Product Lifecycle Policy

Lifecycle Phases

Our products are designed for continuous use and are usually in production for many years, offering powerful security and reliance to our customers. However, we are also constantly developing new and more powerful solutions; in response to the market demanding more features and more performance. It is therefore inevitable that products need to be phased out. This is called the product lifecycle. This section will define this process and how you, as a valued Clavister customer, should plan for changes.

General availability phase

Each Clavister product and service progress through a number of lifecycle phases. When a product or service is released it enter its General Availability (GA) phase. During this phase a hardware-based product may go through a series of revisions, denoted “revision A”, “revision B”, etc. These revisions are mainly to optimize the production of the product. Software products and services go through similar revisions, called Major Releases, Minor Releases and Maintenance Releases. All customers with active Clavister Security Subscription agreement will receive all these software releases at no extra cost.

End of Sales (EOS) phases

At some point in time, the product or service is declared End Of Sales (EOS). Clavister will provide the distribution channel 30 days notice prior to a product’s End Of Sales date. EOS means that the product is no longer available for purchase. However, the product is fully supported and all services are available for purchase for a period of 36 months after the EOS date. It is advisable for customers to start planning for migrating to newer Clavister products during this period. For more information about which products that are declared End of Sales including designated replacement products, please visit the End of Sales section.

End of Life (EOL) phase

36 months after the EOS date, the product is declared End Of Life (EOL). After the EOL date it is no longer possible to purchase any services for the product. End-Of-Life (EOL) of a product normally occurs 36 months after the EOS date. Deviations from this policy might occur due to events outside of Clavister’s control.

Services

Clavister Subscriptions

Until a product has reached EOL, Clavister provides full support and maintenance service, Clavister Security Subscription (CSS) and Clavister Product Subscription (CPS) for the specific product:

– Clavister Product Subscription (CPS) includes software maintenance, software upgrades, centralized management, 24/7 technical support and hardware replacement.
– Clavister Security Subscription (CSS) includes all of the above and also comes with our next-generation firewall services, i.e. Application Control, Intrusion

Detection and Prevention (IDP), Web Content Filtering and Anti-Virus. (Hardware and license dependent, for details see Clavister Subscriptions).
Visit the Clavister Subscriptions section for more information. CSS/CPS subscriptions is mandatory at least for a first service period. CSS/CPS subscriptions can be ordered in 12 to 60 months service lengths and are payable up-front. The maximum service length per order is 60 months for General Availability products.


Renewals shall be purchased three (3) months) at the earliest prior to the expiry date of the current subscription. Renewals of subscriptions commence on the date when the preceding valid service period expires/expired, and is valid for the purchased amount of months (12 to 60 months).

For a product declared EOL, 

subscriptions can only be purchased with service length until the EOL date. The price for a non-standard (“adjusted to EOL”) service length is derived from the price of the next longer standard service.


Example: 36 months CSS subscription is € 3 600. The price for 24 months service is (€3 600/36) x 24 = €2 400.


In case a subscription is purchased before official EOS announcement with a contract length exceeding the EOL date, technical support and hardware replacement services are still valid after the official EOL date.

Hardware replacement

Both Clavister Security Subscription and Clavister Product Subscription include a hardware replacement service, to reduce disturbances caused by hardware malfunction. In the event of a hardware malfunction, confirmed by Clavister, a similar or equivalent product or spare part is shipped from Clavister the next business day.

Hardware replacement or replacement parts will be available for 36 months following the End of Sale date, provided a valid and continuous Clavister Security Subscription is maintained on the product. At Clavister’s discretion, hardware may be replaced with similar or equivalent product when needed.


If a subscription renewal is made after the expiry of the previous period, the customer is not entitled to Hardware Replacement Service during a quarantine period of three (3) months starting from the date when Clavister books the renewal purchase order.

Standard hardware warranty

All Clavister hardware products feature a standard two (2) year warranty service. The warranty asserts that the hardware components will be free from defects in material and workmanship when used in accordance with the applicable user documentation. The warranty period starts with the earliest date of either the date when the product is registered or three (3) months after shipment from Clavister.

Return material authorization

To obtain warranty service for your Clavister hardware you must first obtain a valid Return Material Authorization (RMA) number. Log in to MyClavister and visit the Help Desk section. Here you can request an RMA number by completing the New RMA Ticket form. Follow the instructions that you receive with your RMA number on how to return your product.

Clavister reserves the right to modify the product lifecycle policy at any time; notifications regarding changes in policy will be posted on this page. Last updated: 2013-07-01.