Kaseya White Paper Applying LAN Management Best Practices to the Rest of the Corporate Network to Create MSP Sales Opportunities Complete visibility into and control over remote systems allows administrators to manage any distributed machine a Windows server, a Power Mac or an ipad as if it was local. www.kaseya.com
Let s get nostalgic, shall we. Remember a time when IT systems management was simple? It was the 1980s, the Gipper was in the White House, there were only three Star Wars movies and Pluto still was considered our 9th planet. In the workplace, desktop computers were just getting networked. You could link systems together or maybe connect them to a central server so users in the office could share files without needing to exchange floppy disks. Hardwired together, managing these networked computers was fairly straight-forward. You walked around manually setting up new users, upgrading to the latest version of Windows, installing applications and making sure machines were configured correctly. Your entire world was centralized in a single building. We re not in Kansas anymore. While local area network (LAN) management remains largely under control, today s IT environments have become increasingly complex, distributed, heterogeneous and mobile. As a result, IT systems management today is hardly simple. Making sure all your systems are up to date, running optimally and consistent with each other is a major undertaking dependent on complex remote access technology that only works half the time, and even then doesn t make you feel confident that you actually did what you set out to do. Your clients already have a robust LAN management strategy in place for their organizations, so why does managing all the other stuff have to be so complicated? Fortunately, it doesn t have to be. The Kaseya Essentials solution allows managed services provider (MSP) organizations to extend robust LAN management best practices to the customer networks and their IT infrastructure without having to reconfigure the entire environment. You really can manage your network infrastructure and your client s site using techniques that are akin to managing an elastic LAN. This white paper will discuss: Four LAN management best practices Why these LAN management techniques are difficult to apply to unconnected machines A solution for extending LAN management best practices to the rest of the environment The benefits of managing all your systems as if they sit on the LAN How the Kaseya Essentials solution enables simple, reliable and consistent IT management across the board to create MSP sales opportunities LAN Management Best Practices Managing a LAN is fairly simple. Organizations of all sizes are able to handle IT management for systems that sit within the corporate firewall where they are easier to track, update, control and secure (see Figure 1on the following page)....it systems management today is hardly simple. Making sure all your systems are up to date, running optimally and consistent with each other is a major undertaking...
Figure 1. Simple LAN Configuration Well thought out and executed policies keep these systems in check, ensuring consistency across the wired network. The 4 basic principles of managing a LAN are summarized below. Discovery: The first principle of LAN management is to know where your systems sit on the network and whether they are available and running optimally for users. An Ethernet cable runs directly from your management server to each machine, constantly pinging the system to make sure they know where to receive network services and, if needed, support. Inventory: The second principle is to know what is on each machine, including operating system version, applications, configurations and data. Visibility into each machine makes it easier to enforce policies, protect systems from malicious threats and maintain the user experience. Performance Management: Monitoring the network and keeping up with regular maintenance are equally important. There needs to be structure in place for being able to maintain, update and secure each asset. On a LAN, manual maintenance or basic LAN management tools fill the need from inside the firewall. Typical performance checks include: Collect and review network traffic logs Review and evaluate bandwidth performance Monitor network events and analyze network, routing, and Internet protocols, including file/text/internet messages, file transfer security, and data and communication handling Reporting: Lastly, organizations need to be able to track each system on the LAN and report on that asset s state so that redundancy plans can be created and approved. Reporting capabilities also provides much needed visibility for the operations staff that can better understand the cost and impact of business decisions. Systems Disappear Once They Pass the Firewall LAN management requires no hocus pocus, magic sauce or pixie dust. In Windows environments, Active Directory (AD) plays a key role in automating network management of user data, security and networked assets. Compiling inventory information in a central repository, AD centralizes IT systems management to a manageable level, providing administrators with the visibility and control they need to locally enforce IT policies and resolve help desk issues. Well thought out and executed policies keep these systems in check, ensuring consistency across the wired network. However, once a system disconnects from the LAN and slips past the firewall, AD starts to fall apart. Remote and mobile systems can then go unaccounted for and software and patch updates can go unfulfilled. Security scans and backups fail. Operations and command executions that used to go off without a hitch because they were closely monitored within the firewall slow down and fail. On the user side, remote machines become compromised and performance suffers. Eventually, the machine falls out of an acceptable management state completely, putting the system, the user and the organization at risk.
But suddenly, that computer logs on again but this time, it s at a branch office three regions over. This issue is compounded further when an MSP adds a new client entirely. Active Directory fails to recognize that it s the same system, and now there are two versions of the same computer muddying up audits. Is the system updated? Does it have the correct OS version? When was the last time the hard drive was defragged? Does it need a memory upgrade? Considering that you ve even caught the duplication, speculation ensues. Organizations think they have a solution for this complexity, relying on multiple tools to manage distributed and mobile machines while manually aggregating the data in a central spreadsheet. Unfortunately, this process requires physically inputting data which is time consuming and inaccurate. Holes in the IT management strategy paint an incomplete picture, and there is a lack of visibility and control. Proactive maintenance, remediation, planning and forecasting become virtually impossible, and decision makers can t make determinations based on incomplete data. Extending Visibility and Control to All Systems All is not lost. The right IT systems management solution can alleviate the issues associated with remote and mobile systems by enabling the same level of visibility and control as if all systems were on the LAN. Essentially, a system is a system is a system whether it s an iphone that often crosses state lines or is a desktop in the office next door that is hardwired to the network. A remote and automatic IT systems management solution, the Kaseya Essentials acts as an Elastic LAN solution, using a secure communications protocol, a single light-weight agent and agentless monitoring to access and control any system whether it is connected to the network or not. Kaseya is not picky, recognizing any system as an asset, treating a Windows 2003 server with a similar paradigm as a imac, Windows 7 laptop or Android smartphone albeit with their own unique device profiles that warrant unique management policies. The solution s agentless technology constantly pings the network searching for manageable systems, collecting pertinent inventory information and storing it in a single asset repository. Systems that leave the network automatically check in when rebooted whether they turn on in a remote branch office, a customer site, a coffee shop or on an Acela train somewhere between New Haven and Providence. Connections are made automatically and without a VPN and go through firewalls without additional configuration. A secure 256-bit communications protocol connects the system to a central management console no matter where the machine sits and whether it is connected to the corporate network. Essentially, Kaseya allows administrators to do anything to a remote machine that they can do locally with no configuration required. Managing Your Entire Network as if Everything is on Your LAN Kaseya gives administrators complete visibility into and control over every asset in the IT environment whether it is plugged into the network or not allowing administrators to maintain, update, back up and secure all systems from a web-based, fully integrated management console. This enables a consistent IT systems management strategy that transcends the LAN, allowing administrators to manage all systems as if they were hardwired to the management server. Kaseya constantly and consistently collects inventory information in real time, enabling up-to-date and accurate CMDB projects. Traditionally, by the time data is manually compiled and analyzed the environment has changed. Kaseya s real-time data collection ensures the reliability and accuracy of the data at any point in time, arming technicians with the information they need to proactively manage the environment and resolve exceptions quickly and efficiently. Kaseya also enables a policy-based approach to IT systems management that ensures that policies are applied and enforced consistently across the entire environment again, regardless of whether the machines are connected to the network. Administrators can use templates or customize their own The right IT systems management solution can alleviate the issues associated with remote and mobile systems by enabling the same level of visibility and control as if all systems were on the LAN. Elastic LAN Management Working Tips from an MSP Create standard configurations for each device class, including routers, switches, devices, PC, etc. Maintain current running configurations and a set of prior running configurations (4 to 5 sets) to help troubleshoot tasks and alerts Keep track of configuration changes that arise due to audits and consider creating a subsequent alert or other notification Automate all scheduled tasks and/or routine tasks for current running configurations, backups, patches, and password management by groups of devices to provide better service quality at a lower cost of delivery Document network and configurations changes twice per year
policies that can be applied to groups of machines. Network services can be added on demand, and Kaseya automatically updates all machines in that group without an administrator having to manually reconfigure any systems. And since Kaseya ensures that all machines in the environment are detected and updated consistently, administrators can have the peace of mind that the machines are in compliance and running optimally. Administrators can also set alerts that let them know if any system falls out of compliance of any IT or security policy. Instead of managing machines, Kaseya allows IT organizations to manage exceptions a much more efficient and effective IT systems management policy that can save hundreds of hours per month of manual labor and monitoring. An Opportunity for Managed Service Providers to Add Value Made up of a group of IT experts that carve their time among multiple clients, MSPs can act as IT experts that are knowledgeable, engaged at all times and cost effective. Able to share duties while continuing to gain expertise and experience, MSPs can deliver cost-effective yet powerful IT services ideally suited to unique requirements per customer. Different from a break-fix operator, MSPs package all the core elements of IT systems management in a single offering that can be delivered as an on-going service. By fixing the cost of IT services, the MSP is taking on the burden of risk so its customers can focus on their core mission of helping to advance the business (not to mention they also get a predictable service delivery model with higher quality, standardized services). Along those lines, MSPs can serve as an organization s high-level strategic thinker, acting as a CIO or CTO figure. This person can take a holistic view of the organization, guiding IT policies so they are in line with business goals. These strategic managers aren t just the luxury of large enterprises. All organizations whether they are a mom and pop or a 1,000-employee company need help navigating complex IT environments. How does IT address business needs? What architecture would work best for our business systems? Should we go to the cloud? What applications do our end users need to be productive? What hardware is best? Do we need vendor-provided services? By outsourcing the CIO/CTO position, organizations get the benefits of groupthink. It s not just one person researching and advising on these issues. MSPs offer a melting pot of experience and expertise that continues to evolve. MSPs also have specialized expertise on their staff that can be made available to customers. For example, networking, ERP and Linux experts can help organizations navigate those specific aspects of their IT strategy without having to hire each expert individually. Generally for most MSPs, some amount of their time is already allocated via a retainer agreement and they are not drinking the customers company Kool-Aid, so they can take an independent and objective view of the business and its IT needs without all the backroom politics. As recurring service providers, MSPs are constantly monitoring and maintaining the IT environment and engaging with customers as needed. Rather than ask an internal IT person to reset a password or set up a new user ad hoc, MSPs can automate that process, ensuring administration and regular maintenance is conducted proactively and efficiently (see Figure 2). At the same time, remote management capabilities enable a non-disruptive IT management approach, ensuring work is completed in the background without users even aware maintenance is being done. In fact, MSPs with sound business practices and robust management solutions embody the concept of Elastic LAN management each time they add a new managed machine or acquire a new customer. MSPs can serve as an organization s high-level strategic thinker, acting as a CIO or CTO figure. Benefits to the MSP Why Elastic LAN Management Makes Sense Higher Quality of IT Services for Users proactive maintenance and fast time to resolution improves availability and performance which leads to more productive users and happy customers Lower Cost of Operations more efficient technicians are able to do more in the same amount of time Additional Revenue more services to offer and better scalability and growth Higher Profit for Your Business lower operational expenses and higher revenue means more money in your coffers By factoring in the added benefit of the cloud and its inherent elasticity, MSPs who support businesses are able to expand their computing resources as needed, without astronomical costs. In cloud configurations, server hardware is shared among users, and capacity is allocated as needed. This means that seasonal fluctuations in computing needs, or even a burst in traffic from an unexpectedly successful marketing campaign, can be accommodated under the shared hardware configuration. For the elastic workloads that are common in growing midsize businesses, the cloud is a more cost-effective solution than over-investing in hardware to handle peak usage. And with elastic LAN management techniques, MSPs oftentimes are more cost effective than in-house IT organizations due to low overhead in terms of salary, benefits and training.
Figure 2. MSP Managed Network - Akin to Elastic LAN Management In summary, managed service providers take much of the IT burden off internal resources, letting organizations of any size take advantage of a strategic, always-available and cost-efficient IT support and services platform uniquely tuned to individual needs. The organization can then do what it was intended to do: concentrate on its core competency whether that s selling widgets, providing legal consultancy, tending to the sick or educating our children. Conclusion Most organizations have a handle on LAN management, but the management apparatus tends to fall apart once systems disconnect from the network. However, visibility and control through Kaseya allow organizations to provide a wide breadth and depth of services delivered through a consolidated service desk. Policies are created, updated, applied and enforced consistently through the central dashboard, streamlining and standardizing IT systems management from the LAN to the WAN and everything in between. And CIOs can add value to their firms by including managed service providers to act as dedicated IT experts that are knowledgeable, engaged at all times and cost effective. MSPs are network management experts and can provide transparency throughout the IT environment; enable the productivity of users; deliver value through dynamic and timely service delivery; take a big-picture, holistic view; and create a community of users that share experiences and best practices. About Kaseya Kaseya is the leading global provider of IT Systems Management software. Kaseya solutions empower virtually everyone from individual consumers to large corporations and IT service providers to proactively monitor, manage and control IT assets remotely, easily and efficiently from one integrated Web-based platform. 2013 Kaseya. All rights reserved. Kaseya and the Kaseya logo are among the trademarks or registered trademarks owned by or licensed to Kaseya International Limited. All other marks are the property of their respective owners. www.kaseya.com