Service Level Agreement
Information Technology Systems
The University of Texas at Austin
Effective Date: 7/01/2008
Last Edited: 9/08/2009
Score
Overview
Austin Active Directory (AD) service is a Windows Server 2008 Active Directory populated by the university's EID system. This Active Directory provides the authentication infrastructure for the Austin Exchange Messaging Service (AEMS), provides centralized Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) authentication for several campus services including Blackboard (courses.utexas.edu) and WebSpace (webspace.utexas.edu), and controls access to computing resources in participating departments.
Review Process
This document defines the practices that Information Technology Services (ITS) will use for the Austin Active Directory (AD) service. The details of this document may be reviewed and amended as required, or at least annually, to accurately reflect business and service needs.
Time Conventions
Unless otherwise indicated, business hours are from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding holidays and reduced schedule days.
Scope
The following user communities at the university are the intended recipients for the Austin Active Directory service: All students, faculty and staff who are registered users of the university's computing and Web services. This service is available to all campus departments to facilitate the adoption of Windows 2003 and 2008 servers and Windows XP and Windows Vista desktop computers.
Service Criticality
This service has been identified as Critical, based on the ITS Critical Services Assessment Criteria. Please refer to the Critical Services Assessment Criteria for more information on the assessment methodology.
Service Description
Supported Computing Environment
The Austin Active Directory service is provided as a central University service, with hardware, software and associated maintenance performed by ITS. In addition, this service provides for distributed administrative control for Organizational Unit (OU) administrators. The service and support levels documented in this SLA assume certain minimum configurations in the user desktop environment. The minimum recommended operating system requirements are:
- Windows Desktop: Windows Vista, XP Professional SP1
- Windows Server: Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003 SP2
- Macintosh Desktop: Mac OS 10.4
For the latest information on tested systems and a complete list of supported procedures, refer to the ITS Web site: http://www.utexas.edu/its/ad.
Technical Support
Technical support and problem report/resolution will be provided through one of two paths, depending upon whether a user has a departmental Technical Support Contact (TSC).
Tier 1 Support
For users with a departmental TSC, Tier 1 support for end-user problems is provided by the TSC. This is the preferred approach and will aid in resolving the issue in the most efficient manner.
In cases where a TSC is not available, the ITS Help Desk provides Tier 1 support for end-user problems during business hours at:
- http://www.utexas.edu/its/help
- 512-475-9400
Tier 2 Support
- Departmental TSCs or the ITS Help Desk may escalate issues to Tier 2 support.
- Tier 2 support is available during normal business hours.
- Routine requests are typically addressed within one business day.
Find additional information and technical support at: http://www.utexas.edu/its/ad.
End users always start with Tier 1, which is basic support. Tier 2 is the second support level and is reserved for more complex issues. Departmental desktop support staff and the ITS Help Desk may escalate issues to Tier 2.
Service Availability
This section provides information about the normal schedule of times when the service is available, the times specified for scheduled maintenance, and defines expectations for reporting service problems and changes.
Normal Service Availability
Austin Active Directory is designed to be available for customer use 24-hours per day, seven days per week, 365 days per year (24x7x365), excluding scheduled maintenance times.
Scheduled Maintenance
Scheduled maintenance is critical for upgrades and to maintain security. Scheduled installation of security updates occurs during the seven days following the second Tuesday of the month. Other maintenance tasks that require service downtime will be announced at least five days in advance.
Problem Reporting and Change Notification
Windows Enterprise Support (WES) provides a mailing list for Austin Active Directory administrators that serves as the primary communication method on matters concerning Austin Active Directory management.
Staff with administrative privileges are required to subscribe to the ad-personnel@utlists.utexas.edu mailing list. See the UT Lists Web site for instructions for subscribing.
ITS will notify customers using the ITS Services Status page of service availability and service delivery issues for the Austin Active Directory. To the maximum extent possible, installation of service, application, and security updates will be performed during scheduled maintenance.
Key Service Indicators
List of Metrics/Measures
| Measurement | Definition | Performance Target |
|---|---|---|
| Overall Availability [1] | The percent of time that the service is available. | 99.2% |
| Customer Satisfaction Percent | The sum/average of all responses in the customer report card | 4 (Agree or Strongly Agree) |
1 Note: The Overall Availability is calculated as the hours that the service is available in the reporting period divided by the total hours in the reporting period. This availability percentage reflects scheduled and unscheduled downtime.
Dependencies
Austin Active Directory is dependent upon the University Data Center power, the network, and related systems. The availability of those systems will have a direct impact on the availability of this service.
Service Report Card
ITS will publish performance for this service in the public ITS Services Report Card.
Other Party Responsibilities
In addition to the services provided by ITS, subscribers (users) of the service and identified owners/administrators agree to certain important responsibilities. All parties agree to be aware of and adhere to the university's Acceptable Use Policy.
User/Subscriber Responsibilities
- Provide ITS with contact information for departmental TSC through your ITS contact, and notify ITS of changes.
- Subscribe to the ad-personnel list (ad-personnel@utlists.utexas.edu). This is the primary means that ITS communicates changes to department TSC personnel. For instructions see http://www.utexas.edu/its/mailinglists/subscribing.php.
- Designate at least one secondary TSC for each department.
- Be familiar with the online documentation at http://www.utexas.edu/its/ad.
- Provide critical information to ITS in a timely manner when requested for purposes of resolving subscriber issues.
Departmental IT Support Staff
Provide Tier 1 support for users in the supported department.
Cost of Service
There is no direct billable end-user or departmental costs for this service.
