Terms and Conditions
Effective date: 2 April 2026 Last updated: 2 April 2026
Operator: Pieter Fourie — sole proprietor trading as IronPanel
Registered address: 18 Fourie str, Heidelberg, Western cape, South Africa]
Website: ironpanel.us
Contact: via the contact form at ironpanel.us/contact
These terms and conditions govern all services provided by IronPanel. By requesting a consultation, engaging services, or making payment, you agree to these terms in full. If you do not agree, do not engage services.
1. The Parties
Service Provider: Pieter, a sole proprietor operating as IronPanel, based in South Africa, providing remote Linux infrastructure services to clients in the United States and internationally.
Client: Any individual, business, or organisation that requests, engages, or pays for services through IronPanel.
2. Services Provided
IronPanel provides the following remote infrastructure services:
- Linux server migration (cPanel/Plesk to ISPConfig and related stacks)
- Compromised server recovery and security hardening
- Managed private server retainer (ongoing monthly infrastructure management)
- Mail server setup, configuration, and troubleshooting
- Related Linux server administration services as agreed in writing
All services are delivered remotely via SSH, email, and WhatsApp. No on-site visits are included or implied.
3. Engagement and Scope
3.1 All project work begins with a written scope of work agreed between the Service Provider and the Client. No work begins until scope is confirmed in writing by both parties via email.
3.2 The written scope of work constitutes the complete agreement for that project. Verbal agreements, chat messages, and informal discussions do not form part of the binding scope unless confirmed in a subsequent written email.
3.3 Work outside the agreed scope will be quoted separately before execution. The Service Provider will not perform out-of-scope work without written client approval.
3.4 Retainer services are governed by the retainer tier selected at sign-up. Changes to retainer tier take effect on the next billing cycle.
4. Client Responsibilities
4.1 The Client must provide the Service Provider with sufficient access to perform the agreed work — including SSH credentials, server login details, domain registrar access, and any other access required by the scope.
4.2 The Client is responsible for maintaining valid, current backups of all data before any work begins. The Service Provider takes reasonable precautions but accepts no liability for data loss resulting from pre-existing conditions, hardware failure, or circumstances beyond the Service Provider’s control.
4.3 The Client warrants that they are the authorised owner or administrator of all servers, domains, and accounts presented for work. The Service Provider will not knowingly work on infrastructure the Client does not have authorisation to access.
4.4 The Client is responsible for the cost of any third-party infrastructure — VPS, dedicated servers, domain registrations, SSL certificates where not covered by Let’s Encrypt — used in connection with the service.
5. Payment
5.1 Project work: Payment terms are specified in the written scope of work. Standard terms are 50% deposit before work begins and 50% on completion, unless otherwise agreed in writing.
5.2 Retainer services: Retainer fees are billed monthly in advance. Service begins upon receipt of the first payment.
5.3 Late payment: Invoices unpaid after 14 days of the due date may result in suspension of retainer services. The Service Provider will provide 7 days written notice before suspension.
5.4 Refunds: Project work that has been substantially completed is not refundable. Retainer fees for the current billing month are non-refundable. Unused future months are refunded on cancellation within 5 business days.
5.5 Currency: All prices are quoted and invoiced in US Dollars (USD) unless otherwise agreed.
6. Delivery and Timelines
6.1 Estimated timelines are stated in the written scope of work. All timelines are estimates and may vary based on the complexity of the work discovered during execution, third-party dependencies (DNS propagation, registrar response times, hosting provider actions), and the Client’s response time to requests for access or decisions.
6.2 The Service Provider will communicate any material delay as soon as it is identified.
6.3 The Service Provider does not guarantee specific completion dates where the timeline depends on factors outside the Service Provider’s direct control.
7. Warranties and Guarantees
7.1 The Service Provider warrants that all work will be performed with reasonable skill and care consistent with professional Linux infrastructure practice.
7.2 For migration projects: the Service Provider guarantees that all items listed in the written scope will be migrated and verified as functional before the project is declared complete, provided that the relevant data, accounts, and configurations were intact and accessible at the time migration commenced. If any scoped item is not functioning correctly at handover due to actions within the Service Provider’s control, the Service Provider will remedy it at no additional charge.
7.3 For recovery projects: the Service Provider warrants that all identified malware, backdoors, and persistence mechanisms will be removed and documented. The Service Provider cannot guarantee that new infections will not occur after handover if the Client does not implement the recommended hardening measures.
7.4 The Service Provider does not warrant that managed services will achieve 100% uptime. Uptime is dependent on the Client’s chosen hosting infrastructure, which is outside the Service Provider’s control.
8. Limitation of Liability
8.1 The Service Provider’s total liability for any claim arising from services provided shall not exceed the total fees paid by the Client for the specific project or the most recent three months of retainer fees, whichever is lower.
8.2 The Service Provider is not liable for indirect, consequential, or incidental damages including lost revenue, lost data, lost business, or reputational harm, even if the Service Provider has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
8.3 The Service Provider is not liable for failures caused by the Client’s hosting provider, domain registrar, third-party software, or circumstances outside the Service Provider’s control including hardware failure, data centre outages, or force majeure events.
9. Confidentiality
9.1 The Service Provider will treat all Client credentials, server access details, business information, and client data encountered during service delivery as strictly confidential.
9.2 The Service Provider will not disclose, share, or use Client confidential information for any purpose other than delivering the agreed services.
9.3 Client credentials — including SSH access details, control panel logins, and domain registrar credentials — are stored in encrypted format for the duration of the engagement and accessed only as required to deliver the agreed services. Credentials are not stored beyond the end of the engagement unless required for active retainer access.
9.4 The Client acknowledges that the Service Provider operates from South Africa and that remote access to Client servers involves data traversal across international networks. The Service Provider takes reasonable precautions including encrypted connections (SSH, HTTPS) for all access.
9.5 Confidentiality obligations survive termination of the service relationship indefinitely.
10. Intellectual Property
10.1 All configuration files, scripts, and documentation produced by the Service Provider specifically for the Client’s project become the Client’s property upon full payment.
10.2 Generic tools, scripts, and methodologies used by the Service Provider that pre-exist the engagement remain the Service Provider’s intellectual property.
10.3 The Client grants the Service Provider permission to access, modify, and configure the Client’s servers solely for the purpose of delivering the agreed services.
11. Termination
11.1 By the Client: Retainer services may be cancelled at any time with 30 days written notice via email. Project work in progress may be terminated by the Client with written notice — the Client remains liable for payment for all work completed to the point of termination.
11.2 By the Service Provider: The Service Provider may terminate services with 30 days written notice for any reason. In the event of Client breach of these terms — including non-payment, misrepresentation of ownership, or abusive conduct (including but not limited to harassment, threats, or conduct that prevents the Service Provider from performing the agreed work) — the Service Provider may terminate immediately without notice.
11.3 On termination: The Service Provider will provide reasonable handover assistance. All Client credentials held by the Service Provider will be returned or destroyed on written request.
12. Governing Law and Disputes
12.1 These terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa. Where a Client is based in the United States, the parties agree that disputes shall first be attempted to be resolved through good-faith written negotiation before any formal legal proceedings are initiated.
12.2 In the event that a dispute cannot be resolved by negotiation, the parties may pursue resolution through the courts of the Republic of South Africa, or agree in writing to binding arbitration by a mutually agreed neutral arbitrator as an alternative to court proceedings. Either party may propose arbitration in writing — if both parties agree, the arbitration process and applicable rules will be confirmed in writing before proceedings commence.
12.3 Nothing in these terms prevents either party from seeking urgent interim relief in the jurisdiction where they are located.
13. Amendments
Amendments The Service Provider reserves the right to update these terms at any time. Updated terms will be published at ironpanel.us/terms-and-conditions with a revised effective date. Continued engagement of services after publication of updated terms constitutes acceptance.
Active retainer clients will be notified of material changes to these terms via email with a minimum of 30 days notice before the changes take effect.
14. Severability
If any provision of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force and effect.
15. Entire Agreement
These terms, together with the written scope of work for each engagement, constitute the entire agreement between the parties for the relevant services and supersede all prior discussions, representations, and informal agreements.
IronPanel is operated by Pieter, sole proprietor, South Africa. For questions regarding these terms contact via ironpanel.us/contact