Contacting IBM Support

Before you begin

After trying to find your answer or solution by using other self-help options such as technotes, you can contact IBM Support. Before contacting IBM Support, your company must have an active IBM maintenance contract, and you must be authorized to submit problems to IBM. For information about the types of available support, see the Support portfolio topic in the Software Support Handbook.

Complete the following steps to contact IBM Support with a problem:

1. Define the problem, gather background information, and determine the severity of the problem. For more information, see the Getting IBM support topic in the Software Support Handbook.
2. Gather diagnostic information.
3. Submit the problem to IBM Support in one of the following ways:
   • Online through the IBM Support Portal: You can open, update, and view all your Service Requests from the Service Request portlet on the Service Request page.
   • By phone: For the phone number to call in your country, see the Directory of worldwide contacts web page.

Results

If the problem that you submit is for a software defect or for missing or inaccurate documentation, IBM Support creates an Authorized Program Analysis Report (APAR). The APAR describes the problem in detail. Whenever possible, IBM Support provides a workaround that you can implement until the APAR is resolved and a fix is delivered. IBM publishes resolved APARs on the IBM Support website daily, so that other users who experience the same problem can benefit from the same resolution.