Remote support & MSP startup

[Bamus]

Hey people!

I'm currently in the process of selecting a good set of tools to replace the uncontrollable mess that I call my workflow. Trying to at least. What I'm looking for:

- Remote Desktop tool (Win/Mac/Linux), attended and unattended
- RMM
- Patching (OS + software)
- Managed AV
- allow clients to remote to their own machines
- optionally integrated backup and servicedesk
- while price is a factor, I'm wiling to pay more to get a better functioning set of tools (within reason of course). Most of my clients seems to have the "I don't mind the cost, just make sure it runs" mindset, so that helps.

A lot to ask? It seems so because the more solutions I test, the less I feel confident in choosing one. I'd like an all-in-one solution for the "one pane of glass" thing, but I'm starting to see I will need to either live with certain shortcomings or just deal with several pieces of kit to get the feature set I want.

Right now I'm running trials of LogMeIn Central, MaxFocus and Atera and looked into a whole host of others to maybe combine (Ninja, Instant House Call, Teamviewer, FixMe.IT, Sysspectr, GoToAssist). Problem is most are lacking, a lot are in an early stage and missing features and combining some causes a lot of overlap (thus wasted money).

Right now, I'm getting the best vibe of the MaxFocus tools, even though some things feel clunky. So before I lose my sanity and go live on a mountain with 4 goats and a mule I'd like to ask you: what are you using and how is it working out so far?

Cheers,
Johan

 

[seedubya]

I'm in the process of moving from Autotask PSA and RMM to Connectwise \ Labtech. In my opinion, if you plan to grow, then your PSA tool is the most important of all and as many of your other tools as possible should integrate with that PSA to help with automation and workload reduction. Labtech, so far, seems great but the learning curve is massive. ScreenConnect is integrated with LT so that every PC that has a LT agent can also be accessed via SC. This does not, however, give you access to SC for unmanaged machines, as far as I know, which is disappointing. Not a problem for us however as we have our own SC server already.

CW is mindblowing. I really can't describe just how good it is. What's best about it, though, is the training, support, best practice and other materials that come with it. I haven't seen collateral this good from any other company ever. As far as I know it's the biggest PSA in our industry and, as such, almost everything out there integrates with it.

 

[carrcomp]

We have been very successful with Repairshopr and NABLE.

I know that Kabuto will be coming out with Patch Management as well, so that may be viable for what you're looking for in the future.

We use Kabuto on computers that do not sign up for MSP services.

https://www.technibble.com/repairtech-kabuto-review/

 

[GTP]

Have you looked at AVG Managed Workplace? I was given a trial account by... long story....anyway its very comprehensive!
The ability to write your own scripts was handy!
Pricing was my biggest issue, expensive but you get a lot for your money!

http://www.avg.com/us-en/managed-workplace

 

[Bamus]

The AVG people called me as I signed up for a demo and they sounded very "you're too small for us". N-Able system looked promising but their pricing isn't very startup friendly (includes a monthly minimum).
I'm looking at LabTech now, most seem sattisfied with their product. The more I look the more tools pop-up, seems I'll be at it for a while still.

It might be a good idea to compile a list of all tools with their feature set to keep updated. Since I'm testing most right now I might do just that.

In any case, thanks for the suggestions!

 

[4ycr]

take a look at LogicNow. They have a platform fee but it is a lot lower than N-able and pricing is per device. It's not perfect but I Iike it

 

[GTP]

The AVG people called me as I signed up for a demo and they sounded very "you're too small for us". N-Able system looked promising but their pricing isn't very startup friendly (includes a monthly minimum).
I'm looking at LabTech now, most seem sattisfied with their product. The more I look the more tools pop-up, seems I'll be at it for a while still.

It might be a good idea to compile a list of all tools with their feature set to keep updated. Since I'm testing most right now I might do just that.

In any case, thanks for the suggestions!

A list would be a great idea! Thanks for offering to compile it!

 

[seedubya]

I'll say it again. Whatever you buy should integrate. Integration and automation is the only way you'll survive in this brave new MSP world in the long term.

 

[Bamus]

Status update: just started a Panorama9 trial and I do like the look and feel of it. No integrated AV or backup solution though, but it can monitor AV status. Setting up several systems to cover all aspects isn't what I'd like but it's no deal breaker.
LogicNow still ticks all boxes though, I'm looking forward to their offer.

 

[lacym]

So before I lose my sanity and go live on a mountain with 4 goats and a mule I'd like to ask you: what are you using and how is it working out so far?

That whole live on a mountain thing sounds like a good plan. In hindsight, I think I should have done that!

 

[lacym]

I'm in the process of moving from Autotask PSA and RMM to Connectwise \ Labtech. In my opinion, if you plan to grow, then your PSA tool is the most important of all and as many of your other tools as possible should integrate with that PSA to help with automation and workload reduction. Labtech, so far, seems great but the learning curve is massive. ScreenConnect is integrated with LT so that every PC that has a LT agent can also be accessed via SC. This does not, however, give you access to SC for unmanaged machines, as far as I know, which is disappointing. Not a problem for us however as we have our own SC server already.

CW is mindblowing. I really can't describe just how good it is. What's best about it, though, is the training, support, best practice and other materials that come with it. I haven't seen collateral this good from any other company ever. As far as I know it's the biggest PSA in our industry and, as such, almost everything out there integrates with it.

I'm going to second this. You need to figure out where you want to go, find people that are already there, and see what tools they use. Even though there's not a day goes by that I question my sanity with ConnectWise, I know it's where I want to go. I haven't found anything other than Kaseya with the same scripting capabilities as Labtech. I don't question that one.

 

[EveVirtual]

I recently stumbled across Atera, and I like it. Best of all, it is fairly affordable.

 

[Kortezubi]

I am also using Atera. It's not perfect but they are quite responsive to customer suggestions and release updates regularly. It's certainly worth a look for the price. Even if you don't sell Atera to your clients as part of a plan, it would likely pay for itself if it resulted in just 1 additional job per month.

 

[Calx]

Can I throw Bitdefender gravity zone into the mix? I too am just venturing into the world of Managed AV and I have decided to use this.

 

[MudRock]

So for those selling BDGZ, where do you get set up with it and find out pricing?

EDIT: See a partner page for it specifically now.