Frontier really really really need something about server status to prevent all these "greyed out start button" issues. It needs to be massive priority before launch in my opinion. One of the following, at least:
1. Put something on the launcher screen to show server status and connectivity
2. Put something next to the start button to explain why it won't start
3. Put a link on the launcher to a web page that has the server status on it (this ought to be a really simple thing compared to the others if you're pushed for development time)
Then, put something on social media (Twitter, Facebook) to say when servers go offline and when they're back.