Microsoft Unified Service Descriptions
Service descriptions, terms, and delivery information for Microsoft Unified and related offerings.
Welcome to the Microsoft Unified Service Descriptions
The Microsoft Unified Service Descriptions provide service descriptions, delivery information, and key terms for Microsoft Unified and related offerings.
Important information for existing Unified customers:
The Microsoft Unified Service Descriptions (MUSD) is the successor to the Unified Support Services Description (USSD). This update modernizes how service information is presented through a web-based experience with improved navigation, searchability, and readability. As our services evolve, we may periodically update these Service Descriptions. Such updates will not materially diminish or reduce the services and entitlements customers have already purchased.
Some existing Work Orders may continue to reference USSD.
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Previous versions remain available for customers who need to reference services purchased under an earlier version.
Microsoft Unified Overview
Support that meets your business where it is and grows with it.
Microsoft Unified is our support and success management offering for enterprise customers. It provides a foundation of 24/7 problem resolution and success management to help keep your Microsoft environment healthy and can be expanded with optional services for mission-critical workloads and deeper transformation engagements.
Microsoft Unified begins with Unified Enterprise as the foundational service and can be expanded with Mission Critical Services and Value Acceleration Services — giving you flexibility to add the right capabilities as your business needs evolve.
Microsoft Unified Services
Microsoft Unified begins with Unified Enterprise as the foundational service and can be expanded with Mission Critical Services and Value Acceleration Services — giving you flexibility to add the right capabilities as your business needs evolve.
Unified Enterprise
Always-on support and success management for your Microsoft estate.
Unified Enterprise provides 24/7 problem resolution and success management to help keep your Microsoft environment healthy, secure, and resilient. It includes coordinated support for incidents and operational issues, plus proactive guidance and visibility to help you reduce risk and improve reliability.
What’s included
- 24/7 problem resolution. Raise and manage support requests at any time to help restore service and resolve issues across supported Microsoft technologies.
- Success management services. Proactive orchestration, planning, and coordination across Microsoft to help strengthen customer health, accelerate cloud adoption, and advance AI transformation.
- Proactive health reviews. Periodic reviews across infrastructure, security, and operations to identify risks, reduce recurring issues, and improve reliability.
- On-demand learning. Self-paced learning and technical content to build capabilities across your IT and operations teams.
- Services portal access. A centralized view to submit requests, track delivery, and monitor available service and health signals.
- Flex Allowance. Available with prepaid term commitment purchase models and can be applied to eligible services including Mission Critical Services and Value Acceleration Services as detailed in your Work Order. See the Detailed Service Descriptions for applicability and usage.
- Proactive Credits. Flexible, consumption-based credits that are used to access eligible proactive services that help plan, implement, optimize, and improve your Microsoft environment. These credits may be included in your monthly base or consumed through available allowances, depending on your purchase model, and may also be purchased separately where applicable. See the Detailed Service Descriptions for applicability and usage.
Optional Unified Enterprise add-ons:
- Unified Enhanced Response: Accelerated handling for select critical-severity scenarios with streamlined escalation to help reduce time to mitigation.
- Unified Assured: Delivers in-country support aligned to local regulatory and data sovereignty requirements.
Purchase note: Unified Enterprise is the core support layer of Microsoft Unified and is required as a prerequisite for adding Mission Critical Services and Value Acceleration Services.
Mission Critical Services
For scenarios where availability, reliability, and timely recovery are critical to the business.
Mission Critical Services provide prioritized incident handling, advanced escalation, and specialist engagement for business-critical products, workloads, and major business events, helping you reduce time to mitigation and maintain continuity during outages and high-impact security incidents.
Mission Critical Service (MCS) offerings:
- MCS for Azure: Enhanced coverage for critical Azure workloads, enabling rapid issue resolution to restore service and protect business continuity.
- MCS for Microsoft Security Cloud: A personalized engagement with Microsoft Security that helps you operate, scale, and recover your most critical security workloads with proactive guidance, deep technical context, and accelerated resolution when issues occur.
- MCS for Microsoft 365: Reliability-focused coverage for business-critical Microsoft 365 environments, with prioritized paths to mitigation for production-impacting issues.
- MCS for GitHub: Priority support for business-critical development workflows, including GitHub platform and Copilot scenarios, ensuring critical issues are addressed with priority to avoid disruption to development and release timelines.
- Cybersecurity Incident Response: Delivers specialized support to quickly identify, contain, and recover from cyber incidents. It helps organizations minimize impact, restore operations, and strengthen resilience to prevent future incidents.
- Threat Intelligence: A subscription service that provides regular executive briefings and proactive insights to help you understand emerging risks and translate them into clear, actionable steps for your organization.
Purchase note: Mission Critical Services are optional and require foundational support offers such as Unified Enterprise as a prerequisite. Your selections are detailed in your Work Order.
Value Acceleration Services
Accelerate outcomes across your Microsoft workloads.
Value Acceleration Services help you proactively plan, implement, and optimize priority Microsoft workloads with Microsoft expertise to reduce delivery risk, improve reliability, and accelerate time to value. Services can be delivered through an appropriate mix of digital experiences, automation, and Microsoft experts, based on what best supports your outcomes.
Value Acceleration Service offerings
Choose one or more offerings based on your priority workloads and desired outcomes.
Designated Engineering (DE)
DE is a time-bound, pre-scoped engagement focused on a single priority workload. It helps you move faster with clear technical guidance and delivery support to improve reliability, readiness, and adoption for that workload. Typical activities include assessing the current state, aligning on an approach, supporting implementation or optimization, and enabling your teams with targeted knowledge transfer.
Enhanced Designated Engineering (EDE)
EDE is an ongoing engagement that helps you achieve and sustain outcomes across priority Microsoft workloads. It focuses on improving reliability, accelerating adoption, and reducing technical and operational risk, while ensuring technical solutions are designed and executed in alignment with business priorities.
EDE provides:
- Ongoing alignment of technology to business objectives
- Proactive identification and reduction of operational and delivery risk
- Acceleration of deployment, adoption, and optimization across workloads
- Continuous improvement of reliability, performance, and security posture
- Solution architecture guidance
Purchase note: Value Acceleration Services are optional and require foundational support offers such as Unified Enterprise as a prerequisite. Your selections are detailed in your Work Order.
How To Purchase
Microsoft Unified services are available through a Microsoft agreement (“Agreement”) and may be purchased as a prepaid, pay-as-you-go monthly subscription (based upon availability), or as a commitment (based upon availability) service. Your selected services, scope, and applicable pricing are defined in your Enterprise Service Work Order or supplemental terms attached to the Agreement (“Work Order”). For purchase options and availability in your region, please contact your Microsoft representative.
Detailed Service Descriptions
Use the Detailed Services Descriptions to see what’s covered under each Microsoft Unified offering. It’s designed to provide a clear view of the services included, optional add-ons, and key delivery conditions.
Note: Your Work Order may use service names from earlier versions of this Service Description. In this web-based experience, those services may appear under updated offering names or groupings. Select the Legacy service names tab below to find the corresponding section. Your Work Order defines purchased services, quantities/hours, scope, eligible activities, and/or any prerequisites.
Key Purchase and Delivery Information
Flex Allowance
Available for prepaid purchase models only, Flex Allowance is a portion of your prepaid commitment that can be applied to eligible services.
- Allocated in the Work Order
- Any Flex Allowance amounts not allocated in the Work Order at execution are forfeited
- Must be allocated and used within the applicable annual term
- For Custom Proactive, up to 20% of Flex Allowance or $50,000, whichever is greater, may be applied to eligible services
- Eligible services may be exchanged for other eligible services, subject to availability and Microsoft approval
Proactive Credits
Proactive Credits are credits used to consume eligible services. They can be obtained through your purchase model and may also be acquired as add-ons or through available Flex Allowance, depending on how your services are structured in the Work Order.
Pay-as-you-go and committed purchase models:
- Earned over time based on your monthly support charges
- Tracked at the billing profiles level and applied at current service rates
- Not transferable across billing profiles
- May include initial allocation as set forth in the Work Order, followed by ongoing accruals
- Additional payments or credits may be required for services beyond the available balance, subject to program terms and minimum spend requirements
- Proactive Credits purchased as an add-on must be delivered within twelve (12) months, consistent with standard delivery guidelines. Additionally, Customer must maintain an active foundational support Work Order for delivery to be provided.
- Cancellation of the foundational support Work Order requires a 12-month waiting period before eligibility to receive Proactive Credits upon entering a new Work Order.
Prepaid purchase models: May be funded through your Flex Allowance, subject to applicable limits.
Multi-country considerations (where applicable)
Multi-country support applies when your Work Order includes Unified Enterprise across more than one country or region. It helps you receive covered services for the locations identified in your Work Order, while accounting for local delivery requirements such as language, time zone, and in-country availability. Your Work Order defines the covered locations, how services will be delivered in each location, and any location-specific constraints or exchange rules.
Unified Enterprise
Unified Enterprise provides the foundational support and success-management capabilities customers use day to day. It covers reactive support for supported Microsoft products and includes access to success management and digital resources.
| Service (Included) | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|
| Problem Resolution Support |
Case-based troubleshooting to restore service and resolve technical issues.
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Open a support request by web or phone for issue resolution or troubleshooting; response targets follow severity.
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| Reactive Support Management |
Coordinated oversight to help drive timely, high-quality incident resolution.
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Engaged by Microsoft through case management as required.
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| Success Management Services |
Provide proactive orchestration, planning, and coordination across Microsoft to strengthen customer health, accelerate cloud adoption, and advance AI transformation. Includes Service Delivery Management.
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Delivery is based on collaborative planning and agreed priorities, and services may evolve over time to align with customer needs, Microsoft offerings, and service availability.
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| Incident Management Services |
Structured incident management to drive mitigation and resolution, with ongoing visibility into status and progress.
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Open a support request through standard channels. Incidents follow a standard support path; additional coordination may apply for complex scenarios.
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| Integrated Technology Support |
Coordinated incident resolution across Microsoft and select technology partners to improve time to resolution for supported technologies and services.
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Microsoft engages the customer as required. Orchestration support may be requested for cross-technology issues, multi-stakeholder coordination, or incidents expected to take multiple days to resolve.
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| On-demand learning |
Self-paced training and technical content to build skills across your teams.
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Access through available digital learning resources.
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| On-demand health assessment |
On-demand assessments and proactive health reviews to identify risks and recommended improvements.
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Assessments are self-serve through engaged center.
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Optional Unified Enterprise add-ons
(optional; scope and eligibility are defined in your Work Order)
| Optional add-ons | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|
| Unified Assured |
Provides geofenced and/or in-country support, where applicable, for commercial and public sector customers with heightened sovereignty and regulatory requirements.
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You receive Unified Enterprise for all covered support interactions. The only difference is that support is delivered from within the required geography, where applicable.
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| Unified Enhanced Response |
Accelerated incident handling for select critical-severity scenarios for in-scope services.
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Open a support request through supported channels.
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Mission Critical Services
Mission Critical Services (MCS) are optional add-ons available for platforms, workloads, and events where availability, reliability, and rapid recovery are business critical. It provides prioritized incident handling, enhanced escalation, and specialist engagement. The Work Order defines the specific offer(s), scope, and/or any prerequisites. For more information, see the MCS appendix.
| Offering | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|
| MCS for Azure Platform / Platform Plus |
Prioritized support for Azure production environments with faster escalation when needed.
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Onboard once; then open cases via portal/phone/chat for in-scope Azure services.
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| MCS for Azure Workload / Workload Plus / Companion |
Tailored preventive and prioritized incident support to help improve the reliability of a defined, mission-critical Azure workload or application in production.
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Covered workload is defined in the Work Order. During onboarding, Microsoft and Customer align on reliability objectives, assess key risks, and establish a mitigation plan. Submit incidents through the supported Azure channels for the covered workload.
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| MCS for Azure Events / Events Plus |
Time-bound prioritized support for planned, high-impact business events, including pre-event readiness and coverage throughout the event window
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Schedule the event in advance; receive coverage during the agreed event window.
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| MCS for Microsoft Security Cloud |
Prioritized support for high-impact security incidents across in-scope Microsoft security products.
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Open security incidents through supported channels.
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| MCS for Microsoft 365 |
Prioritized support for business-critical production Microsoft 365 environments with faster escalation when needed.
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Submit incidents through the Microsoft 365 support channels for in-scope services.
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| MCS for GitHub |
Priority support for business-critical GitHub workflows, including platform and Copilot scenarios (where eligible).
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Engage through GitHub support as defined in the Work Order; GitHub terms of service apply.
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| Support for Mission Critical |
Preventive, in-depth support for a defined mission-critical solution to reduce risk and improve readiness.
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Delivered through an agreed engagement model.
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| Cybersecurity Incident Response |
End-to-end support to investigate, contain, remediate, and recover from cyber-incidents while minimizing business impact.
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Engage your Microsoft Account Manager or open a support case to rapidly activate expert response for investigation, containment, and recovery during a security incident.
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| Threat Intelligence |
Provides monthly threat briefings and alert guidance tailored to your industry, geography, and security environment, with practical recommendations to help you assess and respond to emerging risks.
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Engage through your designated Microsoft security contacts. Customer participation is required for briefings and follow-up activities.
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Value Acceleration Services
Value Acceleration Services (VAS) are optional add-ons that provide Microsoft expertise to help customers plan, implement, optimize, and operate priority workloads. Offerings are purchased as defined scopes or hours (per Work Order) and are delivered through an appropriate mix of Microsoft experts, digital experiences, and AI/automation. For multi-country customers, designated resources (for example, EDE) may be assigned to a specific support location as part of contracting and service delivery planning, as detailed in the Work Order.
Engagement models
Engagement models describe how certain Value Acceleration Services are delivered. They define the type of engineering support provided based on the level of continuity, scope, and responsiveness needed.
| Offering | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|
| Designated Engineering (DE) |
Time-bound engineering engagement for a defined priority workload to improve readiness, implementation quality, and reliability.
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Purchased as a pre-scoped engagement for a specific workload or outcome. Scope, duration, and deliverables are defined in the Work Order.
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| Enhanced Designated Engineering (EDE) |
Ongoing engineering engagement to help improve reliability, reduce risk, and accelerate adoption and optimization across priority workloads.
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Delivered as an ongoing engagement model. Coverage, assigned resources, cadence, and supported workloads are defined in the Work Order.
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| Reactive Enhanced Designated Engineering (REDE) |
Engineering support focused on helping accelerate investigation and resolution for reactive incidents involving selected products or workloads.
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Used when additional engineering support is purchased for reactive scenarios. Product scope, coverage model, and prerequisites are defined in the Work Order.
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| Support Technology Advisor |
Tailored assessment, planning, and recommendations aligned to your supportability, operational, and reliability goals.
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Delivered based on the agreed advisory scope. Activities, timing, and expected outputs are defined in the Work Order.
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Proactive Services
Proactive Services describe the types of work you can purchase under Value Acceleration Services, such as planning, implementation, assessment, optimization, and education services. You do not need an engagement model to purchase Proactive Services. Depending on the service and the level of support you need, Proactive Services may be purchased on their own or delivered through an engagement model such as DE or EDE.
| Category | Proactive Services | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plan |
Proof of Concept
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Short, evidence-led engagement to validate a solution approach and technical feasibility.
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Purchased as a defined engagement or as scoped in the Work Order; often used early in planning or decision-making.
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Architecture Services
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Architecture guidance to translate business requirements into a recommended technical design.
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Delivered as a scoped advisory or design engagement. Specific focus areas and outputs are defined in the Work Order.
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| Implement |
Onboarding Services
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Accelerate deployment, migration, or upgrade of Microsoft solutions with structured implementation guidance, including oversight of solution delivery and support to identify and resolve technical blockers.
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Purchased for a defined implementation scope or delivered through an engagement model such as DE or EDE, as applicable.
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| Maintain |
Assessment and Improvement Services
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Evaluate your capabilities and environment against recommended practices. Identify risks, and prioritize actions to improve effectiveness, security, reliability, and performance.
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May include automated or expert-led assessments. Scope, tools, and follow-up activities depend on the service purchased.
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| Optimize |
Adoption Services
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Adoption planning and execution support to improve usage and outcomes for priority workloads.
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Purchased as a scoped service or delivered through a broader engagement model, depending on the level of support required.
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Security Services
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Guidance to help improve security posture across Microsoft security solutions.
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Purchased based on the applicable security workload or scenario.
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Custom Proactive Services
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Customer-directed proactive engagements for eligible activities not otherwise listed.
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Scope and eligible activities are defined in the Work Order.
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| Educate |
Education Services
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Training to enhance your teams’ technical and operational capabilities, which may include services such as hackathons, technical update briefings, chalk talks, and workshops.
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Purchased as individual services or as part of a broader engagement, depending on the service and delivery model selected.
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Reactive Services
Reactive Services is additional support management for reactive incidents when more coordination or oversight is needed than is included in the foundational offer.
| Category | Reactive Services | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reactive Support |
Additional Reactive Support Management
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Additional reactive support management coverage when more coordination or oversight is needed than is included in the foundational offer.
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Purchased as an add-on service for qualifying scenarios. Scope, coverage expectations, and engagement approach are defined in the Work Order.
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Unified Cloud Operations
Unified Cloud Operations (UCO) provides specialized support and success capabilities for customers running large-scale Azure applications. It combines proactive guidance, advisory support, and advanced incident response to help improve reliability, performance, and operational continuity across your Azure environment.
| Service (Included) | What you get | How to engage / key notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cloud Success at Scale |
Architectural guidance and capacity planning to design, scale, and operate Azure environments effectively.
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Delivered through ongoing advisory and planning engagements aligned to your Azure strategy and growth roadmap.
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| Advisory Operations Services |
Support for onboarding, design reviews, and operational readiness to improve development velocity and platform adoption.
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Engage through scheduled sessions and collaboration with Microsoft engineering resources and your success management contact.
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| Solution Improvement Planning |
Ongoing recommendations to improve performance, reliability, and operational effectiveness of your applications.
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Delivered through periodic reviews, planning sessions, and follow-up actions aligned to your environment needs.
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| Azure Excellence and Reliability |
Enhanced reactive support with prioritized access and faster resolution for critical Azure incidents.
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Submit incidents through standard support channels; enhanced response and escalation apply for in-scope services.
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| Success Management Services |
Central coordination point for planning, prioritization, and tracking across your Azure support experience.
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Delivered on an agreed cadence.
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Legacy Service Names
Some Work Orders reference service names used in prior versions. The table below maps common legacy terms to where the corresponding services are described in this version.
| Legacy term (Work Order / prior version) | Now described under | Where to look in this version |
|---|---|---|
| Foundational Services / Base Package |
Unified Enterprise
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Unified Enterprise
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| Proactive Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services
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| Planning Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Plan category)
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| Implementation Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Implement category)
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| Maintenance Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Maintain category)
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| Education Services |
Value Acceleration Services (and Unified Enterprise for included learning)
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Education category) for add-on education offerings; Detailed Service Descriptions → Unified Enterprise Services → On-demand learning for included learning (including on-demand education and webcasts)
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| Enhanced Solutions |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services
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| Optimization Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| Adoption Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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Development Focused Services (DevOps Capability Assessment, Development Support Assistance, Developer Platform Advisory)
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Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| IT Service Management |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| Security Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| Support Technology Advisor |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| Custom Proactive Services |
Value Acceleration Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Value Acceleration Services (Optimize category)
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| Reactive Support Management |
Unified Enterprise Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Unified Enterprise Services (included service table)
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| Service Delivery Management |
Success Management Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Unified Enterprise Services (included service table)
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| Unified Enhanced Response (UER) |
Optional Unified Enterprise add-on
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Unified Enterprise → Optional Unified Enterprise add-on
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| Microsoft Cybersecurity Incident Response (MSCIR) |
Mission Critical Services
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Detailed Service Descriptions → Mission Critical Services → Optional Mission Critical add-ons (listed as Cybersecurity Incident Response)
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Severity Levels & Response Targets
The Severity Levels & Response Targets explain how severity levels are defined and the initial response targets for the services you purchase. Start with the severity definitions, then review the response target tables for your applicable Unified Enterprise and Mission Critical Services.
Severity Levels Explained
| Severity (Sev) | Business impact | Typical situation |
|---|---|---|
| Sev 1 |
Critical business system down; business at risk.
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Complete loss of a critical application or solution; needs immediate attention.
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| Sev A |
Critical business system degraded.
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Significant loss or degradation of services; urgent attention required.
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| Sev B |
Moderate business impact.
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Moderate loss or degradation; work can reasonably continue in an impaired manner.
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| Sev C |
Minor business impact.
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Substantially functioning with minor or no impediments.
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Unified Enterprise Response Targets
| Severity | Expected initial response target | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Sev 1 |
Azure components: 15 minutes or less; all other products/services: 1 hour or less (30 minutes or less with Unified Enhanced Response (UER)).
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24x7 continuous effort; escalation as appropriate based on severity.
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| Sev A |
1 hour or less (30 minutes or less with Unified Enhanced Response (UER)).
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24x7 continuous effort; escalation as appropriate based on severity.
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| Sev B |
2 hours or less.
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Business hours by default; Customer may request 24x7 effort where available and applicable.
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| Sev C |
4 hours or less.
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Business hours effort.
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Important notes: Response targets shown are initial response targets. The listed initial response targets for the Azure components does not cover US Gov Clouds, Azure StorSimple, GitHub AE, A40, Azure Communication Services, Billing & Subscription Management, Azure Media Services, Azure Stack, Test Base for M365, Microsoft Mesh, and Universal Print. Where 24x7 effort applies, Customer is expected to provide appropriate resources and timely response. Business-hours support is delivered during local business hours unless otherwise stated.
Mission Critical Services (MCS) Response Targets
| Offering | Severity levels | Expected initial response target |
|---|---|---|
| MCS for Azure Platform / Platform Plus |
Sev 1 / Sev A
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15 minutes or less.
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| MCS for Azure Events / Events Plus |
Sev 1 / Sev A
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15 minutes or less.
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| MCS for Microsoft Security Cloud |
Sev 1 / Sev A
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15 minutes or less.
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| MCS for Microsoft 365 |
Sev 1 / Sev A
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30 min or less
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| Support for Mission Critical |
Sev 1 / Sev A
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30 min or less
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Important notes: Response targets shown are initial response targets for the applicable purchased service. Coverage, included products, exclusions, and any language or delivery constraints are defined in the applicable Work Order. Where 24x7 effort applies, Customer is expected to provide appropriate resources and timely response. Event-based services apply only during the agreed event coverage window. For Support for Mission Critical only, Sev 1 / Sev A are financially backed, as specified in the applicable Work Order.
Service Delivery Requirements
The Service Delivery Requirements describe key delivery conditions and customer responsibilities for Microsoft Unified. It does not amend the Agreement. If there is any inconsistency between this Service Description, the Agreement, and Work Order, the Agreement and the Work Order control. Not meeting applicable prerequisites may delay, limit, or prevent service delivery. Core Professional Services legal terms are in the Agreement or Microsoft Product Terms (Professional Services), as applicable, and data protection and security terms for Professional Services Data are in the Microsoft Products and Services Data Protection Addendum (“DPA”).
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To help Microsoft deliver Microsoft Unified effectively, Customer is responsible for providing the contacts, access, information, and reasonable cooperation needed for delivery. If these prerequisites are not met, services may be delayed, limited, or unable to be delivered as planned.
- Contacts. Maintain current support and service delivery contacts (including a Support Services Administrator where required) and promptly notify Microsoft of changes to such contacts.
- Access and information. Provide timely access, permissions, and diagnostic information reasonably required to troubleshoot issues or deliver services (including remote access where authorized by Customer).
- Participation. Participate in troubleshooting and delivery activities as reasonably requested (for example, scope alignment, providing logs, reproducing issues, completing intake, and attending scheduled sessions).
Environment readiness. Maintain supported configurations and the required subscriptions/tenants and administrative roles needed to access and use the services purchased.
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- Delivery method. Services are delivered remotely unless otherwise specified in the Work Order.
- Supported products. Support applies to commercially released, generally available Microsoft products and Online Services Customer has purchased, consistent with the Agreement, the Work Order, and applicable Microsoft Product Terms.
- Preview and Pilot Offerings: Microsoft may occasionally make preview, beta, or other pilot offerings available. Your participation is elective. Availability varies by offering and location, and not all offerings will be available to all customers. Participation in these offerings may be subject to additional terms.
- Language. Services are typically delivered in English unless otherwise stated; additional languages may be available based on location and resource availability.
- Remote access and Professional Services Data. At Customer’s request and where authorized by Customer, Microsoft may use remote connection methods and access diagnostic information to troubleshoot issues or deliver agreed services. Data protection and security terms for Professional Services Data are set forth in the DPA.
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- Scheduling. Scheduling is subject to Microsoft resource availability and may require advance notice for certain activities (for example, workshops or onsite delivery where applicable).
- Changes and cancellations. Once a delivery date is scheduled, changes or cancellations—including changes to the agreed scope, service, strategy, or delivery date—are subject to the following policy: requests made at least 14 calendar days before the scheduled date receive a full refund; requests made 6–13 calendar days before the scheduled date incur a non-refundable charge of 50% of the service cost; and requests made 5 calendar days or less before the scheduled date incur the full service cost. Please notify Microsoft as early as possible.
- Use during the term. Services are intended to be scheduled and used during the term stated in the Work Order. Unless otherwise specified, unused services will be forfeited at the end of such term.
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- Foundational services requirement. An active foundational service (formerly referred to as Base Package) Work Order such as Unified Enterprise is required to acquire and continue additional services unless explicitly stated otherwise. If your Work Order for foundational services such as Unified Enterprise expires or is terminated, all additional services will also be subject to termination, even if purchased separately, on the same date without any refund prorate temporis.
- Service exchanges. Where permitted, Customer may exchange an ordered service for another eligible service of equivalent value, subject to availability and Microsoft’s agreement, as described in the Work Order.
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- Sample code. Any code provided is for illustration only. Customer is responsible for testing, validation, deployment, and ongoing maintenance in Customer’s environment. Use and license rights to Sample Code are governed by the Agreement or Microsoft Product Terms (Professional Services), as applicable.
- Deliverables. Some services include operational deliverables (for example, recommendations, reports, or recordings). Deliverables availability and format are described in the applicable service description and/or Work Order. Use and license rights for Services Deliverables are governed by the Agreement or Microsoft Product Terms (Professional Services), as applicable.
- Onsite. If onsite delivery is agreed in writing, Customer may be responsible for reasonable travel and related expenses unless such costs are included in the Work Order.
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- Service communications. Microsoft may send service-related communications (for example, security, service, and product update notices) to company email addresses associated with Customer’s account.
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- Third parties. If Customer requests multi-vendor assistance, or for certain supported scenarios involving Microsoft and third-party technologies or services, Microsoft may coordinate with applicable third parties on issue resolution. All third parties remain responsible for their products and services and for meeting their own support obligations.
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- GitHub. Where GitHub support services are included or purchased, those services are provided by GitHub, Inc. and are subject to the applicable GitHub terms.
Appendix A: Mission Critical Services
Mission Critical Services (MCS) are optional services for products, workloads, and events where availability, resilience, and rapid recovery are especially important to the business. It provides an enhanced support experience intended to reduce time to mitigation, strengthen operational readiness, and improve continuity during high-impact situations. For eligible offerings, MCS also includes accelerated and direct access to Microsoft engineering to help address critical issues more quickly excluding Azure Events/Events Plus, Support for Mission Critical, Cybersecurity Incident Response, and Threat Intelligence. Your Work Order identifies the specific MCS offering(s), covered scope, and applicable terms.
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MCS for Azure Platform provides enhanced support for covered Azure production environments to help reduce time to mitigation for in-scope incidents. The service includes prioritized incident handling, accelerated escalation, and onboarding to align on the covered environment, operational priorities, and critical scenarios. Covered subscriptions, Azure services, any additional Platform Plus capabilities, and applicable prerequisites are defined in the Work Order. Delivery is remote unless otherwise agreed in writing, and certain services or capabilities may be subject to exclusions or service-specific conditions.
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MCS for Azure Workload, including Azure Workload for SAP, provides enhanced support for a defined mission-critical Azure workload or application in production designed to maintain and improve availability, resiliency, and time to mitigation for that workload. The service combines prioritized incident handling and accelerated escalation to Microsoft engineering with preventative services designed to drive the overall reliability of the in-scope workload. The covered workload, environment, any additional Plus or Companion capabilities, and related prerequisites are defined in the Work Order. MCS for Azure Workload Companion is available only with the applicable Azure Platform service where required.
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MCS for Azure Events supports planned, high-impact business events that rely on Azure services and require increased operational readiness during a defined event period. The service includes onboarding for the covered event scenario, a pre-event resilience review, support during the agreed event window, and follow-up on applicable issues after the event. The covered event scenario, event period, any additional Events Plus flexibility, and applicable conditions are defined in the Work Order. Customers are expected to provide planning information, participate in onboarding activities, and give sufficient advance notice for scheduling.
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MCS for Microsoft Security Cloud delivers enhanced support across covered Microsoft security products and services for the tenant(s) identified in the Work Order, aligning support to the customer's environment, priorities, and business objectives. It combines prioritized and accelerated issue resolution with proactive engagement to improve reliability and support continuous improvement. The service also includes technical advocacy, structured onboarding, scenario-based alignment, and ongoing support management to identify risks, optimize configurations, and strengthen a customer's overall security posture. Certain capabilities may be subject to service-specific delivery constraints, including language or regional availability.
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MCS for Microsoft 365 (M365) provides enhanced support and Microsoft engineering engagement for select M365 products within a defined production tenant(s), as identified in your Work Order. The service is designed to maximize the value of your M365 solutions and accelerate mitigation of qualifying, production-impacting incidents. It includes prioritized incident management handling, expedited escalation, and onboarding to align on your environment, operational priorities, and business critical scenarios. Coverage, scope, and any service-specific requirements are defined in the Work Order. For clarification, this service only applies to eligible M365 products and does not extend to Microsoft security, compliance or identity management (SCIM) products and services.
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MCS for GitHub provides enhanced support for covered GitHub environments and scenarios to help reduce operational risk for critical GitHub workflows. The service includes prioritized handling for qualifying incidents and may include deeper engagement, a designated technical resource, proactive health and performance guidance, or support for eligible GitHub platform or Copilot-related scenarios, depending on the purchased offering. Scope, covered environments or scenarios, applicable prerequisites, and any GitHub-specific terms are defined in the Work Order.
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Support for Mission Critical provides an elevated support experience for a defined mission-critical solution identified in your Work Order. The service may include preventive and reactive support elements designed to improve readiness, reduce risk, and support recovery when high-impact incidents occur. The covered solution, products, online services, solution boundaries, and service-specific conditions are defined in the Work Order. Delivery may require Customer participation in onboarding, planning, or other agreed service activities.
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Cybersecurity Incident Response provides specialized support to help investigate, contain, remediate, and recover from cybersecurity incidents. The service may include investigation support, guidance on containment and recovery actions, support to assess incident scope and impact, and related incident response activities based on the situation. The engagement scope, timing, and applicable conditions are defined at the time of the incident and governed by the applicable Work Order.
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Threat Intelligence provides tailored briefings, alerts, and insights to help customers understand emerging risks relevant to their environment, industry, or geography. The service may include regular briefings, practical guidance, alerting or insight sharing, and follow-up discussions through designated Microsoft security contacts, depending on the purchased offering. The specific scope, cadence, and any related customer participation requirements are defined in the Work Order.