What an SLA includes
A well-drafted SLA for a cloud-based central station should include these key parameters:
- Availability (uptime) - expressed as a percentage per year or month. For example, 99.9% availability means a maximum of approximately 8.7 hours of downtime per year.
- RTO (Recovery Time Objective) - maximum time to restore service after an outage.
- Support response time - how quickly the provider confirms receipt of the report and initiates resolution.
- Compensation - what is due to the customer if the SLA is breached. This is typically a discount on the monthly fee.
- Definition of a breakdown - whether degraded performance is included in the outage or only complete unavailability.
How to read percentage availability
The availability figure in the SLA is attractive, but you must know exactly what it means. Converting it to a specific time will help:
- 99,9 % - approximately 8.7 hours of downtime per year, or approximately 44 minutes per month.
- 99,99 % - approximately 52 minutes of downtime per year, or about 4 minutes per month.
Equally important is what counts as an outage. Part of the SLA excludes scheduled maintenance or outages caused by the customer's connection. Read how precisely the provider defines an outage and whether it also includes degraded call quality.
Questions to ask before signing the contract
When selecting a cloud-based PBX, focus on these points in the SLA:
- Is availability guaranteed for the entire infrastructure or only for selected parts?
- Is there a public status page where outages can be monitored in real time?
- How and until when can a claim for compensation for an SLA breach be submitted?
- Are deposits and their frequency also part of the SLA?
At virtualni-ustredna.cz, SLA terms are part of the contract and we will be happy to explain them when setting up your service.
SLA and contingency plan for outages
An SLA cannot prevent an outage; it only guarantees a response and compensation. For businesses reliant on telephony, it is therefore advisable to have their own contingency plan: for example, call forwarding to mobile numbers in the event of a central office failure.
Cloud-based central units offer an advantage over physical ones. They are operated in redundant data centres and outages are statistically less frequent. Nevertheless, we recommend having a list of mobile numbers ready to which calls will be redirected should an outage occur.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 99.9% availability in an SLA mean?
Availability of 99.9% means the provider guarantees a maximum of approximately 8.7 hours of downtime per year, or approximately 44 minutes per month. Shorter unplanned outages are included within this limit.
What to do if the SLA provider breaches the agreement?
Typically, an outage must be documented, start and end time, method of verification, and a compensation claim submitted within the period specified in the contract. The exact procedure is usually described directly in the SLA or service terms.
Is an SLA important even for a small company?
Yes. Even a small business relies on the telephone to receive orders or communicate with customers. An SLA provides you with a legal basis for claiming compensation in the event of an outage and precise information on how quickly the issue will be resolved.