MSPmentor

Data is the lifeblood of any organization, and its loss can be a serious blow to the business. If your systems and data are not adequately protected and supported by a well-tested disaster recovery plan, chances are that you are placing your organization at risk.

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Datto, the backup and disaster recovery (BDR) storage specialist, has a concise message for managed services providers (MSPs). Specifically, Datto is profitable, growing and in hiring mode. But what potentially sets Datto apart in the fiercely competitive BDR market? CEO Austin McChord offered MSPmentor some insights.

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As a sales VP, it’s part of my job to look ahead and make predictions for the year. Based on my experience providing technology solutions to MSPs in the small and midsized businesses (SMB) space, I expect to see the following cloud-related storage trends accelerate in 2012.

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As an MSP, your time is valuable; it’s a precious commodity. As a vendor and channel partner, we are intensely aware of that. We know the less time you spend managing backups, the more time that you’ll have to focus on other aspects of your business.

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When Continuum (formerly Zenith RMM) yesterday announced a BDR (backup and disaster recovery) storage partnership with Datto, nearly 1,000 managed services providers (MSPs) and VARs signed up to gain early access to the platform, according to Continuum CEO Michael George. Still, MSPmentor raised five questions about the Continuum-Datto relationship and its potential implications for MSPs. George and his management team late last night spoke with MSPmentor and offered deeper insights. Here’s the update. Among the key takeaways: Continuum isn’t just getting into the BDR market, the company “wants to dominate it,” said George.

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By raising $6 million in new funding, Autotask joins a lengthy list of MSP-centric software companies and cloud services providers that has tapped private equity or venture capital — or made acquisitions in 2011. Here’s the scorecard… and a look at two cloud-centric software companies that will very likely raise money next.

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Intronis, which promotes cloud backup services to MSPs, is on pace to grow 50 percent or more in 2011, according to CEO Kent Plunkett. To maintain that growth, Intronis plans to double-down on the North America market, focusing like a laser on managed services providers that need cloud backup services. Plunkett described the Intronis cloud storage strategy to MSPmentor yesterday during an hour-long interview.

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Last week was a pretty interesting time in the channel and, as usual, much of the interesting news was announced at SMB Nation. Some of it was made publicly, and some of it was not. What were some of the interesting trends — and the potential implications for MSPs? Read on.

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The cloud backup and online backup markets are both expanding and consolidating. Two recent examples: VaultLogix has acquired assets from Utility Backup Solutions, and Vembu recently acquired Cloud Nucleus. Those deals surfaced around the same time that Axcient — a hybrid cloud storage specialist – raised $15.5 million in venture capital funding. Plus, more private equity is expected to flow into the managed services software market really soon, MSPmentor has learned. So how can markets expand and contract at the same time? Here’s some perspective.

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As a managed IT services provider, it’s important for your team to have strategic consulting skills and effective processes, which ultimately lift sales. Think about the following words: Proficiency. Expertise. Talent. Skill. Art. Knowledge is power. Working with the most knowledgeable and talented people on the planet is a great way to relieve stress, move your business forward, and sleep well at night.  As a business owner, working with experts whose expertise and integrity you trust is a truly magical experience. Check the box, move on to the next problem.  These guys have my back.

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VaultLogix, the  online backup and recovery specialist, has updated the VaultLogix Information Portal (VIP) to help MSPs and VARs more easily manage client accounts. The VIP portal lets partners manage their online backup businesses while automating many tasks.

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One of the biggest news stories in 2010 provides a perfect example of how we can learn from past indiscretions (even if they weren’t ours); the posting of classified government documents and other stolen information on the WikiLeaks website. While this incident may not appear to have a direct impact on the IT channel, misinformation around the story creates a concern for the cloud—particularly around its security and the Federal government’s adoption of the technology.

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A few hundred managed services providers (MSPs) are set to attend the N-able Partner Summit later this week (Oct. 20-22, Scottsdale, Ariz.). So, what managed services trends can we expect at the conference, and what messages will N-able CEO Gavin Garbutt deliver to the crowd? Here are five clues and predictions from MSPmentor.

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For less than the price of a cup of coffee per month, you can save a gigabyte of data – as long as it’s stored locally. At least, that’s the pitch behind Storage Guardian‘s new local backup offering, which starts pricing at $0.25/compressed GB/month.  The company says it’s designed to enhance their cloud play, not replace it. Here’s how.

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Back in April 2010, Lawson Software identified Scott County, Minn., as an early user of the company’s cloud services. The county had tapped the cloud for disaster recovery. At the time, Lawson didn’t expect disaster recovery to be the typical cloud use case. But this week Lawson debuted Lawson Disaster Recovery, a cloud service targeting business processes such as payroll, finance, accounts receivable/payable, inventory management and procurement. Here are the details.

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I concede: I often blog about the fact that many SaaS applications like Microsoft BPOS (Business Productivity Online Suite) don’t offer VARs and MSPs enough profit margin opportunity. But I had a rather enlightening conversation yesterday with Next Level Cafe, a managed services provider based in Minnesota. CEO Richard Anderson offered some timely perspective on the true SaaS opportunity. Here it is.

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A quick update involving the online storage market: Storage Guardian is the latest software company to launch an online data backup and business continuity partner program for managed service providers (MSPs) and VARs. The service is designed, in particular, for partners that specialize in Exchange Server, Small Business Server, SharePoint Server and Active Directory customers. You can find a free 30-day trial here.

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Symantec Protection Network (SPN), a software as a service (SaaS) platform launched in May 2008, is off to a solid start with managed service providers and VARs, according to Symantec Senior Director Chris Schin.

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The Geek Squad is providing managed online backup services through a company called Data Deposit Box. Now, Data Deposit Box is seeking resellers to support its online backup services. Will any managed service providers take the bait?

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