What factors are causing Rubrik's Polaris GPS for Office 365 to have a 20% higher error rate in the last week?

Introduction

Rubrik's Polaris GPS for Office 365 experiencing a 20% higher error rate in the last week is a critical issue that demands immediate attention. This analysis will systematically identify, validate, and address the root cause while considering both short-term fixes and long-term implications for the product.

I'll approach this problem by first clarifying the context, then ruling out external factors before diving deep into the product's user journey and metrics. We'll generate data-driven hypotheses, conduct root cause analysis, and propose a comprehensive resolution plan.

Step 1

Clarifying Questions (3 minutes)

• Looking at the timing, I'm thinking this could be related to a recent update. Has there been any significant change to Polaris GPS for Office 365 in the past two weeks?

Why it matters: Recent changes often correlate with performance issues. Expected answer: Yes, a minor update was pushed last week. Impact on approach: If true, we'd focus on the update's components and rollback considerations.

• Considering user segments, I'm curious about the error distribution. Is this 20% increase uniform across all user types, or is it concentrated in specific segments?

Why it matters: Helps narrow down if it's a global issue or specific to certain users. Expected answer: The increase is more pronounced in enterprise accounts. Impact on approach: We'd prioritize investigating enterprise-specific features or integrations.

• Given the nature of Office 365, I'm wondering about any recent changes on Microsoft's end. Have there been any updates to Office 365 APIs or services that Polaris GPS integrates with?

Why it matters: External dependencies can significantly impact our product's performance. Expected answer: Microsoft released a minor update to their Graph API last week. Impact on approach: We'd need to investigate our integration points and potentially liaise with Microsoft.

• Thinking about system health, I'm curious about our infrastructure. Have there been any notable changes or issues with our cloud services or data centers recently?

Why it matters: Infrastructure problems can manifest as increased error rates. Expected answer: No significant infrastructure changes, but there was a minor outage in one data center. Impact on approach: We'd need to correlate the outage with the error rate spike and investigate potential lingering effects.