February 18th, 2010
Rackspace Professional Services
Yesterday we introduced the start of the product changes for 2010 and beyond.
One of those items we talked about was called Professional Services.
This is a Rackspace service that allows you to engage with a professional Linux Sysadmin team who will be able to install and configure your Slice in whatever manner you require.
Why?
A common request from the forums as well as emails and tickets, is to ask if we are able to help with the installation of a LAMP stack or if we can build a software based Load Balanced solution and so on.
Although the articles site is a great resource for newcomers as well as experienced sysadmins, this 'hands on' facility is something we are very pleased to offer.
Remember we have excellent members of the community who are also willing and able to assist with your needs. I encourage you to ask on the forums for help but for those that want to take advantage of this service, please let us know and we will be happy to assist.
The cost of the service will vary depending on your requirements but it's based on time rather than complexity of the task. There is an initial commitment of 5 hours but if the task takes an hour, you would only get charged for that hour.
How?
To engage the Professional Services team and to see if they are a good fit for your needs, please submit a ticket via the Slicemanager requesting a call back.
We will pass your details to the team who will contact you and discuss your requirements. There is no obligation and if you feel it is not suitable for your needs then please feel no pressure to utilise the service.
If you have any questions, please submit a ticket and we'll be happy to help.
Cheers, Paul
February 18th, 2010 at 11:11 PM Adam
It’s nice to see Slicehost offering more size options but nothing really innovative or competitive with these new additions. As a customer with multiple slices I’m still waiting for features that make managing my environment easier and more reliable.
The community at Slicehost has definitely evolved since I spun up my first slice in 2007. It appears from the outside that company attitude and quality of service has changed at the same time.
I’m hoping for more from Slicehost in 2010.
February 18th, 2010 at 11:25 PM Adam
(my comment above was meant for yesterday’s post)
I’m sure some will moan about the Rackspace Professional Services offering is moving away from Slicehost’s “built for developer” roots. I can see that. I also see the new service offering a solution to many of your customer base that probably shouldn’t be using Slicehost for production web hosting. Anyone spending a few minutes in the chatroom is aware there are customers requiring more hand holding then the niche Slicehost initially set out to serve.
February 19th, 2010 at 12:28 AM Drew
I think the offering is great, but can you give a little more information on pricing? The post says it’s based on time, so I’m guessing there’s an hourly rate? Just something so that we can know if it is going to be feasible at all.
February 19th, 2010 at 12:45 AM Mark
Drew,
Yes, the pricing is done at an hourly rate. If you want further details regarding the service, please do send us a ticket through the SliceManager and we will be happy to put you in touch with the Professional Services team directly.
February 19th, 2010 at 02:43 AM Jered
And do note the lack of a price isn’t Slicehost trying to be coy. We’re still getting familiar with Professional Services ourselves and don’t want to risk giving out bad information. A direct referral to people who know their offerings better is probably safer for everyone, considering I can’t find pricing on Rackspace’s own web pages advertising Professional Services either.
February 19th, 2010 at 03:58 AM Der
You need to update your support page so that the drop down box includes a choice for “professional services”, rather than having to choose a “problem” to report with your slice.
February 19th, 2010 at 01:34 PM JJ
Jered, if you guys are not familiar with the offering then why did you make the announcement? Sounds like you selling something that you are not sure how it works (like that salesman that sells the moon and sun and you only get an extremely overpriced pen in the mail). One stumble after another… We really miss Matt.
February 23rd, 2010 at 08:20 PM Corey
Seems like a natural progression as many organizations are drawn to the reliable VPS and total control aspect of Slicehost’s services, but would also want managed solutions/initial setup.
March 15th, 2010 at 02:13 AM Lewis Litanzios
Really useful for me. I’m a Designer, so I don’t have time to mess about with command line too much.
Decent Managed Hosting is EXPENSIVE these days, and if you don’t know what you’re doing with sysadmin stuff then there’s no choice but to use some crappy Shared Hosting solution – no good for me, or my clients.
Dedicated and Cloud solutions seems like the way forward, so personally this looks an accessible option to grind my teeth on.
June 24th, 2010 at 09:42 AM George Simmons
Well, Slicehost is great as always. Thank you for offering us the possibility to talk to professionals when needed. You become really more competitive.