Introduction
In database management and support operations, ensuring Service Level Agreement (SLA) compliance is paramount. Supabase, known for its innovative approach to database management and support, introduces SLA Buddy, a robust support tool aimed at efficient SLA enforcement. This blog post delves into the intricacies of SLA Buddy, shedding light on its functions, operations, and interactions within the Supabase ecosystem.
Introducing SLA Buddy
Supabase's commitment to innovation extends beyond database solutions; it encompasses robust support operations. SLA Buddy stands as a testament to Supabase's dedication to streamlining support processes and ensuring timely resolution of user queries.
Dogfooding: The Birth of SLA Buddy
Supabase firmly believes in dogfooding a philosophy that entails using one's own products internally. This approach played a pivotal role in the creation of SLA Buddy. Leveraging Supabase's suite of tools, including Edge Functions and Database functionalities, SLA Buddy was meticulously developed to meet the stringent demands of support operations.
Understanding SLA Buddy's Functions
SLA Buddy's core function revolves around enforcing SLAs effectively. Let's delve into its primary functions:
SLA Enforcement
SLA Buddy ensures SLA compliance through a series of intricate processes. This includes:
- Slack Reminders: Utilizing Slack reminders to prompt support engineers about impending SLA deadlines.
- Calendar Checks: Employing calendar integration to determine who's currently available to answer support tickets.
Let's take a look at SLA Buddy's Operations
To gain a deeper understanding of SLA Buddy's operations, let's take a look on the main diagram of operations:
Watching Messages
SLA Buddy actively monitors Slack channels using PostgreSQL functions like process_channels. This function scans Slack channels, handles new messages, and adds tasks to the queue for each new ticket that comes to the platform. Once the channel is scanned through the scan_channel edge function it adds rows to the slack_watcher table. There is a trigger function on that table that creates tasks for each ticket according to the SLA which depends on which channel that the message came from. Tickets have different SLAs, depending on both severity and the subscription level of the user opening the ticket.
_45CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION "public"."insert_tasks"() RETURNS "trigger"_45 LANGUAGE "plpgsql"_45 AS $$_45declare_45 escalationtimeintervals int[];_45 currentinterval int;_45 threadts text;_45_45BEGIN_45 IF new.channel_id <> '' THEN_45 SELECT escalation_time INTO escalationtimeintervals_45 FROM priority WHERE channel_id = new.channel_id;_45 ELSE_45 escalationtimeintervals := array[10, 20, 35, 50]; -- minutes_45 END IF;_45 -- INSERT tasks for each escalation level_45 FOR i IN 1..4_45 LOOP_45 -- set the current escalation time interval_45 currentinterval := escalationtimeintervals[i];_45 -- format thread_ts as (epoch time as a big int) + '.' + ts_ms_45 thread_timestamp := extract(epoch FROM new.ts)::bigint::text || '.' || new.ts_ms;_45_45 -- check IF ticket_type is not 'feedback'_45 IF lower(new.ticket_type) <> 'feedback' THEN_45 INSERT INTO checking_tasks_queue (http_verb, payload, due_time, replied)_45 values (_45 'POST',_45 jsonb_build_object(_45 'channel_id', new.channel_id,_45 'thread_ts', thread_timestamp,_45 'escalation_level', i,_45 'ticket_id', new.ticket_number,_45 'ticket_priority', new.ticket_priority,_45 'ticket_type', new.ticket_type_45 ),_45 new.ts + (currentinterval * interval '1 minute'),_45 false_45 );_45 END IF;_45 END LOOP;_45 -- return the new slack_msg row_45 return new;_45END;_45$$;
Verifying Due Tasks
The core function check_due_tasks_and_update() plays a pivotal role in task verification and status updating. It ensures that tasks are duly acknowledged, thereby facilitating timely resolution.
_90CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION "public"."check_due_tasks_and_update"() RETURNS "void"_90 LANGUAGE "plpgsql"_90 AS $$_90DECLARE_90 _task RECORD;_90 _response JSONB;_90 _response_row JSONB;_90 _ticket_id text;_90 _have_replied BOOLEAN;_90 _ticket_array text;_90 _lock_key CONSTANT int := 42;_90 _lock_acquired boolean;_90BEGIN_90 -- Try to acquire the advisory lock_90 _lock_acquired := pg_try_advisory_lock(_lock_key);_90 IF NOT _lock_acquired THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Could not acquire lock. Another instance is running. Exiting function...';_90 RETURN;_90 END IF;_90_90 -- Call create_ticket_array()_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Calling create_ticket_array()';_90 _ticket_array := public.create_ticket_array();_90_90 -- Check IF _ticket_array is '[]'_90 IF _ticket_array = '[]' THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'No tickets to process. Exiting function...';_90 -- Release the advisory lock_90 PERFORM pg_advisory_unlock(_lock_key);_90 RETURN;_90 END IF;_90_90 -- Call help_plataform_wrapper() using _ticket_array_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Calling help_plataform_wrapper()';_90 _response := public.help_plataform_wrapper(_ticket_array);_90_90 -- Check IF _response is NULL_90 IF _response IS NULL THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Response is NULL. Exiting function...';_90 -- Release the advisory lock_90 PERFORM pg_advisory_unlock(_lock_key);_90 RETURN;_90 END IF;_90_90 -- Process the response_90 FOR _response_row IN SELECT * FROM jsonb_array_elements(_response)_90 LOOP_90 _ticket_id := _response_row->>'ticket_id';_90 _have_replied := (_response_row->>'have_replied')::BOOLEAN;_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Processing response for ticket_id: %, have_replied: %', _ticket_id, _have_replied;_90 IF _have_replied THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Ticket % has a reply. Updating...', _ticket_id;_90 -- Perform actions for replied tickets_90 UPDATE public.checking_tasks_queue_90 SET replied_at = NOW(), replied = TRUE_90 WHERE payload->>'ticket_id' = _ticket_id;_90 ELSE_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Ticket % has no reply. Taking actions...', _ticket_id;_90 -- Perform actions for no reply_90 SELECT * INTO _task FROM public.checking_tasks_queue_90 WHERE payload->>'ticket_id' = _ticket_id AND status = '' AND due_time <= NOW()_90 ORDER BY due_time ASC_90 LIMIT 1;_90_90 IF FOUND THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Sending Slack notification for ticket %', _ticket_id;_90 -- Use EXCEPTION to handle duplicate keys_90 BEGIN_90 INSERT INTO post_to_slack_log(payload) VALUES (_task.payload);_90 PERFORM slack_post_wrapper(_task.payload);_90 EXCEPTION_90 WHEN unique_violation THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Duplicate entry for ticket %. Skipping...', _ticket_id;_90 WHEN OTHERS THEN_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Error while inserting into post_to_slack_log. Skipping...';_90 RAISE NOTICE '% %', SQLERRM, SQLSTATE;_90 END;_90 -- Update the status to 'sent' after calling slack_post_wrapper_90 UPDATE public.checking_tasks_queue_90 SET status = 'sent'_90 WHERE id = _task.id;_90 ELSE_90 RAISE NOTICE 'Task for ticket % not found!', _ticket_id;_90 END IF;_90 END IF;_90 END LOOP;_90 -- Release the advisory lock_90 PERFORM pg_advisory_unlock(_lock_key);_90END;_90$$;
Posting SLA Enforcement Messages on Slack
SLA Buddy employs the Edge Function post_ticket_escalation to post SLA enforcement messages on Slack. This integration with PostgreSQL functions ensures streamlined execution and effective communication with support engineers.
Interactions with Support Members
SLA Buddy fosters seamless interactions between support engineers and the tool itself. Through Slack threads, support members can postpone the next steps in the escalation process by 30 min by @mentioning the bot in the thread. We also pushed a guide on how to interact with mentions in Slack as part of the bot's development.
The bot won't get disarmed until a response is sent in the ticket because we believe that even if the Support Engineer is unable to help the user, they can at least triage and set expectations for the next steps in the ticket like escalating to a specific team.
Watching Support Events
Another crucial aspect of SLA Buddy is its ability to monitor support events seamlessly. At Supabase we have the concept of Embedded Support when a member of the support team will work on more advanced tickets related to a specific Supabase product such as Edge Functions, Dashboard, Storage, Auth, Realtime etc.
The shift information about Support Engineers is hosted in a Google Calendar. This information is retrieved using the following function:
_35CREATE OR REPLACE FUNCTION "public"."get_embedded_event_names"_35 ("date_param" timestamp with time zone DEFAULT "now"())_35 RETURNS "jsonb"_35 LANGUAGE "plpgsql" SECURITY DEFINER_35 SET "search_path" TO ''_35 AS $$_35DECLARE_35 target_date timestamp with time zone := COALESCE(date_param, now());_35 start_date timestamp with time zone := target_date + INTERVAL '2 hours';_35 end_date timestamp with time zone := start_date + INTERVAL '1 day' - INTERVAL '1 millisecond';_35 time_min text := to_char(start_date, 'YYYY-MM-DD"T"HH24:MI:SS.MS"Z"');_35 time_max text := to_char(end_date, 'YYYY-MM-DD"T"HH24:MI:SS.MS"Z"');_35 base_url text;_35 api_url text;_35 response jsonb;_35 events jsonb; -- Change the declaration to jsonb_35 embedded_event_names text[];_35BEGIN_35 SELECT decrypted_secret_35 INTO base_url_35 FROM vault.decrypted_secrets_35 WHERE name = 'calendar_base_url';_35_35 api_url := base_url || '&timeMin=' || time_min || '&timeMax=' || time_max;_35_35 select "content"::jsonb into response from extensions.http_get(api_url);_35 events := response->'items'; -- Remove the typecast to ::jsonb_35_35 SELECT ARRAY_AGG(event->>'summary')_35 INTO embedded_event_names_35 FROM jsonb_array_elements(events) AS event -- Use jsonb_array_elements function_35 WHERE (event->>'summary') ILIKE '%embedded%';_35 RETURN COALESCE(to_jsonb(embedded_event_names)::text,'[]');_35END;_35$$;
Escalation Logic
SLA Buddy's escalation logic is defined in 4 steps of escalation going from a more narrow set of Support Engineers to the Head of Success. Here's the progression:
| Target | Level | Action | Timeline |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | 1 | Non-embedded support | 10 min |
| 2 | On-shift support | 20 min | |
| 3 | @group-support | 35 min | |
| 4 | @head of success | 50 min | |
| Team | 1 | Non-embedded support | 1 hour |
| 2 | On-shift support | 3 hours | |
| 3 | @group-support | 6 hours | |
| 4 | @head of success | 12 hours |
Conclusion
SLA Buddy is a core operational component for Supabase support operations, keeping the whole team informed and engaged, and assisting with prioritizing tickets by their SLA restrictions.
We are firm believers in letting technology streamline operational work and allowing humans to focus on solving real problems, and SLA Buddy is a great example of that.
Final Thoughts
SLA Buddy started a passion project, born from a need to ensure that we're providing top-quality support to Supabase's users. We're big fans of personal exploration and kaizen incremental change.
And we're not done with SLA Buddy. It'll grow and evolve as Supabase grows, and our needs and the needs of our users change. Because it's built on Supabase features, it'll be easy to update and maintain, and it'll provide more and more value to our internal operations, we hope it might provide some value to you, too. We're also big believers in the Open Source community, and welcome any feedback or ideas you might have to make SLA Buddy even better for everyone.