About external sites

Today, virtually all the leading hardware manufacturers and software suppliers offer excellent technical support sites. Many nonprofit organizations involved in the Open Source movement provide excellent support resources as well. Click here for a list of support sites for products that are widely used at Harvard.

These sites typically offer downloadable software upgrades and device drivers, online user manuals, troubleshooting tips, and databases of known problems and solutions.

About toll-free help numbers
Many providers also list toll-free help numbers. Keep in mind that a provider may only provide support to certain people (for example, those with a service contract), on certain products (typically, the most recent versions), or will only provide support for a defined time period (for example, 30 or 60 days after you purchase the product).

Many providers now offer support on a pay-as-you-go basis. Typically, you pay a flat fee -- which may be as low as $29 per incident Ð which can be charged to a credit card.