Service Level Agreement (SLA)
This Service Level Agreement ("SLA") defines the service availability commitments, support tiers, incident response standards, and remedies available to Merchants subscribed to the xCrypt platform operated by SkyL4rk (Pty) Ltd. This SLA is incorporated by reference into the xCrypt Terms & Conditions.
1. Uptime Commitment
1.1 Target Availability
SkyL4rk commits to maintaining the xCrypt API and associated services at the following uptime levels, measured per calendar month:
| Plan | Monthly Uptime Target | Maximum Permitted Downtime / Month |
|---|---|---|
| Developer | 99.0% | ~7.2 hours |
| Starter | 99.5% | ~3.6 hours |
| Growth | 99.9% | ~43 minutes |
| Enterprise | 99.95% | ~22 minutes |
1.2 Uptime Calculation
Monthly uptime percentage is calculated as follows:
Uptime % = ((Total minutes in month − Unplanned downtime minutes) / Total minutes in month) × 100
Downtime is defined as a period during which the xCrypt API returns errors on greater than 50% of requests for a continuous period of 5 minutes or more, as recorded by SkyL4rk's monitoring systems. Partial degradation (slower response times, non-critical endpoints unavailable) does not constitute downtime for the purposes of this calculation unless it prevents core license validation functionality from operating.
1.3 Scheduled Maintenance
Planned maintenance windows are excluded from uptime calculations provided SkyL4rk gives at least 24 hours' advance notice via the dashboard or email. Scheduled maintenance will be conducted during low-traffic windows (typically between 22:00–04:00 SAST) and will not exceed 4 hours in duration without further notice.
2. Support Tiers
| Feature | Developer | Starter | Growth | Enterprise |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Support Channel | Documentation only | Email + Priority Queue | Email + Phone + Dedicated Manager | |
| Support Hours | — | Business hours (Mon–Fri, 09:00–17:00 SAST) | Extended (Mon–Fri, 08:00–20:00 SAST) | 24/7 for critical incidents |
| Initial Response — Critical | — | 8 business hours | 2 business hours | 1 hour (any time) |
| Initial Response — High | — | 2 business days | 4 business hours | 2 business hours |
| Initial Response — Medium | — | 5 business days | 2 business days | 1 business day |
| Initial Response — Low | — | 10 business days | 5 business days | 2 business days |
| Named Account Manager | No | No | No | Yes |
| Onboarding Assistance | No | No | Yes (email-based) | Yes (dedicated sessions) |
Support requests must be submitted to legal@xcrypt.co.za with sufficient detail to reproduce the issue, including API endpoint, request/response samples (with credentials redacted), and timestamp.
3. Incident Severity Classification
| Severity | Definition | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Critical (P1) | Complete service outage. Core license validation or API authentication is unavailable. No workaround exists. | API returning 5xx errors on all requests; authentication endpoint down; total database unavailability |
| High (P2) | Major functionality impaired. Core features are degraded with significant impact on Merchant operations. Limited workaround available. | License validation intermittently failing; webhook delivery failing; dashboard inaccessible |
| Medium (P3) | Non-core functionality impaired. Service is operational but some features are unavailable or performing below expected thresholds. | Reporting functions unavailable; API logs delayed; slow response times not affecting uptime |
| Low (P4) | Minor issue or feature request. No operational impact. | UI display issues; documentation questions; enhancement requests; billing queries |
4. Incident Handling Process
4.1 Detection and Logging
SkyL4rk operates continuous automated monitoring of all API endpoints, database availability, and infrastructure health. Incidents may be detected automatically or reported by Merchants. All incidents are logged in an internal incident register.
4.2 Communication
Upon detection of a P1 or P2 incident, SkyL4rk will:
- Post an initial notice within 30 minutes of detection (where technically feasible)
- Provide status updates at minimum every 60 minutes for ongoing P1 incidents
- Issue a post-incident report within 5 business days of resolution, including root cause analysis and remediation steps
Communication will be delivered via the merchant dashboard notification system and/or direct email to the registered account email address.
4.3 Escalation
If an incident is not resolved within the following timeframes, it will be automatically escalated to senior engineering and management:
- P1: Unresolved after 2 hours
- P2: Unresolved after 8 business hours
- P3: Unresolved after 5 business days
5. Service Credits
5.1 Credit Entitlement
Where monthly uptime falls below the committed level for your Plan, you are entitled to request a service credit as follows:
| Actual Monthly Uptime Achieved | Credit (as % of monthly subscription fee) |
|---|---|
| Below commitment but above 99.0% | 10% |
| Below 99.0% but above 98.0% | 15% |
| Below 98.0% but above 95.0% | 25% |
| Below 95.0% | 50% |
5.2 Credit Request Process
To claim a service credit, the Merchant must:
- Submit a written request to legal@xcrypt.co.za within 30 days of the end of the affected Usage Period
- Include the account email address, affected date(s) and time(s), and a description of the impact experienced
SkyL4rk will review the request against monitoring records and respond within 10 business days. Credits will be applied to the next invoice. Credits are not redeemable for cash.
5.3 Credit Cap
The maximum total credit issued in any calendar month shall not exceed 50% of the monthly subscription fee for that period, regardless of the number of incidents or severity. Credits do not carry over between months.
5.4 Sole Remedy
Service credits constitute the Merchant's sole and exclusive remedy for service unavailability. Nothing in this SLA limits the liability provisions in the Terms & Conditions.
6. Exclusions
The following circumstances are excluded from uptime calculations and credit eligibility:
- Scheduled maintenance with adequate prior notice (as per Section 1.3)
- Incidents caused by the Merchant's own infrastructure, code, or API misuse
- Incidents resulting from third-party service failures outside SkyL4rk's reasonable control (including upstream internet providers, DNS outages, or payment processor downtime)
- Force majeure events as defined in the Terms & Conditions
- Incidents caused by a Merchant exceeding their Plan's capacity limits resulting in throttling or suspension
- Developer Plan accounts, which carry no uptime credit entitlement
- Beta or preview features clearly marked as such
- Incidents reported more than 30 days after occurrence
7. Data Recovery Objectives
| Metric | Target |
|---|---|
| Recovery Time Objective (RTO) | 4 hours for P1 data loss scenarios |
| Recovery Point Objective (RPO) | 24 hours (daily encrypted backups) |
| Backup Retention | 30 days rolling |
| Backup Encryption | AES-256 at rest |
8. Changes to This SLA
SkyL4rk may update this SLA from time to time. Changes to uptime commitments or credit structures will be communicated with at least 30 days' notice to active Merchants. Changes that reduce uptime commitments entitle affected Merchants to terminate with a pro-rata refund of prepaid fees, if exercised within 14 days of the notice.
9. Contact for SLA and Support
- Support: legal@xcrypt.co.za
- Billing and Credits: legal@xcrypt.co.za
- Critical Incidents (Enterprise): Contact your named account manager