How to get information, help, and technical assistance
If you need help, service, technical assistance, or want more information about IBM® products, you can find a wide variety of sources available from IBM to assist you.
Information
IBM maintains pages on the web where you can get information about IBM products and fee services, product implementation and usage assistance, break and fix service support, and the latest technical information. For more information, refer to Table 1.
| Website | Address |
|---|---|
| Directory of worldwide contacts | http://www.ibm.com/planetwide |
| Support for SAN Volume Controller (2145) | www.ibm.com/support |
| Support for IBM System Storage® and IBM TotalStorage products | www.ibm.com/support |
Help and service
Before you call for support, be sure to have your IBM Customer Number available. If you are in the US or Canada, you can call 1 (800) IBM SERV for help and service. From other parts of the world, see http://www.ibm.com/planetwide for the number that you can call.
When you call from the US or Canada, choose the storage option. The agent decides where to route your call, to either storage software or storage hardware, depending on the nature of your problem.
If you call from somewhere other than the US or Canada, you must choose the software or hardware option when you call for assistance. Choose the software option if you are uncertain if the problem involves the SAN Volume Controller software or hardware. Choose the hardware option only if you are certain the problem solely involves the SAN Volume Controller hardware. When you call IBM to service the product, follow these guidelines for the software and hardware options:
- Identify the SAN Volume Controller product as your product and supply your customer number as proof of purchase. The customer number is a 7-digit number (0000000 - 9999999) assigned by IBM when the product is purchased. Your customer number might be on the customer information worksheet or on the invoice from your storage purchase. If asked for an operating system, use Storage.
- Provide the serial number and appropriate 4-digit machine type. For SAN Volume Controller , the machine type is 2145 .
In the US and Canada, hardware service and support can be extended to 24 x 7 on the same day. The base warranty is 9x5 on the next business day.
Getting help online
You can find information about products, solutions, partners, and support on the IBM website.
To find up-to-date information about products, services, and partners, visit the IBM website at www.ibm.com/support.
Before you call
Make sure that you take steps to try to solve the problem yourself before you call.
Using the documentation
Information about your IBM storage system is available in the documentation that comes with the product.
That documentation includes printed documents, online documents, readme files, and help files in addition to the Knowledge Center. See the troubleshooting information for diagnostic instructions. The troubleshooting procedure might require you to download updated device drivers or software . IBM maintains pages on the web where you can get the latest technical information and download device drivers and updates. To access this information, go to www.ibm.com/support and follow the instructions. Also, some documents are available through the IBM Publications Center.
Sign up for the Support Line Offering
If you have questions about how to use and configure the machine, sign up for the IBM Support Line offering to get a professional answer.
The maintenance that is supplied with the system provides support when there is a problem with a hardware component or a fault in the system machine code. At times, you might need expert advice about using a function that is provided by the system or about how to configure the system. Purchasing the IBM Support Line offering gives you access to this professional advice for your system, and in the future.
Contact your local IBM sales representative or your support group for availability and purchase information.