Lifecycle Solutions · Third-Party Maintenance
Keep it running. Without the OEM price.
Independent hardware maintenance for your servers, storage, and networking. Keep proven gear running past warranty and end of support, on one contract, for less than your OEM renewal. Managed by the same rep who sourced it.
Send your OEM renewal or an asset list. Real answers within 1 business day.
Servers, storage, and networking
Multivendor coverage, one contract
Post-warranty and EOSL support
24x7x4 coverage available
Why Third-Party Maintenance (TPM)
Your OEM wants a refresh. Your gear doesn’t.
Once the warranty runs out, OEM support tends to cost more every year. Then the manufacturer sets an end-of-support date and pushes a refresh your hardware doesn’t need. Either way, your budget goes to keeping the lights on instead of new projects.
Renewals that keep climbing.
Post-warranty OEM support usually costs more each year, even though it's the same box doing the same job.
End-of-support deadlines.
The manufacturer ends support on its schedule, not yours. Working gear gets replaced early, or keeps running with no coverage.
Too many contracts.
One contract per brand, different renewal dates, different support numbers. Nobody sees the whole picture until something breaks.
What we cover
One contract for the gear that runs your business.
Maintenance is delivered by our TPM partners and managed by your PB&J rep. One quote, one contract, one renewal date, and one number to call when something breaks.
Servers
Rack, tower, and blade servers from the major brands. Parts and on-site repair at the coverage level you choose.
Storage
SAN and NAS arrays, disk shelves, and tape libraries. Drive and component replacement for what's often the biggest line on an OEM renewal.
Networking
Switches, routers, firewalls, and wireless controllers. On-site repair, or replacement parts shipped to you.
End-of-life (EOSL) gear
Equipment the manufacturer no longer supports stays covered until you're ready to refresh. Your timeline, not theirs.
OEM + TPM, one rep
Keep manufacturer support on new and software-heavy systems, and TPM on the rest. We provide both, and we'll tell you which fits.
Spares and hard-to-source parts
On-site spares kits for critical sites, plus the sourcing reach to find parts for older gear. If it exists, we'll find it.
Coverage levels
Match the response time to the system.
Not every system needs around-the-clock coverage. Set the coverage level by how critical each system is, and stop paying top-tier prices to cover a lab switch.
24x7x4
On-site support around the clock, every day of the year. For production systems that can't go down.
8×5 next business day
On-site support and parts the next business day, during business hours. For important systems with some redundancy.
Parts only
The replacement part ships to you and your team installs it. For teams with their own hands on site.
Technical support
Phone and remote troubleshooting with our partners' engineers when you need a second set of eyes.
How it works
Switching takes a spreadsheet, not a project.
1
Send what you have.
Your OEM renewal quote, current contract, or an asset list with serial numbers and locations.
2
Get a side-by-side.
Coverage by system, TPM next to your OEM renewal, in one quote. We'll tell you what should stay on OEM.
3
Coverage starts.
Your gear goes onto one contract with one renewal date.
4
One call when something breaks.
Our partners dispatch parts and engineers to your coverage level. Your rep handles renewals and changes.
Straight answers
When TPM makes sense. And when it doesn’t.
TPM fits
- Post-warranty systems that are stable and doing their job
- EOSL gear you aren't ready to replace
- Backup, DR, test, and lab environments
- Mixed-brand sites juggling multiple renewals
Keep OEM
- New gear still under warranty
- Systems that need OEM firmware or OS updates
- Support bundled with software subscriptions
- Contracts or customers that require OEM support
Most data centers end up hybrid. We’ll tell you where the line is.
Who we serve
Built for gear that has to keep running.
Defense & government contractors
For defense (DoW) contractors: qualified system configurations often can't be refreshed on the manufacturer's schedule. Keep them supported past end of life, with service records documented for your files.
Enterprise
Multivendor data centers with a stack of OEM renewals. Pull them into one contract with one date, and put the savings toward new projects.
Mid-market
Enterprise-grade hardware support without the enterprise renewal price. One contract covers a mixed-brand server room.
Lifecycle Solutions
Buy it. Keep it running. Retire it right.
01 · Buy it
Procurement Services
New, refurbished, and hard-to-source gear, bought the way your team buys.
Learn more →
02 · Keep it running
Third-Party Maintenance
Keep it running past warranty and end of support.
You are here
03 · Retire it right
PB&J ITAD
Certified-partner data destruction and value recovery when it's time to retire it.
Learn more →
Why PB&J
One rep from purchase to retirement.
Vendor-agnostic
We sell OEM support and TPM, so there's no quota pushing either one. You get a straight answer on what fits.
Parts reach
30+ years in distribution channels, 120,000+ products, 1,000+ manufacturers. Finding parts for older gear is what we do.
One contract, one date
Co-termed coverage with one renewal date, managed by your rep.
The whole lifecycle
When it's time to refresh, the same rep sources the replacement and retires the old gear through PB&J ITAD.
FAQ
Questions buyers ask us.
What is third-party maintenance?
Third-party maintenance (TPM) is hardware support from an independent provider instead of the original manufacturer. It covers parts, repairs, and on-site service for servers, storage, and networking, most often after the warranty ends or the manufacturer stops supporting the gear.
Will TPM void my warranty?
TPM normally starts after the warranty ends, so there's nothing to void. If gear is still under warranty, keep it there, and we'll start TPM when the warranty runs out. Nothing about the hardware changes.
What about firmware and software updates?
TPM covers the hardware. Some manufacturers only release firmware and operating system updates to customers with an active OEM support contract. We'll flag those systems up front and recommend keeping them on OEM support or using a hybrid plan.
Which brands do you cover?
We cover the major server, storage, and networking brands found in most data centers. Send your asset list and we'll confirm coverage model by model.
Who does the work?
Our TPM partners' engineers and parts network deliver the service. Your PB&J rep manages the contract, renewals, and changes, so you still have one point of contact.
How much can I save?
It depends on the age of the gear, the brand, and the coverage level you choose. Send us your OEM renewal and we'll put TPM pricing right next to it, so you see the real number for your environment.
Can I mix OEM and TPM?
Yes, and most customers do. We sell both OEM support and TPM, so your rep can keep new or software-dependent systems on OEM, move the rest to TPM, and line up the renewal dates.
Where do you provide coverage?
Coverage across the U.S. Tell us where your gear lives and we'll confirm coverage and response times for each site.
Request a TPM quote
OEM renewal coming up? Send it over.
Send your OEM renewal quote or an asset list. We’ll come back with TPM side by side with your renewal, plus what we’d keep on OEM.
Real answers within 1 business day. Quotes as fast as the vendor allows, and we chase them for you.
“Find the Yes!!” — PB&J
Need a quote or have a question?