MSPmentor

When I wrote about the wait-and-see attitude managed Exchange provider Azaleos was taking to the cloud back in December 2009, I got a lot of feedback from MSPs on both sides of the argument. I recently caught up with Azaleos VP of Marketing and Product Management Scott Gode, and he says that while the company’s not giving up on on-premises messaging by a long shot, they’ve seen a rise in demand for their managed hybrid Microsoft Business Productivity Online Suite (BPOS) services. Here’s why services providers should care.

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Not every MSP can leverage the Google Apps Marketplace, and not every solutions provider has cloud applications ready to go. Enter AppsOnCommand, a new white label solution that lets you host any application and deliver it as software as a service (SaaS).

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Asigra, the channel-focused cloud backup and recovery software provider that works with a who’s who of cloud service providers, is partnering with NetApp. The duo is promoting a so-called backup and recovery as a service (BRaaS) to solutions providers. Here are some details.

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Carpatia Hosting is putting a new twist on cloud computing, pushing beyond managed hosting and colocation services. Specifically, the company has introduced InstantOn — a cloud platform apparently designed with corporate compliance and security in mind. Here are some quick details.

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Hewlett-Packard apparently has made a major channel hire that could have clear implications for the hardware giant’s managed services strategy. The news potentially involves Stephen DiFranco leaping from Lenovo to HP as the company’s new channel chief. If true, there are some undeniable implications for MSPs. Here’s why.

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The Planet is the largest privately-held dedicated web server company in North America. But bigger doesn’t always mean better. That’s why The Planet is positioning itself around “value.” I spoke to Doug Erwin, CEO of The Planet, about how they’re getting there and what MSPs stand to gain. Here are some perspectives.

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From the what-will-they-think-of-next files: Search giant Google has gotten the all-clear to sell energy like a utility through newly-formed subsidiary (what else) Google Energy. Even more shockingly, there may well be implications for the IT channel. Here’s why.

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In a case of demand for managed IT services and colocation outstripping supply, SunGard Availability Services has announced a major expansion of their three data centers in the greater Atlanta area. Here’s the scoop.

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In March 2010, SMBs will be able to get in on the push-messaging action with BlackBerry Enterprise Server Express, a totally free offering that will help connect employees’ BlackBerries to Microsoft Exchange or Windows Small Business Server. Here’s what MSPs should know.

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MSPmentor recently noted that Best Buy is getting into the remote managed services game. The question then became: How can traditional MSPs best compete with a retail giant that has thousands of Geek Squad “agents” and massive marketing muscle?

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Gillware has a rather intriguing recommendation to help MSPs drum up business: The company says you should hook up with an accountant, and provide the CPA with a free-for-life managed backup/online backup solution for their QuickBooks financial files. How can that lead to more recurring revenue? Here are some clues.

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The Planet, the managed IT hosting company that works with MSPs and VARs, is bundling a free Plesk control panel, 10GB of cloud storage, and Symantec Endpoint Protection for free with any new server purchase. They’ve also revealed a new line of low-cost server offerings. The Planet says it’s striving to be the “hosting industry’s value leader.” We say it’s a move into the freemium arena. Here’s why.

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For the second time in January 2010, there’s major M&A activity within the VAR500. The latest example involves World Wide Technology snapping up Performance Technology Group. The deal potentially bolsters World Wide Technology’s managed services offering in the government market. Here are some quick details.

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You’ve got a great idea… maybe it involves Software as a Service or an online business. Now, you need some computing resources to get you started. The Planet — a managed hosting provider that works with VARs and MSPs — is offering up some help. In an effort to help entrepreneurs mitigate their computing costs and spur economic growth, The Planet has launched Sand Castle, a year-long philanthropic initiative to provide 500 individuals with completely free servers.

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We spend quite a bit of time on MSPmentor covering small but fast-growing software companies that cater to the managed services market. But occasionally an industry titan will catch our attention. A case in point: IBM made a key move this week, and it involved small and midsized communication service providers (CSPs). Does this mean the Big 4 systems management companies (BMC, CA, HP, IBM) are finally waking up to managed services? Here’s some perspective and speculation.

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McAfee — only a few months after acquiring SaaS security specialist MX Logic — is providing some clues and statements about the company’s managed services strategy. Here’s a look.

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During the ConnectWise Partner Summit, MSPmentor sat down with a range of managed services experts. In the following MSPmentor FastChat videos, we covered such topics as hardware as a service (HaaS), MSP-to-MSP collaboration, sales and business development, online marketing for MSPs and email security. Here are six FastChat videos with a range of MSP industry experts…

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A single growing pain or real problems? ConnectWise apparently is working to restore its hosted PSA service. Problems seem to have started mid-day October 26 and there are indications full service won’t be restored until Oct. 28. Here are some of the details.

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While most of the managed services industry focuses on Windows systems, Forget Computers has bet its business on managed Apple Macintosh services. Founded in 1998 by Ben Greiner, Forget Computers made the transition to managed services in 2006. And so far, that bet is paying off well. Here’s some analysis.

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For many companies, focusing on the financial services industry during the recession was a recipe for disaster. But if you take a closer look you can find managed service providers like HEIT — an MSPmentor 100 company — continuing to succeed where others have failed. Here’s the update.

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As Apple marches forward in the consumer market, we decided to check in with MSPs to see if they’re increasingly specializing in Apple products and/or Apple-related services. So far, major MSP and VAR peer groups — like HTG Peer Groups — say they aren’t seeing an uptick in demand for Apple-oriented solutions. But if you look hard enough there is a small Apple MSP niche. Here’s some perspective.

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Xerox’s pending acquisition of Affiliated Computer Services, announced earlier today, has an deja vu quality to it, coming as it does a week after Dell’s move to purchase Perot Systems. Will the Xerox-ACS deal potentially impact the managed print services market? Here’s some analysis.

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Another week of travel is over. Amy Katz (my business partner) and I spent much of the week in Boston at meetings. Great conversations. But my inbox is filled with news tips and chatter that I haven’t had a chance to cover yet. So, here are the seven managed services blog entries I didn’t have time to write for the week ending Sept. 25.

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