Task Status
This page is part of the ongoing SWIM communities of interest discussions. The content is working material. It should not be treated as final as it is still subject to review, comment and change.
This task will see how the content of a service description relates to the content of a SLA. It will:
- introduce SLAs
- agree terminology
- explain how they relate to the other service artefacts - how can a service description feed a SLA e.g.
- quality of service
- access and use - cost of using the service
- to do this we will look at any minimum (regulated) content. The content of SLAs is highly regulated.
- consider
- if a template is required
- highlight existing templates
Introduction
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Service description | Information needed in order to use, or consider using, a service. |
| Service level agreement |
|
Characteristics:
| Term | purpose | produced by | used by | concerns | contains | can be registered |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service description | in order to use a service consider using a service | service provider | all service consumer | service instance | service metadata | yes |
| Service level agreement | contract when using a service | service provider-service consumer | particular service provider-service consumer | service instance | no |
Purpose and usage
A service description can form the starting point for discussions on the SLA. The service description e.g. contains the minimum offered quality of service.
An example of a difference in a SLA over a service description can be found in this discussion on SWIM-SERV-014 Quality of service.
At the moment, it sounds like you do not want to commit to a given figure for the availability of the service. It is possible to state "best effort" in the service description.
It is then possible to update the service description within the European SWIM Registry if you think an update is needed based on the feedback from operations.
SWIM-SERV-014 concerns the quality of service that is offered. The figure is used to inform contract negotiations and the creation of a Service Level Agreement between the provider and consumer. Indeed, it is the figure in the SLA that most interests consumers. Therefore, the service description can stay as "best effort" until you are confident you can provide a more accurate figure. The exact figure can be included in the relevant SLAs.
Correspondence with service description
Range of regulations to take into account is large. Difficult to give generic advice and map service description to the "formal arrangements".
Service description is for the service. It is not a contract, can be updated over time
The "formal arrangement" (e.g. contract, SLA, MOC, online tick-box agreeing to conditions) is specific to the provider and consumer. Series of regulations to be taken into account depending on the type of formal arrangement.
Can also be e.g. an agreement that covers occasional use.
Using NM services involves a certificate, approval of a board...
The same service can be offered to different consumers on different conditions.
Typical content that can be used to inform negotiation of the "formal arrangement" on e.g. quality of service, source of information, access and use conditions.
to do
Add to the diagram with the service artefacts e.g. definitions, overviews, descriptions.
Regulated content
- Applies to service providers: 2017/373