all-in-one it support.
for small businesses

it support faq

• What is all-in-one IT support?

  Our all-in-one IT support takes the concept of managed IT services and bundles everything you need into a single package.

  We include everything that most businesses need to work productively and securely. You don't need extra cost options to get the essentials.

  We feel strongly that security isn't optional. It's a necessity and that is why our all-in-one IT support includes 24/7 managed detection and response for your workstations, plus backup, training, a password manager, IT policies, and more.  It's a comprehensive solution to your business that greatly increases productivity whilst significantly reducing the risk of cyber attacks or other disasters.

  For a full list of everything that's included have a look at our detailed support service options page.

• Is on-site support included?

  On site support is included with All-in-One Business Essentials (7+ staff) when we feel that we can’t resolve an issue remotely.  We'll agree a convenient time for one of our engineers to attend your premises as soon as possible to get you back up and running.

  We can also provide on-site support to our smaller All-in-One Business Basic (up to 6 staff) customers at our standard labour rate.  It's not included on this package and this is reflected in the lower cost.

• Are there options for support outside business hours?

  Support outside of our standard business hours is not provided as standard.  However, it can be provided by arrangement.

  Get in touch with us if you have specific needs.

• How do you remotely access and manage my systems?

  We install software on each of your workstations.  We call these agents. We then use specialist software that connects to the agent and allows us to remotely access your computer. The agent not only allows us to connect and see what you’re seeing, but also our team to automate the installation of updates and patches for you.

  We always ask before we connect to a device and the onscreen display let you know when we are connected too.

  We also offer this secure remote connection tool to you and your staff for free so that you can remotely control your devices in the office when you are working from home.

• How am I protected from cyber threats?

  Cybersecurity is of paramount importance to us. That is why we employ a multi-layered approach to protect our customers.

  On a technical level we install advanced Managed Detection & Response (MDR) endpoint protection on all your computers and servers. This provides state of the art malware scanning and protection which is backed by a 24/7 Security Operations Centre who monitor all alerts around the clock.

  At the software level we ensure that all systems we provide are locked down and require multifactor authentication (MFA) to keep user accounts secure. Even if your email and password are ever exposed in a data breach, then you can rest safe in the knowledge that there is a third line of defence for your accounts.

  At the people level, we provide weekly cyber awareness courses, delivered straight to staff’s mailboxes and tailored to them. Almost all successful cyberattacks are a result of human error or human manipulation, so training staff regularly is the best defence possible. With courses being curated to individual’s strengths and weaknesses, your risk is reduced significantly and quickly.

  Although not included as standard, if you have on-premise servers we may also recommend options including advanced firewalls, VPN's and SEIM solutions.  We make these recommendations during onboarding based on your specific business requirements, risk appetite and any requirements imposed such as cyber insurance.

  Security is always our number one priority.

• Do you support Macs?

  We support Macs as well as Windows devices. So long as your Mac device receives security updates to its operating system then we can support it.

  We install the same tools that we do for Windows users to make sure that you're completely protected.

   

• How fast will you respond? Is there an SLA?

  When you call our helpdesk you generally speak directly to the person that's going to fix your problem.  Our average response time is therefore very fast <10 mins.

  However, we also have a contractual Service Level Agreement (SLA) that we apply to all customers as standard.  There are no extra cost options for jumping the queue.  Everyone is equal. 

  So how does this work?

  We operate a Shared Services business model. It means you’re sharing our whole team of IT support specialists with the rest of our clients. Whilst this is good as you don’t have to invest in and manage your own internal IT team, it means that we can’t always offer immediate support 100% of the time (we wish we could, and we do try, but we’d need to charge 10x the price!).

  What we provide is fast and reliable support when you need it most.

  To keep things fair, we categorise all issues into priorities and work them in order of impact and urgency. This means that when you have a critical issue – we can work on it immediately (by taking a little longer to work on your lower priority tasks).

  SLA Impact vs Urgency

  impact / urgency	high urgency	medium urgency	low urgency
  high impact	priority 1 critical	priority 2 high	priority 3 medium
  medium impact	priority 2 high	priority 3 medium	priority 4 low
  low impact	priority 3 medium	priority 4 low	priority 4 low

   

  To help make sense of that table we’ve got some definitions below that we use:

  Levels of Severity/Urgency:

  • Low Urgency: One user or a small group of users is affected
  • Medium Urgency: Departments or large group of users are affected
  • High Urgency: Whole company is affected
    
    

  Business Impact:

  • Low Impact: No significant impact on the day-to-day business processes
  • Medium Impact: Business is degraded, but there is a reasonable work around
  • High Impact: Critical, Major business processes are stopped

  
  Once we’ve allocated a priority to an issue, we then aim to deal with it within the maximum times set out in the table below:

  SLA Priority vs Response time

  Priority	respond within*	plan within*	resolve within*
  priority 1 - critical	1 hour	2 hours	8 hours
  priority 2 - high	2 hours	4 hours	16 hours
  priority 3 - medium	4 hours	8 hours	24 hours
  priority 4 - low	8 hours	16 hours	48 hours

  * Business Hours (Note that resolution times are not guaranteed as there can be many factors out of our control.)

  Please our blog on the subject of SLA's for an even more in-depth discussion about the topic.

• How do you calculate support costs?

  We work out your support costs based on the number of people and devices that you have.

  1. We charge per supported person and include support for their device in that charge.
  2. We charge an overage for any extra devices that your organisation uses over and above the number of supported people.
  3. Separately we look at the number of locations and the number of servers you have, and work out any extra costs associated with those.

  You can use our pricing calculator tool above to work out how much all-in-one IT support would cost you.

• What are your support hours?

  Correct as of 01/01/2024 - our business hours are 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday.

  We close on the Christmas and Scottish New Year public holidays.

  We offer a reduced service focused on emergency support between Christmas and New Year and on all other Local or national public holidays through the year. 

• What is the process for signing up?

  To get started request a formal proposal.  This is an expanded version of the price calculator proposal and allows you to electronically sign and agree to our terms and conditions. 

  Thereafter we'll get your account setup including the direct debit mandate.

  Our 6-step onboarding process makes moving to us a smooth experience. You get a workbook that guides us through a process of regular meetings to ensure that everyone knows what is happening and when.

  Don't forget that if you are unhappy with our service you can cancel at any time in the first 90 days and we'll refund your monthly support fee in full, excluding 3rd party software such as Microsoft 365. 

• How long are contracts?

  Our contracts are for 3 years initially and renew every year thereafter.

  We include a 90 day cooling off period in our contracts so if the fit doesn’t feel right then you’re not committed.

  We feel that a 3 year period provides a good window of stability for your IT and gives you confidence for forecasting and IT budgeting.

• Is my data safe and compliant with regulations?

  We ensure that all vendors that we use to deliver our services comply with UK data protection and the GDPR regulations. This includes using UK and EU datacentres wherever possible.  

  We also monitor our suppliers security posture and take measures in our own processes to limit the possibility of supply chain attacks.  This is when an issue affecting them disrupts and cascades downwards to us and then you.

  Your Microsoft 365 is hosted by Microsoft in either the EU or UK and these data centres have multiple redundancies built-in and are SOC2 compliant.

  All of our Microsoft 365 and Server Backup data is stored in UK data centres and if you have servers we ensure there is a local copy of that data on your premises too.  All Backups are AES-256 encrypted. Backups are taken as a minimum every 24 hours and to ensure that you always have a recent copy of your data available in a disaster recovery scenario.

  Where you have other regulatory requirements we will work with you to ensure that you are fully compliant.

• Can I cancel the contract if I'm not satisfied?

  Our 90 day guarantee means that if you're not happy with the service you're getting within the first 90 days of your contract then you can walk away without penalty and even get the cost of your support back.

  (excludes cost of licences consumed, backup storage costs incurred and other such consumables)