CSP Ecosystem Migration to GCP - FAQ

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Question: Why will the Customer Support Portal (CSP) be down?

Answer: We will be performing scheduled maintenance to the CSP.

Question: How long will the site be down?

Answer: The maintenance window is scheduled for November 7, 2020, from 11:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. PST. It is our intent that should the maintenance be completed earlier than 11:00 p.m. PST, the CSP will be brought back online.

Question: What notifications will be available during this maintenance down time? Where can I find updates on this event?

Answer: Please visit http://status.paloaltonetworks.com for current information on the maintenance event.

Question: What is impacted by the Customer Support Portal being down?

Answer: Customers and Partners will be unable to access the Customer Support Portal. The following is a list of services that will be unavailable during this maintenance window:

• Web Case Creation through CSP (New Cases)
• Web Case Management (Access to Existing Cases)
• Asset and User Management
• Device Onboarding/Registration and Offboarding
• Certificates, License Activation and Transfers
• VM series registration and deletion
• Permission Changes and New User additions
• Hub Management
• Content updates for unregistered devices
• Knowledge Base search from CSP
• Admin cases
• All Other Asset, Application, and User Features

Question: Is it possible for me to open a case during this maintenance window, should the need arise?

Answer: Yes. We ask that you PLEASE ONLY OPEN CRITICAL / HIGH LEVEL CASES during the maintenance window period. Please delay non-critical cases as we expect hold times may be longer than usual during this event.

Question: How would I open a Critical / High case during the maintenance window?

Answer: During this time, all cases should be opened via our support phone number. Please call the support line for your region. 

Question: Since these services will be unavailable online, would the Support team be able to register assets or activate licenses for us?

Answer: No. Asset Registration or License Activation will be unavailable during the maintenance period. 

Question: How will Authorized Support Centers (ASCs) open a Critical / High case during the maintenance window?

Answer: During this time, an Authorized Support Center Partner (ASCs) can call in via the support phone number. Please call the support line for your region. Please note, a web case will not be required during this maintenance event. However, ASCs should be prepared to provide the necessary information required for an online case creation.

Question: I have a critical project occurring at my site. How do I get support, should I require it, during this outage?

Answer: For scheduled work that our customers or partners may have planned, we ask that you open a case with us on Friday, November 6, 2020. If you encounter a CRITICAL / HIGH incident where you need assistance, please call the  support line for your region, and reference your existing case. 

Question: During this outage, how will support engineer case updates be received, and how will the notification occur? 

Answer: Case comments will function normally, with an email notification to the customer or partner. If you need to respond to the update, please reply to the notification via email.

Question: Can existing cases be updated with comments?

Answer: Yes, for CRITICAL and HIGH level issues during the maintenance window, customers / partners should call into Support to request an update.  

Question: Can customers update existing cases with comments via the web during the maintenance window?

Answer:  No, the CSP will be down. A call to the Support Center is required to update an existing case, and only for CRITICAL and HIGH issues. Please update non-critical cases outside of the maintenance window via the CSP when it is back online.

Question: I received an email notification from the support engineer working on my case. Can I respond back to the email notification?

Answer: Yes, Customers and Partners will be able to respond to case notifications via email.

Question: Will the cases created through the Support call line be available for viewing and monitoring after the outage?

Answer: Yes, cases created by phone will be available on the web. Once the CSP maintenance is completed, cases will be available to manage via the web.

Question: What information should I have available when calling into support?

Answer: Our Support Engineers will walk you through the process of opening the case with a series of questions. To expedite the process, please have the following information available when calling into Support.

• Customer Name
• Customer Email Address
• Customer Phone Number
• Technology requiring assistance
• OS Release
• Serial Number of device involved
• Issue - summarize the problem

Question. Will Knowledge Base and Tech Docs be available during this outage?

Answer: Yes. Both of these platforms will be available through their direct site URLs. However, you may experience a slower-than-usual response time. Please use these resources for assistance to find answers to non-critical type escalation requests. 

Question. How do I access Knowledge Base and Tech Docs?

Answer:  Knowledge Base can be found here: https://knowledgebase.paloaltonetworks.com/

Tech Docs is located at: https://docs.paloaltonetworks.com/

Question. Will LIVEcommunity be available during this outage?

Answer:  Yes, LIVEcommunity will be available during the outage window with no impact to service. https://live.paloaltonetworks.com/

Question: Can firewalls fetch content updates during outage?

Answer: Only registered firewalls can fetch content updates. Newly provisioned devices and all devices not yet registered will not be able to receive content updates.

Question: Can a customer onboard devices during outage?

Answer: No. We cannot onboard customers’ firewalls due to the inability to issue certificates. Newly provisioned customer firewall devices won’t boot, if they need a new cert. They will be stuck in maintenance mode. Existing firewalls will not be able to renew.

Question: Can a customer offboard devices during outage?

Answer: No. Virtual and physical device offboarding (e.g., RMA) depends on CSP to revoke the firewall certificate and block it from registering or use after resale (e.g., Ebay).