PA-820 Support renewal

[Lloydie_p]

Hi All,

Our current PA-820 support is due to expire in October, so I requested a renewal quote, and our vendor is stating that paloalto is declining to extend support. Has anyone had similar feedback from resellers and or paloalto regarding their non-EoL PA device who's support is due to expire (in approximately two months time)?

According to paloalto, the PA-820 is EoL on  August 31, 2029.  https://www.paloaltonetworks.co.uk/services/support/end-of-life-announcements/hardware-end-of-life-d...
 
I'm also noticing that a few of our firewalls have "Premium Partner Support", which, from a quick Google search, is anything but Premium, as you can only log support calls via your partner (I don't recall our PA resellers explaining these support differences). I've mentioned that, as I'm not sure if this plays a part in our vendor's response.

[kiwi]

Hi @Lloydie_p ,

Your vendor's response is unusual and, based on Palo Alto Networks' official End-of-Life (EOL) policy, is likely incorrect.

The PA-820 Is Not End-of-Life (EOL).  As you correctly pointed out, the PA-820's official EOL date is August 31, 2029. This is a well-documented and publicly available date. Palo Alto Networks' policy is to provide technical assistance for a period of five years following the End-of-Sale (EOS) date, provided a valid support contract is maintained. (Source: https://www.paloaltonetworks.com/services/support/end-of-life-announcements/end-of-life-policy)

A product must have a continuous support contract to be eligible for renewal. If your contract has not lapsed, you should be able to renew it.

Maybe your vendor is confusing EOS with EOL ?

As for the difference in Support Models.  You have correctly identified the difference between direct "Premium Support" and "Premium Partner Support."

• Premium Support (Direct): This is the standard support model where you open a case directly with Palo Alto Networks' Technical Assistance Center (TAC) via the support portal or phone.

• Premium Partner Support (Partner-Enabled): With this model, your partner (who is an Authorized Support Center) provides the first and second levels of support. They open a case with Palo Alto Networks' TAC on your behalf only if they cannot resolve the issue themselves. You are essentially a layer removed from the TAC engineer.

While this model can offer some benefits (like local language or multi-vendor support), it can also be a source of frustration due to the extra layer of communication.

Kind regards,

Kim.

[Lloydie_p]

Hi Kim, thanks for the feedback, yes, like with all other vendors I have dealt with, I too expect that if the device isn't EoL then the vendor will provide extended support in some shape or form. I finally managed to find a human contact at paloalto, so hopefully I will get some concrete answers on our PA-820 support and update this Discussion.