What is an RMM (Remote Monitoring Management) Solution?
An RMM solution is a category of software that enables managed service providers (MSPs) to automate the monitoring and management of a client’s critical IT infrastructure, such as networks, hardware, workstations, servers, and other endpoints. The first aspect, remote monitoring, is possible via cloud-based capabilities that scan infrastructure and applications to detect issues that affect uptime or proper functioning. The second aspect, remote management, means MSPs can correct identified problems and administer all aspects of the IT infrastructure from afar to reduce the burden on the client’s internal team.
The Evolution of MSP Remote Monitoring and Management Services
Managed service providers have come a long way in a relatively short time. Previously, RMM could pretty much sum up their entire business—they remotely monitored client servers that were on premises, often via temporary connections that used a series of manual, time-based checks that they highlighted in regular management reports.
Monitoring in those days was time-consuming and often inconsistent. In addition, the reporting function was often a drain on valuable technical resources. MSPs added value by providing a break/fix-type service where engineers would attend to client sites and provide specialist skills or replacement hardware to resolve detected issues.
MSPs Move Toward Hosting
Many RMM solutions have moved away from their early reliance on SNMP, giving way to slim agent-based options that provide the depth of monitoring and automation today’s clients typically demand. Although many clients still prefer to own and host their own hardware (or are required to do so by regulations), the use of the cloud and/or hybrid cloud configurations is on the rise.
The use of MSPs is increasingly common, with organizations in many industries looking to outsource various facets of their IT responsibilities and infrastructure to knowledgeable and trusted resources—provided the appropriate security protocols are in place. The rise and increasing acceptance of cloud-based capabilities and solutions have enabled specialist companies to emerge, ready to provide clients with the means to outsource virtually any facet of their IT. MSPs now commonly oversee software implementations and upgrades, provide local IT support in new markets, and manage networks and servers. Learn more about the value of an MSP.
Along with the rise in MSP competencies, RMM solutions are now smarter than ever before, servicing both on-premises and hosted infrastructure seamlessly. They have evolved from simple monitoring and alerting tools capable only of providing notifications to tool-specific consoles into intuitive monitoring and automation solutions. In fact, today’s RMM solutions vastly reduce repetitive processes, initiate recovery, and deliver exception-based notifications, often as automatically generated help desk tickets.
Benefits of RMM Solutions
- Grow your business without increasing staff.
- Improve operational efficiency and automate 100% of routine tasks.
- Increase profitability by adding services and streamlining new client transitions.
When a business decides it’s time to partner with a managed service provider, it’s often because they no longer have the budget, resources, or skillsets to manage their systems on their own. Think about it: Depending on the size of the business, it can take 160 hours or more each month to complete all monitoring tasks—and that doesn’t even begin to cover time spent troubleshooting
If they don’t have the resources to monitor and manage all these tasks manually, neither do you.
Managed service providers need to run lean—even leaner than in-house IT departments—to maintain profitability, or more importantly, to grow. As you take on more business, it’s not efficient or effective to plug the gaps with expensive, highly skilled people. Ultimately, there is no value or job satisfaction for anyone in IT in performing repetitive tasks. A managed service provider attempting to monitor cloud, hosted, or remote systems and applications manually winds up with the same risks as an in-house team.
- Difficulty managing distributed networks with telecommuting employees
- Loss of connectivity to remote sites
- Lack of visibility into the status of network devices and information flows
- Lack of onsite support
- Degraded or total loss of service
- Loss of business
- Damaged reputation
- Delayed responses to notifications
- Restless and demotivated staff
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Key Features of Remote Monitoring and Management Solutions
A particular concern for MSPs is onboarding new clients. The transition must be seamless as this is the period when exposure and visibility are greatest. That means you need to be running state-of-the-art technology that takes concerns about monitoring capabilities completely off the table. Learn about the benefits of remote network monitoring.
With almost 80% of manual tasks simply verifying that things are running smoothly, having the right automation solution is key. Well-implemented RMM software can catch problems early enough to stop them from leading to larger issues or even service outages. These products can support many platforms and applications and come with built-in self-service reporting that allow clients to generate real-time assessments of the health of the services being provided.
RMM Solutions from Fortra
Remote Server Monitoring
IBM i Server Suites
Platform: IBM i
Key Features:
- Monitor natively
- Offer clients an easy upgrade path
- Receive exception notifications
- Automate responses
Network Server Suite
Platform: Windows, Linux, AIX, VIOS
Key Features:
- Monitor natively
- Centralize cross-platform monitoring
- Receive exception notifications
- Automate responses
Remote Network Monitoring
Intermapper Remote Access
Platform: Windows, Linux, Apple (Mac OSX)
Key Features:
- Remote server monitoring and management
- Dynamic data display
- Multi-platform functionality
- Map-level authorization
Task Management & Reporting
Advanced Reporting Suite
Platform: AIX, Linux, IBM i, Windows
Key Features:
- Consolidate reporting across platforms
- Easily report on SLAs
- Give clients online access to their reports
Task Supervisor
Platform: Windows, Linux, AIX, IBM i
Key Features:
- Centralize manual and automated IT and business tasks
- Report on time to completion
- Import tasks from existing systems
