Integrated Computer Services Frequently Asked Questions

Integrated Computer Services, Inc. (ICS) is based in Glen Rock, New Jersey, and has provided IT consulting, managed IT services, and cybersecurity solutions to businesses since 2002. We support organizations from small businesses to mid-sized enterprises with scalable solutions that grow as you grow.

Our services span managed IT services, IT consulting, cloud services, infrastructure design and modernization, cybersecurity, and compliance-focused IT support. We work with organizations that depend on technology to operate securely, efficiently, and with minimal disruption.

ICS is built around a senior technical team with decades of combined real-world experience supporting complex business environments. Our engineers and technicians focus on outcomes that matter: stability, security, and accountability, not “tech for tech’s sake.”

We maintain deep expertise across Microsoft-based environments, modern cloud platforms, endpoint and identity security, and hybrid infrastructure. Our team holds industry-recognized certifications and continuously trains to stay current as technology and threats evolve.

Our focus is simple: deliver reliable, secure, and well-managed IT so our clients can focus on running their business, not managing technology.

We take cybersecurity seriously and treat it as a core part of every managed services relationship, not an add-on. Our security stack, policies, and processes are continuously reviewed and updated to reflect real-world threats and evolving best practices.

Security starts during onboarding. We establish baseline security standards across identity, access, and endpoint management, including password policies, multi-factor authentication, and Active Directory hygiene. We also perform an initial cybersecurity assessment covering both on-premises infrastructure and cloud environments to identify material risks and remediation priorities.

As a standard, we deploy 24/7 cybersecurity monitoring with active threat detection, Zero Trust–based network security principles, and managed endpoint and perimeter protection. This provides layered security across users, devices, networks, and cloud services.

On an ongoing basis, we monitor security events including authentication activity, endpoint threats, and network anomalies through 24/7/365 managed SOC services. This allows us to detect, respond to, and contain threats quickly to minimize risk and business impact.

We also offer secure email protection to reduce spam, phishing, and malicious messages, along with security awareness training and simulated phishing campaigns to help users recognize and avoid real-world attacks.

In addition, we assist clients with security remediation and alignment for regulatory and industry requirements, including, but not limited to: PCI, HIPAA, CUI, and DFARS.

Once you come on board, our relationship starts with a structured onboarding process. We review and document your network, servers, cloud services, and key systems so our team fully understands your environment. We’ll also provide clear instructions on how to reach support by phone, email, or through our client portal.

After onboarding, our technical team begins ongoing support. Your servers and critical infrastructure are proactively monitored for health, performance, and uptime. When issues are detected, we either remediate them immediately or coordinate with your team when approval or scheduling is required. Your employees can contact us directly for day-to-day support needs.

A dedicated customer service liaison helps manage the relationship, tracking requests, ensuring tickets are handled within SLA, and prioritizing or expediting issues when needed.

We also stay ahead of lifecycle items like warranties and support expirations, and we regularly review your environment to keep systems stable, secure, and operating at peak performance. For larger initiatives, we provide project management and vCTO services to help with IT planning, budgeting, and roadmap development.

Our team includes experienced help desk technicians, on-site field technicians for issues that can’t be resolved remotely, a project team for deployments and upgrades, and a management team that oversees service delivery while continuously improving our tools, standards, and cybersecurity posture.

Standard support hours are Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM. Requests submitted during business hours are handled within your SLA, and critical down issues are typically addressed during these hours at no additional charge. If you enroll in our after-hours services, 24x7x365 support is available.

ICS uses an industry-standard ticketing platform (Autotask) to ensure every support request is properly logged, tracked, and documented. Any email sent to our support address or request submitted through our online form automatically generates a ticket in our system. Calls to our support line are also logged by our customer service liaison, ensuring no request is missed.

Each ticket is assigned a priority based on impact and urgency, then routed to the appropriate technician or team. All work performed is documented within the ticket, creating a clear audit trail of actions taken, time spent, and resolution details. This allows for accurate tracking, accountability, and consistent service delivery.

Ticket status updates and communications are centralized within the system, so both our team and yours have visibility into progress. Upon request, clients can be granted secure portal access to view open tickets, track updates in real time, and review historical ticket activity.

Detailed ticket reports can be generated at any time, providing insight into response times, resolution trends, and overall support activity. This data helps support ongoing service reviews, capacity planning, and continuous improvement of your IT environment.

Our Helpdesk support is guaranteed Monday through Friday, 8:30 AM to 6:00 PM. During this time, our Customer Service Liaison is available to assist with requests, and our technical team is actively monitoring, triaging, and resolving issues.

Between 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM, our technicians continue to actively work on critical issues that impact business operations. Non-critical requests received during this period will be logged and addressed on the next business day to ensure proper prioritization and resolution.

Outside of normal business hours, after-hours support is available for urgent and critical issues. Two on-call technicians are regularly available to respond, and after-hours work is billed at $199–$249 per hour, depending on the nature and timing of the request.

To protect your systems and prevent unauthorized changes, we follow a formal Change Control process.

Each client designates a list of approved Authorization Contacts who are permitted to request and approve major changes to your network, systems, and infrastructure. This ensures that only trusted individuals within your organization can authorize impactful work.

In addition, every user is issued a unique PIN code. When contacting our Helpdesk, callers must provide their PIN to verify their identity and confirm they are authorized to request support. This added layer of verification helps prevent unauthorized or fraudulent requests.

All major changes are carefully planned and managed by a Project Manager who evaluates potential risks, coordinates timing, and ensures appropriate safeguards are in place before any work begins. Whenever possible, changes are scheduled to minimize business disruption.

For full accountability and auditability, all approved changes are:

• * Logged and tracked through our ticketing system

• * Fully documented in our internal systems

• * Performed in accordance with best practices and security standards

This structured approach ensures changes are authorized, secure, documented, and executed with minimal risk to your business operations.

We utilize a layered suite of monitoring and management tools to maintain visibility, performance, and security across your environment. Our primary Remote Monitoring and Management (RMM) platform, powered by N-able, is used to monitor and inventory Windows systems and VMware ESXi–based servers. This platform provides real-time insight into system health, availability, and performance.

In addition, we leverage Atera for automation, patch management, and day-to-day management of desktops and laptops. Together, these platforms allow us to proactively identify hardware and software issues, apply security and stability updates, and address potential problems before they impact users.

Both systems continuously monitor for critical alerts, system failures, performance degradation, and security-related events. Patch management is centrally managed to ensure operating systems and supported applications remain up to date and secure.

Weekly system health reports can be provided to designated contacts, summarizing overall system status, applied updates, and any notable issues detected or resolved.

Response Times

Remote Response Time: During Normal Business Hours (M-F, 8:00 AM-6:00 PM ET) response time initiates upon receipt of the initial call
Priority 1: within 30 minutes from placement of request
Priority 2: within 2 hours from placement of request
Priority 3: within 4 hours from placement of request
Priority 4: within 1 Business Day*
*Response time may vary depending on complexity of request and based on availability of technicians

After Normal Business Hours, Weekends & Holidays: Saturday, Sunday, M-F, 6:00 PM – 8:00 AM ET (Non-Guaranteed) response time initiates upon receipt of the initial call
Priority 1: within 2 hours from placement of request*
Priority 2: within 4 hours from placement of request*
Priority 3: within 2 Business Day*
Priority 4: within 2 Business Day*
*Response time may vary depending on complexity of request and based on availability of level 3 technicians

On-Site Response Time: During Normal Business Hours (M-F, 9:00 AM-5:00 PM ET) if on site visit required for resolution
Priority 1: within 2 hours of ICS engineers’ decision.
Priority 2: within 2 hours of ICS engineers’ decision
Priority 3: within 1 Business Day of ICS engineers decision
Priority 4: Based of ICS Project Schedule and project tech availability

After Normal Business Hours, Weekends & Holidays: Saturday, Sunday, M-F, 5:00 PM – 9:00 AM ET (Non-Guaranteed) if on site visit required for resolution
Priority 1: within 4 hours of ICS engineers’ decision.*
Priority 2: within 4 hours of ICS engineers’ decision*
Priority 3: within 2 Business Day of ICS engineers decision*
Priority 4: Based of ICS Project Schedule and project tech availability*

Definitions of Priorities

Priority 1 - Critical Server \ Network Down

• Major disasters: loss of essential server(s) mission-critical LAN or widespread outage

• Inability by all users to access any mission Critical programs

• Multiple users are being prevented from serving company customers

• Data loss or corruption

• Network down

• Security breach

Priority 2 - High Priority Support

• Support for key employees, owners and management team

• Printing problems across multiple printers

• System continually producing incorrect results in isolated circumstances

• Constant error in generation from fundamental processes

• Chronic issue

Priority 3 - Non Critical

• Crash, no access to, or non-availability of a non-essential server

• Local and confined PC problems

• User is unable to process a particular type of service but has simple alternative

• User is prohibited from performing low priority work

• One user is affected

• One PC not working (except where it constitutes a significant portion of system)

• System produces incorrect results in a known and isolated set of circumstances which can be worked around

• Local printer/scanner problems

• Move Add Change Delete for User accounts, hardware \ software and AD Objects

Priority 4 - Consulting Services

• “How To” Questions

• Future projects discussions

• Analysis of networks for upgrades, work flow, processes, technology road mapping, etc.

Routine patch management and system maintenance is scheduled every Friday starting at 9:00 PM. This after-hours maintenance window is designed to ensure critical updates are applied regularly with minimal disruption to normal business operations. If this scheduled window does not work for your organization, it can be adjusted upon request.

If additional maintenance is required that may impact all clients, we will send an email notification to your company’s registered contacts outlining:

• * The nature and purpose of the maintenance

• * Systems or services that may be affected

• * The expected duration of any downtime

These notifications are sent at least 4 hours in advance and, whenever possible, 12–24 hours in advance to allow for proper planning.

For maintenance that is specific to your organization, we will coordinate directly with your designated primary contacts. No downtime will be scheduled without your approval, and maintenance will be performed only at a time that aligns with your operational needs.

We believe proactive, transparent communication is essential to maintaining a secure and reliable IT environment.

We regularly send email alerts to your designated contacts to keep you informed about:

• Potential security threats and emerging risks

• Important system updates and major changes

• New technologies and opportunities for improvement

• Infrastructure enhancements that may impact your environment

Beyond notifications, our technical team continuously monitors your IT environment, including hardware health and warranty status. When we identify signs of impending issues, aging equipment, or systems approaching end-of-life, we proactively communicate our findings and recommend upgrades or replacements to help prevent unexpected downtime and disruptions.

Upon request, we also work closely with your leadership team to:

• * Align technology decisions with business goals

• * Optimize and plan IT spending

• * Develop a strategic IT roadmap that supports growth, security, and long-term stability

Our goal is to ensure you are never caught off guard, and that your technology decisions are informed, strategic, and aligned with your business objectives.

Disaster recovery is a core specialty of Integrated Computer Services and a critical component of how we protect our clients’ businesses.

As part of every managed services agreement, we include offsite cloud backup storage to ensure your data is protected against hardware failure, cyber incidents, accidental deletion, and site-level disasters. This provides a secure foundation for data recovery in the event of an unexpected outage or emergency.

Depending on your environment, risk profile, and business requirements, we may also recommend and implement additional layers of protection, including:

• Virtual machine (VM) replication

• VM-level image backups

• Physical server bare-metal backups

• Business Disaster Recovery (BDR) appliances

These solutions are carefully selected and designed to align with your operational needs, recovery objectives, and compliance requirements.

All disaster recovery strategies are built around industry best practices, including the 3-2-1 backup rule, which ensures resilient and reliable data protection:

• * Maintain at least three copies of your data

• * Store backups on two different types of media or devices

• * Keep one copy offsite to protect against local disasters

By layering multiple backup and recovery technologies, we help ensure your data remains accessible, recoverable, and secure, no matter the situation.

Minor upgrades of software are handled free of charge as long as they are performed within normal business hours.

Major upgrades that require contacting a vendor, project planning, or cause major changes to the software that may result in loss of data are billable per hour according to the rates outlined in your agreement.

All upgrades performed after hours will be billed at the standard afterhours rate according to your agreement.

Minor software upgrades are performed at no additional charge when completed during normal business hours. These typically include routine updates that do not require vendor coordination, project planning, or introduce risk to data or system functionality.

Major software upgrades, such as upgrades that involve vendor engagement, require advance planning, significantly alter system functionality, or carry a potential risk of data loss, are considered billable project work. These services are billed at the hourly rates outlined in your service agreement and are carefully planned to minimize disruption and risk.

Any software upgrades or related work performed outside of normal business hours are billed at the standard after-hours rate specified in your agreement, regardless of upgrade type.

Our approach ensures that routine maintenance remains simple and cost-effective, while more complex upgrades are properly planned, documented, and executed to protect your systems and data.

Every action performed by our technicians is fully tracked and documented through our ticketing and documentation systems to ensure transparency, accountability, and continuity of support.

Any support request, maintenance alert, installation, or system upgrade generates a ticket before work begins. Technicians are required to document all actions taken and cannot close a ticket without entering detailed notes describing what was done. This ensures that every change, fix, and maintenance task is recorded and auditable.

All system changes are tracked through our ticketing system, and major changes are additionally documented in our centralized documentation platform. This allows our support team to quickly understand your environment, maintain consistency, and respond efficiently, especially during escalations or emergencies. Ticket reports can be requested at any time for review or auditing purposes.