MSPmentor

Autotask is seeking a CFO to drive growth, and preparing an online store to promote third-party Autotask-compatible applications. Those are just two of the highlights so far from the second annual Autotask Community Live conference in Miami. I spoke with CEO Bob Godgart (pictured) last night and also sat in on this morning’s keynote session. Here are key takeaways for managed services providers.

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DocuSign, one of the most visible companies in the online document signing market, has brought their solution to SalesForce.com Real-Time Quotes, enabling users to close deals in the cloud quickly and with no messy paper. Interested?

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For such a powerful cloud storage platform, Amazon S3 management can be a pain in the rear. Enter CloudBerry Lab, and their newly released CloudBerry Explorer v2.0, a Windows application that allows users to manage files in Amazon’s cloud as they do on their local computers. Better still, it’s compatible with open-source cloud platform Eucalyptus too. Here are some emerging details.

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Welcome to an abridged weekend. After a short stop at home, the MSPmentor team resumes its April travel today. But before climbing aboard our latest flight, here are seven managed services blog entries MSPmentor didn’t have time to write for the week ending April 16, 2010.

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As I wrap up a week in San Francisco and San Jose — visiting a range of channel partner conferences and meeting dozens of MSPs — one thing is clear: It’s impossible to ignore Apple’s iPad as a business device. From the SugarCRM SugarCon conference to the NetSuite SuiteCloud partner conference, I saw dozens of business-centric applications demonstrated on the iPad. And quite a few VARs and MSPs were carrying iPads at the events. Here’s some perspective.

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You read that headline right. Speaking as a product of the 1990s, I had always thought faxes went out with the New Kids on the Block, but Denver-based startup etherFAX has announced the launch of what they call an infrastructure-as-a-service solution for delivering faxes over the Internet. Read on, and tell me if I’ve misjudged the service’s potential for partners.

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Some Friday morning SaaS chatter: Cloud services provider Jamcracker has apparently entered into a partnership with online backup software vendor BackupAgent. Under the deal, according to their press release, Jamcracker will make BackupAgent’s eponymous backup-on-demand solution available for resale through their cloud. Here’s the deal.

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At the NetSuite SuiteCloud partner conference in San Francisco, NetSuite is making its SaaS pitch to VARs and solutions providers. Part of that pitch includes OpenAir, a PSA (professional services automation) SaaS platform that NetSuite will increasingly promote to channel partners. The key question: Does NetSuite intend to compete with established PSA players like Autotask, ConnectWise and Tigerpaw Software? Here are some perspectives.

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When the Autotask Community Live conference kicks off April 18 in Miami, I plan to arrive with plenty of questions. No doubt, Autotask and the broader PSA (professional services automation) market are evolving. New competitors. New strategies. New opportunities? Here are five questions and story angles I plan to pursue at the conference.

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Years ago, a channel watcher quipped that a customer could buy NetWare from as many outlets as a thirsty person could acquire a Big Gulp. The point was that local area networking technology had become a commodity and solution providers had better look for other ways to distinguish themselves. So, 20-some years later, has cloud computing gone the way of so many oversized fountain drinks?

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Spiceworks, the free systems management platform provider, has released the results of their most recent “State of SMB IT” survey — and it’s good news all around, as they say they’re seeing increased IT spending in smaller businesses. Topping the newly-expanded budgets, Spiceworks says, are hardware and virtualization investments. Here’s the scoop.

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Apparently, the hardware as a service (HaaS) market continues to treat CharTec well. A case in point: CharTec is seeking to hire 20 to 30 people to help promote HaaS to more VARs and MSPs. Here are some details.

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When I decided to attend this week’s NetSuite SuiteCloud partner conference in San Francisco, I expected to learn how some VARs are profiting from Software as a Service (SaaS) and cloud applications. But I also stumbled onto some managed services-oriented news and remote monitoring trends at the conference. The news involves Level Platforms. Here are the details.

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CTERA, the Israeli cloud storage and data protection company, has launched CTERA Portal, a platform to allow MSPs to resell cloud storage solutions to customers. Moreover, Portal storage can go hybrid with CTERA’s existing Cloud Attached Storage appliances to provide disaster recovery and backup. Here are some perspectives.

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As we hinted on April 9, two Texas-based managed services providers are joining forces to apparently create the state’s largest MSP. The deal involves Architel of Dallas-Fort Worth buying Applied Resource Technologies Inc. (ART). Here are some observations about the deal.

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PacketTrap, the managed services platform acquired by Quest Software in 2009, is preparing some global moves — including a push into Australia. The PacketTrap effort will also include closer integration with Quest’s product portfolio. Here are some preliminary details.

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MSPmentor is working on three separate managed services webcasts for the next few weeks. The webcasts cover everything from SaaS considerations to good old remote hardware management strategies. As you may have heard, we cover dozens of attendee questions during our live webcasts. Here’s a look at the lineup.

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At Storage Networking World 2010, NetApp and Asigra are poised to show off live cloud backup. Here are some details.

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Google’s corporate campus on April 12 hosted over 400 CIOs and other IT pros from around the world for the inaugural Atmosphere cloud computing conference. The search giant used the occasion to preview the faster, more fully-featured, HTML5-powered Google Docs that’s coming soon.

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When CA Inc. acquired Nimsoft in March 2010, the CA press briefings hyped Nimsoft’s cloud strategy quite a bit. Frankly, I was a little confused since Nimsoft’s managed services platform was only available as an on-premises solution. Fast forward to the present and Nimsoft has an answer for MSPs that want a SaaS platform. It’s called Nimsoft On Demand. Here are the details.

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You’ve realized that the old break-fix model of IT service isn’t sustainable—from a profit perspective or for your peace of mind. You know that the managed services model allows you to build steady, recurring revenue, allows you to proactively manage your clients’ IT needs, and allows you to maintain systems remotely. But how do you position this evolution in service to your clients? Here are some thoughts.

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Service providers need to address a number of considerations when offering cloud computing to government customers: specific mission requirements, adherence to particular security standards, and the use of particular contracting vehicles, for instance. Another issue: compliance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. That law requires federal government agencies to make IT accessible to people with disabilities. Here are the details, and the implications for MSPs serving federal agencies.

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Upbeat. That’s the single best word to describe how MSPs are feeling right now, based on a range of phone calls and interviews MSPmentor completed this week. Alas, we didn’t have time to blog about every conversation. But here’s a look at seven managed services topics we wanted to cover for the week ending April 9, 2010.

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