Google Cloud Platform Services: Technical Support Services Guidelines
Last modified: November 14, 2022
These technical support services guidelines (“Guidelines”) are incorporated into the agreement under which Google has agreed to provide Google Cloud Platform and related technical support (as described at https://cloud.google.com/terms/services) to Customer (the “Agreement”). Capitalized terms used but not defined in the Guidelines have the meaning given to them in the Agreement.
Regardless of any other statement in the Agreement or these Guidelines, Google does not offer Technical Support Services (“TSS”) to Customer for Cloud Identity or Looker Studio (except for Looker Studio Pro). For Cloud Identity Google will instead provide Customer support in accordance with the Cloud Identity Technical Support Services Guidelines (available at https://cloud.google.com/terms/identity/tssg). Google offers Customer support for the Looker Platform Services (as defined in the Looker Platform Support Services Guide) in accordance with the Looker Support Services Guide (available at https://cloud.google.com/terms/tssg/looker). Google offers TSS to Customer for Firebase services, except as described in the Firebase Technical Support Services Guide (available at https://cloud.google.com/terms/tssg/firebase/). Google offers TSS to Customer for Apigee, except as described in the Apigee Support Services Guide (available at https://cloud.google.com/terms/apigee-support-services-guide) and for Apigee Edge, TSS is offered in accordance with the Apigee Technical Support Services Guidelines (available at https://cloud.google.com/terms/apigee-support).
1. Generally. As part of Customer's purchase of Google Cloud Platform Services, Google will provide Basic (formerly Bronze) Support to Customer. Customer may order additional TSS for an additional fee.
2. Basic Support. Customer will receive automatic Services upgrades and Maintenance updates, support for billing inquiries, and access to documentation, white papers, online best practices guides, and community forums.
3. Support Request Submission.
3.1. First Line Support. Customer will provide first-level support to Customer End Users. Google will provide second-level support to Customer’s Designated Contacts only.
3.2. Customer Efforts to Fix Errors. Prior to making a request to Google, Customer will use reasonable efforts to fix any error, bug, malfunction or network connectivity defect without escalation to Google. Thereafter, Customer may submit a Request for TSS.
3.3. Characterization of Requests. Customer designates P1-P4 priority upon submission of Requests. Google will review Customer's priority designation and may reclassify designations (a) that Google believes are incorrect or (b) where Customer fails to maintain continuous availability, as described in Section 3.4 (Procedures for Acknowledgement and Resolution of Requests) through the resolution of a Request. Any such determination made by Google is final and binding on Customer. Any reclassification by Google of the Priority designation pursuant to subsection (b) will be reversed once Customer resumes continuous availability with Google in accordance with Section 3.4 (Procedures for Acknowledgement and Resolution of Requests).
3.4. Procedures for Acknowledgement and Resolution of Requests. When making a Request, Customer will provide all requested diagnostic information and assist Google Support Personnel as may be required to resolve a Request. Customer must provide up-to-date contact information (i.e., phone or email) to assist with data gathering, testing and applying resolutions. In the case of P1 Requests, Customer must maintain continuous availability until resolution of such Requests. Upon resolution of a Request, Customer may receive an optional survey to provide feedback to Google on the support Request experience.
3.5. Request Acknowledgement. Google may respond to a Request by acknowledging receipt of the Request. Customer acknowledges and understands that Google may be unable to provide answers to, or resolve all Requests.
3.6. Feature Requests. If Google deems a Request to be a Feature Request, Google will log such Request for consideration to add to a future update or release of the Services and will consider the matter closed. Google is under no obligation to respond to or resolve any Feature Request or to include any such Feature Request in any future update or release.
3.7. Building Applications. For clarity, Google has no obligation under these Guidelines to: (a) write, build or improve any software Applications, or write code to facilitate Applications; (b) configure the Services for Customer; or (c) design, build or review Customer infrastructure.
3.8. Pre-General Availability Offerings. Google has no obligation to provide TSS for Pre-GA Offerings, but will consider Requests relating to Pre-GA Offerings on a case-by-case basis.
4. Accessing Support.
4.1. Setting Designated Contacts. Customer-designated support admins may add Designated Contacts to its Account. Solely with respect to Silver, Gold, and Platinum TSS, if Customer wishes to change its Designated Contacts, it will notify Google via the Google Support Tool at least five Business Days prior to the change, as applicable.
4.2. Support Hours and Target Initial Response Times. Google will process Requests during the Hours of Operation and in accordance with the applicable target initial response times for each support level, unless otherwise indicated in these Guidelines. Any Requests received outside of the Hours of Operation will be logged and processed during the next Business Day.
4.3. Compliance with Applicable Law. Google will not provide TSS if prohibited from doing so by applicable law.
5. Maintenance. To ensure optimal performance of the Services, Google performs periodic Maintenance. In most cases, Maintenance will have limited or no negative impact on the availability and functionality of the Services. If Google expects planned Maintenance to negatively affect the availability or functionality of the Services, Google will use commercially reasonable efforts to provide at least seven days' advance notice of the Maintenance. In addition, Google may perform emergency unscheduled Maintenance at any time. If Google expects such emergency unscheduled Maintenance to negatively affect the availability or functionality of the Services, Google will use commercially reasonable efforts to provide advance notice of such Maintenance. Maintenance notices noted above will be provided via the Google Support Tool or via an email to the Notification Email Address.
6. Language Support. All support provided by Google pursuant to these Guidelines will be provided in the English language except as provided at https://cloud.google.com/support/docs/language-working-hours.
7. Support Data Processing Activities. Google collects and processes Support Data for the purpose of providing TSS under these Guidelines and maintaining the Services.
8. Technical Account Management (TAM). As part of the Platinum, Enterprise and Premium Support offerings, Customer will receive access to a named Technical Account Manager to: (a) assist Customer in developing a strategy with respect to the Services, (b) provide best practice guidance on implementation and use of the Services, and (c) manage technical support escalations and coordinate with Google subject matter experts to address technical inquiries related to the Services. Additional access to Technical Account Management may be purchased, subject to additional fees and terms.
9. Professional Services. In addition to the support and maintenance services described above, Google may provide limited advisory services to Customer under these Guidelines in accordance with an order form executed by Google and Customer and datasheets associated with the services. Additional fees may apply. Advisory services are recommendations only. Customer is responsible for the results achieved when determining whether to implement recommendations from Google. Google may deliver recommendations to Customer in the form of a working paper or report, which Customer may use, modify and reproduce for its internal business purposes. Google will not otherwise license any intellectual property to Customer as part of the advisory services provided under these Guidelines. Any other advisory, professional or implementation services will be subject to the terms of a separate agreement between Google and Customer.
10. Collaborative Support. In recognition that Customer may deploy and use Services that are offered in connection with or that rely upon a range of third party hardware and software components and computing platforms, resolving Requests may sometimes require input from third party providers who have qualified to participate in the Google Cloud Platform collaborative support program (such providers, "Collaborative Support Partners"). Google will, in its reasonable determination, identify to Customer any Requests that require the involvement of Collaborative Support Partner(s). Google may include Collaborative Support Partners in support communications with Customer, subject to the following terms:
10.1. Customer may only receive support from a Collaborative Support Partner if Customer has a valid support agreement in place with that Collaborative Support Partner. Neither these Guidelines nor the Agreement grant to Customer any right to receive support services from Collaborative Support Partners.
10.2. Google will include Collaborative Support Partners in direct support communications with Customer solely at Customer's direction. Google Support Personnel will only reach out to a Collaborative Support Partner after receiving Customer’s consent.
10.3. When Customer consents to include a Collaborative Support Partner in an ongoing support case, Customer consents to Google providing that Collaborative Support Partner with Support Data Google reasonably deems relevant to the Request, including Customer's name, contact information, and a description of the Request. When Customer directs Google to engage a Collaborative Support Partner, the Collaborative Support Partner acts as an independent contractor of the Customer, not Google. The Collaborative Support Partner, not Google, is solely responsible for the processing and use of any information, including Support Data, provided to that Collaborative Support Partner in the course of providing support services.
11. Resold Customer. A customer (a “Resold Customer”) of a Google-authorized unaffiliated Google Cloud Platform reseller (a “Reseller”) may purchase Google-supplied technical support services that are approved and enabled for resale through the Reseller (“Resold TSS”), provided that:
11.1. the prices and fees for Resold TSS, and the terms applicable to Resold Customer’s use of Resold TSS, are agreed as between Resold Customer and the Reseller;
11.2. any payment for Resold TSS is made directly to Reseller under Resold Customer’s applicable agreement with the Reseller; and
11.3. Google will not provide Resold Customer any billing inquiry support on the Services.
12. Chrome Support. If Customer purchases Enhanced or Premium Support then Google Support Personnel will also respond to Requests related to Chrome installation, Chrome Core Functionality, Chrome’s security and administrative policies, and Chrome’s interoperability with Services on Supported Platforms as set forth in these Guidelines. Google may choose not to respond to Requests for other Chrome related technical issues, such as but not limited to, rendering problems for specific web pages, technical issues related to the underlying operating system, device driver or printer problems. If Google makes a code change to Chrome to resolve a technical issue, that code change will be released in an upcoming release and will not be ported back to an earlier version of Chrome.
13. Additional Definitions.
13.1. "Application" has the meaning given in the Agreement or, if not such meaning is given, has the meaning given to “Customer Application” in the Agreement.
13.2. "Business Day" means any day during the Hours of Operation.
13.3. "Chrome" means the Chrome web browser as released by Google for Supported Platforms and available for download at the URL https://www.google.com/chrome/ or the installer provided at the URL https://chromeenterprise.google/browser/ or at another URL that Google may provide.
13.4. "Chrome Core Functionality" means the features and functionality in the latest released Chrome browser version, excluding Google Chrome extensions, and Google Play.
13.5. "Customer End User" has the meaning given in the Agreement or, if no such meaning is given, has the meaning given to “End Users” in the Agreement.
13.6. "Designated Contacts" means administrators or technical employees designated by Customer or Reseller (if Customer is accessing TSS as a customer of a Reseller) who are allowed to contact Google for technical support.
13.7. "Feature Request" means a Request by a Designated Contact to incorporate a new feature or enhance an existing feature of the Services that is currently not available as part of the existing Services.
13.8. "Google Support Tool" means the Admin Console or a support tool located at a URL (as may be updated from time to time) provided by Google.
13.9. "Google Support Personnel" means the Google representatives responsible for handling Requests.
13.10. "Hours of Operation" means 17:00 on Sunday to 17:00 on Friday Pacific Time Zone, except for holidays in local time for each region documented in the Google Support Tool.
13.11. "Maintenance" means maintenance work that is performed on hardware or software delivering the Services.
13.12. "Notification Email Address" has the meaning given in the Cloud Data Processing Addendum.
13.13. "P0" means impact to operating environments that have been provisioned to support Mission Critical Services.
13.14. "P1" means Critical Impact – Service Unusable in Production.
13.15. "P2" means High Impact – Service Use Severely Impaired.
13.16. "P3" means Medium Impact – Service Use Partially Impaired.
13.17. "P4" means Low Impact – Service Fully Usable.
13.18. "Priority" means P0, P1, P2, P3 or P4 depending on the level of impact a Request is having on Customer's operations and is used to establish initial target response times.
13.19. "Request" means a request from a Designated Contact to Google Support Personnel for technical support to resolve a question or problem report regarding the Services, Chrome, or Chrome Core Functionality, as applicable.
13.20. "Reseller" has the meaning given to it in Section 11 (Resold Customer) in the General Support Service Terms of these Guidelines.
13.21. "Support Data" means account details and the information that Customer provides to Google for the purpose of obtaining TSS under these Guidelines, including requests for support and the details provided to Google about the specific support issue.
13.22. "Support Role" means the level of support available to a Designated Contact under Role-Based Support, as defined by one of two tiers (Development or Production) and as designated by Customer in accordance with Section 1 (Support Roles) of the Role-Based Support terms.
13.23. "Supported Platform" means an operating system and version listed at https://support.google.com/a/bin/answer.py?answer=2763059 for which Chrome is released by Google. Google may choose not to respond to issues with preview versions of Chrome (also known as beta, dev, and canary) or preview features. Chrome OS is not a Supported Platform under these Guidelines; dedicated Google technical support and hardware service for Chrome OS is available under a separate agreement. For clarity, Chrome Frame is a separate product not covered under these Guidelines.
13.24. "Value Add Services" means additional TSS available to Customer for an additional fee.
1. Standard Support. Standard Support includes unlimited Designated Contacts.
2. Target Initial Response Times for Standard Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times during the Hours of Operation |
|---|---|
| P1 | N/A |
| P2 | 4 hours |
| P3 | 8 hours |
| P4 | 8 hours |
3. Enrollment and Unenrollment of Standard Support.
3.1 Standard Support requires a minimum commitment through the end of each calendar month.
3.2 Customer may unenroll from Standard Support through the Google Support Tool, in which case Basic Support will apply after the end of the calendar month. If Customer upgrades from Standard Support, the applicable Fees for the new support level will be calculated from the date of such upgrade.
1. Enhanced Support
1.1. Enhanced Support includes unlimited Designated Contacts.
1.2. Value Add Services. Customer may purchase the following Value Add Services for an additional fee:
1.2.1. Technical Account Advisor Service (TAAS). Customer will receive access to a Technical Account Advisor. TAAS includes: (a) guided support onboarding, (b) guidance on best practices for case handling, (c) management of technical support escalations, (d) reviews of operational and case metrics, and (e) recommendations for training and optimization of the Services.
1.2.2. Assured Support for Enhanced Support. Google will provide TSS for Assured Workloads (“Assured Support”) in accordance with the Customer-selected Admin Console controls. All Requests for Assured Support by Customer must be submitted via the “create case” option from within the Google Support Tool and include the project name (ID) in the project field, which corresponds to an Assured Workloads project. Google will provide Assured Support in the English language only.
1.2.3. Planned Event Support (PES). If Customer wishes to purchase PES for an event, it must do so no less than 30 days before that event to ensure proper planning. Each event is limited to a maximum of five calendar days. During each event, regardless of Section 2 (Target Initial Response Times for Enhanced Support) below, Google will respond to P1 Requests that are related to the event with a target initial response time of 15 minutes. Customer can purchase PES for up to three events per calendar year.
1.2.4. Sovereign Controls by Partners Support for Enhanced Support. If (i) Customer is using Sovereign Controls by Partners; (ii) the Sovereign Controls Partner does not provide technical support for Sovereign Controls by Partners; and (iii) Customer has purchased Enhanced Support, then Google will provide TSS for the In-scope Google Cloud Controls defined in the Service Specific Terms (“Sovereign Controls by Partners Support”) in accordance with the Customer-selected security controls in the Admin Console. All Requests for Sovereign Controls by Partners Support must be submitted via the “create case” option from within the Google Support Tool and include the Project name (ID) in the Project field, which corresponds to a Sovereign Controls by Partners Project with the relevant Sovereign Controls Partner. Google will provide Sovereign Controls by Partners Support in the English language only.
2. Target Initial Response Times for Enhanced Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times |
|---|---|
| P1 | 1 hour |
| P2 | 4 hours |
| P3 | 8 hours* |
| P4 | 8 hours* |
*during the Hours of Operation
3. Enrollment and Unenrollment of Enhanced Support.
3.1. Enhanced Support requires a minimum commitment through the end of each calendar month or as described in the applicable Order Form.
3.2. Customer may unenroll from Enhanced Support by notifying Google in writing or through the Google Support Tool, as applicable, in which case Basic Support will apply after the end of the applicable commitment period. If Customer enrolls in another support level other than Basic Support, the applicable Fees for the new support level will be calculated from the date of such new enrollment.
1. Premium Support.
1.1. Premium Support includes unlimited Designated Contacts.
1.2. Premium Support includes support from Google's Technical Account Management, as described in Section 8 of the General Support Services Terms (Technical Account Management).
1.3. Value Add Services. Customer may purchase the following Value Add Services for Premium Support for an additional fee:
1.3.1. Assured Support for Premium Support. Google will provide TSS for Assured Workloads (“Assured Support”) in accordance with the Customer-selected Admin Console controls. All Requests for Assured Support by Customer must be submitted via the “create case” option from within the Google Support Tool and include the project name (ID) in the project field, which corresponds to an Assured Workloads project. Google will provide Assured Support in the English language only.
1.3.2. Mission Critical Services (MCS). Google will provide a target initial response time of 5 minutes for P0 cases for operating environments that have been provisioned to support MCS, as noted in the table in Section 3 (Target Initial Response Times for Premium Support and Partner-Led Premium Support). Google will provide TSS for MCS in the English language only.
1.3.3. Sovereign Controls by Partners Support for Premium Support. If (i) Customer is using Sovereign Controls by Partners; (ii) the Sovereign Controls Partner does not provide technical support for Sovereign Controls by Partners; and (iii) Customer has purchased Premium Support, then Google will provide TSS for the In-scope Google Cloud Controls defined in the Service Specific Terms (“Sovereign Controls by Partners Support”) in accordance with the Customer-selected security controls in the Admin Console. All Requests for Sovereign Controls by Partners Support by Customer must be submitted via the “create case” option from within the Google Support Tool and include the Project name (ID) in the Project field, which corresponds to a Sovereign Controls by Partners Project with the relevant Sovereign Controls Partner. Google will provide Sovereign Controls by Partners Support in the English language only.
2. Partner-Led Premium Support.
2.1. Partner-Led Premium Support includes unlimited Designated Contacts.
2.2. Partner Operations Management (POM). As part of the Partner-Led Premium Support offering, Customer will receive access to a named Partner Operations Manager. POM includes: (a) assistance in developing a cloud strategy with respect to the Services, (b) best practices guidance on implementing and using the Services, and (c) management of technical support escalations and coordination with Google subject matter experts to address technical inquiries related to the Services.
3. Target Initial Response Times for Premium Support and Partner-Led Premium Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times |
|---|---|
| P0 | 5 minutes (Premium Support with MCS only) |
| P1 | 15 minutes |
| P2 | 2 hours |
| P3 | 4 hours* |
| P4 | 8 hours* |
*during the Hours of Operation
4. On-Site Support for Premium Support and Partner-Led Premium Support. Google may, at its discretion and with Customer's approval, send Google Support Personnel on-site in response to an issue that cannot be resolved remotely. Google Support Personnel performing support at Customer's facilities will comply with Customer's reasonable onsite policies and procedures made known to Google in writing in advance.
5. Enrollment and Unenrollment of Premium Support and Partner-Led Premium Support.
5.1. Premium Support and Partner-Led Premium Support requires a minimum 1-year Fee commitment from the date on which Customer enrolls.
5.2. Customer may unenroll from Premium Support or Partner-Led Premium Support at any time by notifying Google in writing and any such unenrollment will take effect, and applicable Fees for Customer's downgraded support level will be calculated at the downgraded amount, from the later of (a) the date of such unenrollment, and (b) the Business Day following the 1-year anniversary of Customer's enrollment in Premium Support or Partner-Led Premium Support. Unenrollment from Premium Support automatically unenrolls all Value Add Services.
5.3. Sections 5.1 and 5.2 above will not apply if Customer is an existing Platinum or Enterprise Support customer. Instead, the minimum term of Customer's current Platinum or Enterprise Support Order Form will govern its use of Premium Support or Partner-Led Premium Support until the expiration of such Order Form.
1. Silver. The Silver support level includes all the items in Basic Support plus the ability to submit support Requests for questions about Services functionality, best practice guidance on how to architect with the Services, and Services errors reports, as well as up to two Designated Contacts.
2. Gold. The Gold support level includes all the items in the Silver level plus consultation on application development, and specific guidance on how to architect with the Services for Customer's proposed use case, as well as up to five Designated Contacts.
3. Platinum. The Platinum support level includes all the items in the Gold level plus Unlimited Designated Contacts and access to Google’s Technical Account Management team as described in the General Support Service Terms Section 8 (Technical Account Management).
4. Target Initial Response Times for Silver, Gold and Platinum Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver | Gold | Platinum | ||
| P1 | 4 hours* | 1 hours | 15 minutes | |
| P2 | 8 hours* | 4 hours* | 4 hours* | |
| P3 | 8 hours* | 8 hours* | 8 hours* | |
| P4 | 8 hours* | 8 hours* | 8 hours* | |
*during the Hours of Operation
5. Priority Designations. Notwithstanding Section 3.3 (Characterization of Requests) of the General Support Services Terms of these Guidelines, Google will inform Customer of any change of Customer’s Priority designation in its response to the support Request. Customer may appeal any such reclassification to Google's Support management for review through any available support channel.
1. Support Roles. Google will provide Customer with technical support through its Designated Contacts, according to their designated Support Role as follows:
1.1. Development. The Development Support Role includes all the items in Basic Support plus the ability to submit Requests related to Services functionality, best practices guidance on how to architect with the Services, and Services errors reports.
1.2. Production. The Production Support Role includes all the items in the Development Support Role plus limited guidance on how to architect with the Services for Customer's proposed use case.
2. Target Initial Response Times for Role-Based Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times | |
|---|---|---|
| Development | Production | |
| P1 | N/A | 1 hour |
| P2 | 4 hours* | 4 hours* |
| P3 | 8 hours* | 8 hours* |
| P4 | 8 hours* | 8 hours* |
*during the Hours of Operation
3. Upgrading/Downgrading Support Roles in Role-Based Support. All Support Roles require a minimum 30-day Fee commitment.
3.1. Upgrades. Customer may designate or upgrade a Support Role for a Designated Contact at any time. When Customer designates or upgrades any Support Role for a Designated Contact, any applicable Fees will be pro-rated in that month, and will automatically renew at the beginning of the following month. Customer may upgrade a Support Role for a Designated Contact at any time. Any applicable Fees for such upgraded Support Role will be calculated at the upgraded rate beginning on the day that the upgrade is processed.
3.2. Downgrades. Customer may downgrade or remove a Support Role for a Designated Contact at any time. Such downgrade or removal will take effect, and any applicable Fees for such downgraded or removed Support Role will be calculated at the downgraded amount, from the later of (a) the date of such downgrade or removal, and (b) 30 days after the Support Role for the Designated Contact was last changed, and the applicable Fees will automatically renew at the beginning of the month following such downgrade or removal.
1. Enterprise Support.
1.1. The Enterprise Support offering includes unlimited Designated Contacts, each with Customer's chosen Support Role. The "Business Critical" level of support is only available to Customers who have enrolled in Enterprise Support.
1.2. If enrolled in the Enterprise Support program, Customer may assign the "Business Critical" role to each of its unlimited Designated Contacts.
2. Target Initial Response Times for Enterprise Support.
| Priority | Target Initial Response Times during the Hours of Operation |
|---|---|
| P1 | 15 minutes 24x7 |
| P2 | 4 hours 24x7 |
| P3 | 8 hours |
| P4 | 8 hours |
3. The Enterprise Support offering includes support from Google's Technical Account Management, as described in Section 8 of the General Support Services Terms (Technical Account Management).
4. On-Site Support. Google may, at its discretion and with Customer's approval, send Google Support Personnel on-site in response to an issue that cannot be resolved remotely. Google Support Personnel performing support at Customer's facilities will comply with Customer's reasonable onsite policies and procedures made known to Google in writing in advance.
5. Enrollment and Unenrollment.
5.1. The Enterprise Support program requires a minimum 1-year Fee commitment from the date on which Customer enrolls.
5.2. Customer may unenroll from the Enterprise Support program at any time by notifying Google in writing and any such unenrollment will take effect, and applicable Fees for Customer's downgraded Support Role(s) will be calculated at the downgraded amount, from the later of (a) the date of such unenrollment, and (b) the Business Day following the 1-year anniversary of Customer's enrollment in Enterprise Support.
5.3. Sections 5.1 and 5.2 above will not apply if Customer is an existing Platinum Support customer. Instead of Customer's current Platinum Support Order Form will govern its use of Enterprise Support until the expiration of such Order Form.