Email to SuperMicro: Great Motherboard, Unnaceptable Warranty terms

Well, well, well

Once Again I fell the only way to easy my mind is to warn you about SuperMicro's warranty terms on their Motherboards:

Hello,

I have decided to contact you again even if you didn't answer my email 1 year ago... (see bottom)

I have purchased several X7DAL-E Motherboard for the Virtualisation needs of our Institute. While I admit theses board have been troublefree for the most part, I purchased a few spare motherboard in case I needed to make a replacement somewhere in the future. A few months ago, I decided to use one of theses spares (brand new in box still sealed) to replace a Tyan Motherboard so I would get the same motherboard model accross all our servers. The upgrade didn't go well since the X7DAL-E I took from my spare inventory didn't work when installing a 2nd Xeon CPU. I tried everything and even when I managed to upgrade the BIOS it still didn't work with a 2nd CPU (a trouble I had already seen on a Tyan Motherboard as well).

SO I took another spare from my inventory (again brand new in box) and this one worked like a charm.

Then I sent the brand new defective motherboard to my reseller so he can send the motherboard back to his distributor or directly to you.

Surprise! Surprise! I get a 75$ charge for repair to this motherboard.

This is where a company cross the line for me. As a buyer, I won't purchase any SuperMicro products again for 2 reasons:

1. Unable to get an answer about the warranty term (no mention in the manual, no mention on your website)
2. Billing to repair a brand new motherboard less than a year old

To put it mildly, I find this practice disgusting and you'll find other people on the web with the same feeling.

I decided to put this information on my blog as well

So I wish good luck to your business and hope that big buyers like me does not realize (or do not care) about this matter. Afterall, I have plenty of Server Board manufacturer to choose from which offer 3 years warranty (hardware AND labor) and clearly states their terms on their website and in the product manual.

Corporate Info:

BLah blah blah

Sent on Mon. 2007-09-17 15:17

I find this to be really embarrassing, searching for the warranty of your motherboard lineup, I was unable to find an answer on your website.

The only thing I found was a FAQ about 3-years warranty on your SuperServers.

Even in the product manual, there is no mention of the warranty duration.

SO WHAT IS THE WARANTY YOU OFFER ON YOUR MAINBOARDS (server and workstation)