Remote Support for Maintenance Contracts

[Brandon]

I have been looking for a remote software solution for this scenario.

I have small business clients that have maintenance contracts with me. I want to be able to log into their computers in the evening when there is no one at the office to do the regular maintenance procedures. Is there a good program out there that does this. Allows me to connect to them without someone physically on the other end?

I don't mind buying a license as long as its a one time fee. All the programs I have come across seem to have a monthly fee or have to have someone else on the other end.

Any help would be appreciated...

 

[dhrandy]

Teamviewer - $699

http://www.teamviewer.com/licensing/index.aspx

 

[frostbyte5014]

There are much less expensive options. Logmein.com offers a free solution that will do exactly what you want. Remote Support System is a package based on the same VNC package as teamviewr. It does the exact same thing. You setup on your workstation and website. You pay about $400 and you own it. I would consider Logmein if you are just starting out. There will be more important things to spend your money on like advertising ect.

 

[dhrandy]

There are much less expensive options. Logmein.com offers a free solution that will do exactly what you want. Remote Support System is a package you setup on your workstation and website. You pay about $400 and you own it. I would consider Logmein if you are just starting out. There will be more important things to spend your money on like advertising ect.

Also another good one.

 

[Brandon]

I just tried Teamviewer! Wow! Pretty nice. Wish the price was a little cheaper but definitely going to consider. Going to try Remote Support System tomorrow. Thanks a lot for the suggestions...

 

[gambit]

I use Hosted Kaseya from Cloud Services Depot. It has encrypted VNC that works through firewalls (no changes required) and support unattended remote control. Windows, Mac supported - Linux coming within 30 days.

If you are providing maintenance contracts, Kaseya might be a better suggestion given that it can do patch management, asset management, snmp monitoring, run any kind of scripts, etc. And it provides the reports (scheduled or ad hoc) that you need.

http://www.cloudservicesdepot.com/Services/Kaseya/Remote-Desktop-Control

The price varies depending on how many systems you need to access, but it supports unlimited admins. I pay less than $5.

/endcommercial

 

[cmonova]

If you already have a maintenance contract that is requiring that type of support then there is a good change you will have more. So spending the $500-$600 for a one time shot is well worth it. In the long run it will pay for itself.

Not too sure on the Cloud Services Depot looking at the prices you need over 500 units to get under $5.00 per unit otherwise you'd be looking at least $8.95 per station.

 

[gambit]

You are correct about Cloud Services Depot pricing, however, how much are they charging for the contract?

We charge $50-$60/workstations and $250-$400/server for our maintenance contracts. This is relative to our hourly rate - so 30min for workstations and 2-4 hours for servers (although everything is automated through Kaseya, so no actual time is used - it is 'value' billing). So in the end, you should making a decent gross profit.

It would actually be more profitable to increase the sale price to the customer than to change tools to save money. And when it comes to tools - I haven't seen anything better Kaseya for Managed Services.

 

[wtigger]

It would actually be more profitable to increase the sale price to the customer than to change tools to save money. And when it comes to tools - I haven't seen anything better Kaseya for Managed Services.

What kind of pricing does Kaseya have per station?

 

[Instant Housecall - Corey]

I'm the owner of Instant Housecall, a remote support software provider. You can see the Technibble review of our software here: http://www.technibble.com/instant-housecall-review/ and I hope you'll give it a try.

If you're using a remote tool for Maintenance Contracts, I'd suggest looking for some key features when you're evaluating: reporting so that you can see who you connected to, when, and for how long; the ability for customers to open a "time window" for unattended access (some customer's won't want "always on"); optional "always on" remote access that lets you access their computer in unattended mode; and of course, standard on-demand remote support.

I recommend having a set of logs that your customer can review without having to ask you. This saves you time and helps build trust between you and your customer so they can see when why you connected, what files you transferred, and gives them peace of mind.

You'll also want to make sure the tool you choose has full UAC compatibility (ie, one that lets you click the prompts remotely) on both Vista and Windows 7.

If you have questions, please feel free to contact me directly any time at the number below or cfruitman@instanthousecall.com.

Aside: This message isn't intended to be a promotional message. I believe that this response is "on-topic". If you disagree, PM me and let me know what changes you'd like to see and I'll edit the post accordingly.

 

[Majestic]

I have been looking for a remote software solution for this scenario.

I have small business clients that have maintenance contracts with me. I want to be able to log into their computers in the evening when there is no one at the office to do the regular maintenance procedures. Is there a good program out there that does this. Allows me to connect to them without someone physically on the other end?

I don't mind buying a license as long as its a one time fee. All the programs I have come across seem to have a monthly fee or have to have someone else on the other end.

Any help would be appreciated...

I realize everybody has recommended many great remote support programs (and I'm a big advocate for logmein) however, If it's one location with not that many computers, have you considered simply setting up a vpn server then accessing all the computers via remote desktop? Just a thought..

Majestic

 

[rtrice81]

Take a look at vitural administrator dot com they offer hosted a hosted Kaseya solution. It's only 6.95 per machine, they give you a free 2 hour 1 on 1 trainig demo on how to get setup and going using scripts for basic check ups, such as defrags, check disk, disk clean up (can even us ccleaner), windows patches, anti-virus updates. Kaseya is really a set it and forget it program for basic checks up, plus it also has remote control software built in and many reports you can run for your customer to show them what you are doing.

Good luck
Richie
posted from my iPhone be excuse misspells