes access to subscription management support (e.g. billing, quota adjustment, account transfer) at no additional cost. You can get started with your request in the Azure Portal. In addition, Microsoft Azure subscriptions include access to the Azure Status Dashboard and the Azure Forums to help you troubleshoot issues.
What support is included without an Azure Support plan?
Your Microsoft Azure subscription includes access to subscription management support (e.g. billing, quota adjustment, account transfer) at no additional cost. You can get started with your request in the Azure Portal. In addition, Microsoft Azure subscriptions include access to the Azure Status Dashboard and the Azure Forums to help you troubleshoot issues.
What support is included with an Azure Support plan?
We have designed our Azure Support plans to meet different business needs. Paid support plans provide access to Technical Support for break-fix issues on a 24×7 basis. Higher tiers of support plans offer faster initial response times and access to Advisory support, Configuration Optimization Reviews, and other benefits. More information about the existing support plans can be found at the Azure Support Plans page.
What is a break-fix issue?
Break-fix issues are technical problems you experience while using Azure services. “Break-fix” is an industry term that refers to “work involved in supporting a technology when it fails in the normal course of its function, which requires intervention by a support organization to be restored to working order.”
How does Professional Direct Limited Advisory Support compare to Premier Advisory support?
Professional Direct (ProDirect) Advisory support provides you access to Azure Support guidance based on (1) publically available, best practices documentation regarding Microsoft Azure and (2) information from the Azure Forums. ProDirect advisors offer you support based on their access to Microsoft documentation, to the Microsoft Azure Support Engineers, and also to the Microsoft Azure product group. Best practices guidance may include, for example,
What is a Preview (beta) service or feature?
Microsoft may provide access to Azure preview, beta, or other pre-release features, services, software, or regions, to obtain feedback and for evaluation purposes. Previews that are available are identified by a “Preview” tag in the Azure Portal. They are also listed on the Preview page or in the Preview section of the Azure Portal.
There are many different kinds of Preview Services and Features for Microsoft Azure, with service availability and program access being the biggest differentiators:
- Public Preview: made available to Microsoft Azure subscribers through the Azure Portal, these services are intended to be used as an early-look into what is coming and as a chance to test upcoming services and features.
- Private Preview: provided only to small subset of customers, in direct contact with the Azure Engineering teams, focused on direct and constant feedback during the development phase of a service
- Limited Preview: a fixed and limited number of customers can have access to this Preview program, and once a maximum threshold is met, no more users are allowed into the program.
When Microsoft offers you early access to Azure preview services and features, they are subject to reduced or different service terms as set forth in your service agreement and the preview supplemental terms. Preview Services and Features are provided “as-is”, “with all faults”, and “as available”, and are excluded from the Service SLAs or any Limited Warranties provided by Microsoft for Azure Services released to general availability (GA), and are made available to you on the condition that you agree to these terms of use, which supplement your agreement governing use of Microsoft Azure.
Do Azure Support Plans cover Preview (beta) services or features?
Support for Preview services and features is provided only for “Public Preview” programs (see FAQ above). Other non-Public Preview and/or Beta services may be supported through our forums or other channels. Azure Support plans do not cover non-Public Previews services.
Generally, Azure paid support plans provide technical support for services and features in Public Preview. Some exceptions to the Public Preview support coverage applies, and services/features not covered on your support plan can be found here. Private or Limited previews are not included in the scope of the Azure Support plans and may or may not be supported through the Azure Forums.
Technical support for a Public Preview service or feature is limited to break-fix scenarios and is available only in English with 24×7 support available for severities A and B (according to your support plan).
What are Azure Support Benefits and how do I get them?
Access to Azure technical support requires a paid support plan. However, some Microsoft programs could give you access to Azure technical support via Support Benefits even if you don’t have a paid support plan. The following programs include Azure Support Benefits:
- MSDN and BizSpark
- Microsoft Partner Network
- Signature Cloud Support
Each of these programs will give you different support benefits, from response times to the number of requests that can be submitted. Please check the details of each program from the links above for more information.
There are also some programs like MSDN and BizSpark Plus that give you other Microsoft Azure Benefits on top of access to Technical Support, such as monthly usage credits, free services and discounted consumption rates. Check the details of these programs for more information.