MSPmentor

Veteran managed services providers (MSPs) continue to branch out into the SaaS and software markets. The latest example involves Compuquip, a Miami-based MSP, launching BrightGauge — a SaaS platform that allows MSPs to show end-customers a simple, readable, but potentially robust view of delivered services.

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When MSPmentor reported that Google Postini was providing business continuity services for Microsoft Exchange, my inbox was filled with chatter on the subject of storing messages and keeping them highly available. Now Microsoft has shown its true feelings for the Postini option in a blog entry titled, “Email Availability Considerations,” which laid out Redmond’s own recommendations for backing up Exchange messages yourself — or picking a hosted provider. Microsoft even mentions Google Postini as a potential option. Here’s the scoop:

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It seems the entire world is focused on WikiLeaks, privacy and data protection rights. Amid that backdrop, here’s some potentially good news handed down for messaging service providers — constitutionally speaking, that is. A U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the government needs a warrant before it can ask e-mail providers to give up customer data, potentially clarifying an important legal question for MSPs and their clients, according to the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Here’s the update.

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Help desk pros have another way to interact with their customers. Specifically, SaaS help desk provider Zendesk adds live chat to its roster of communication methods. Support agents can juggle multiple conversations at once and attach the logs to tickets — or turn them into e-mail discussions or knowledge base articles. Here are some quick details.

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QuorumLabs, providers of all-in-one business continuity applications, gets a new channel chief today in the form of Chris Moore, an industry veteran whose new job as senior VP of sales and business development will oversee the company’s efforts to reorganize and re-prioritize its partner program. I had the chance to chat with Moore briefly ahead of the announcement. Here’s the skinny:

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Earlier this week MSPmentor noted that Dell has been very quiet on the managed services and systems management fronts. Now it’s time for us to eat a little bit of crow. Specifically, the Dell KACE team is making some systems management moves that may interest MSPs. Here’s the update.

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Google vs. Microsoft? That’s so 2010. With the launch of Google Message Continuity, the search giant’s Postini message services arm ads “Gmail’s reliability” to on-premises Microsoft Exchange 2003 or 2007 deployments. With the two working in concert, Exchange messages are backed up to Google’s cloud and can be accessed in a Gmail-like interface that can be accessed from anywhere, Google asserts. Here’s the scoop.

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Call it one last hurrah for the Zombie fad of 2010, but Google Wave — the e-mail/instant messaging hybrid that failed to attract an audience — has come back to life. Specifically, Google has turned over development to the open source Apache Software Foundation’s incubator program. Here’s the scoop on the newly minted Apache Wave:

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Two data specialists MSPmentor has been following for some time have aligned forces, as Seagate subsidiary i365 is planning to resell Datacastle‘s trademark RED data protection solution as both SaaS and on-premise software under the EVault brand. Here’s the scoop.

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Google Apps resellers get a powerful new tool in their arsenal with the launch of a reporting API that gives more insight into how the cloud productivity suite is being used. The functionality isn’t new, but the ability for resellers to leverage it programmatically is intriguing. Here’s the scoop.

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UK-based billion-dollar MSP Logicalis has announced the acquisition Network Infrastructure Corporation (NIC), an American service provider with clients in the K-12 education, state and local government, and gaming and hospitality verticals. Here’s the scoop.

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While MSPmentor has been watching the convergence of managed services and cloud computing, the rest of the world has been watching the news unfold around controversial governmental whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks and their recent ejection from Amazon EC2 following a string of DDOS attacks. But the two concepts meet in a short, but thoughtful, essay by Parallels’ Joshua Beil on what the WikiLeaks story means for cloud and hosted service providers. Here are some highlights.

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Cloud management solution vendor Abiquo has completed a $10 million round of Series B funding led by new investor Balderton Capital, with existing VCs Nauta Capital and Eurecan also participating. Here’s some insight.

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Google’s cloud productivity strategy seems to revolve around controlling three key markets: the SMB, the educational institution, and the government agency. We hear a lot of success stories from the first two, but a recent Google Enterprise Blog post is one of the first to highlight the benefits of Google Apps for Government. In this instance, it’s Panama City talking about how going Google helped them open up their government to the people. Here’s some perspective.

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NovaStor , a Europe-based data protection specialist, is reaching out to the managed service provider community. The latest effort involves a new NovaBACKUP xSP release that includes a VMware plugin, allowing agentless virtualized environment backup. Here’s the update.

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Open source network and applications monitoring solution vendor Opsview is reaching out to the managed services provider market. Specifically, Opsview has launched a major new release of its flagship product, which apparently provides MSPs with deeper reporting tools. Here are some details.

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Precise, which specializes in “transaction performance management,” has branched out with Precise MSP, a managed application performance service designed to ensure QoS (quality of service) for end-customers. Apparently, this is Precise’s first-ever managed services play. Here are some details.

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As we continue work on our fourth-annual MSPmentor 100 survey,  it’s an ideal time to look back at companies from our third-annual MSPmentor 100 list. Among the companies we’ve been watching: BlueLock, which has leveraged virtualization and managed services to gain some cloud momentum. Here’s how BlueLock’s cloud hosting offerings fit into the IT channel, according to CTO Pat O’Day (pictured). Update: BlueLock contacted us regarding some minor clarifications – see below.

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Managed applications and hosting provider NaviSite has announced that it’s rolled out new management and control features for its NaviCloud platform: role based access control, “Airlock,” and dynamic resource instrumentation. Here’s the scoop.

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The Ingram Micro Cloud Marketplace for MSPs and VARs is getting cloud hosting solutions by way of new corporate ally GoGrid. The idea is to bring cloud infrastructure services mainstream for the IT channel, and the alliance represents the relatively small GoGrid’s first major relationship with a distributor. Here are some details.

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As MSPmentor prepares the fourth-annual MSPmentor 100 survey and report, we’re also looking back at MSPs that landed on our previous MSPmentor 100 list. Stepping into today’s spotlight is Safe Systems. President Darren Bridges says that specializing exclusively in serving small banks and credit unions is exactly what propelled the company to spot 48 on our previous MSPmentor 100 list. Here’s how.

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Google Apps continues to iteratively update its cloud productivity suite with multiple minor feature enhancements rather than huge releases. Well, never let it be said the same isn’t true of their business model, as Google Apps adds previously consumer-focused offerings like Google Voice and Blogger to the enterprise dashboards and renames their paid editions. Here’s the scoop.

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Seagate subsidiary i365 has launched the EVault Cloud-Connected Service Provider Program (CCSP), designed to add theIT65channel back into the cloud storage equation for partners. Here’s a recap of what we know — and what to expect from the EVault CCSP going forward.

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