ConnectWise will no longer develop a PSA-RMM software integration between ConnectWise Manage and Kaseya VSA, ChannelE2E has confirmed. Still, a third-party integration from MSP Assist apparently can fill the integration gap. And we're checking to see if Kaseya's own integration work, dating back to 2017, offers some solutions here.
PSA, short for professional services automation, is software upon which MSPs (managed IT service providers) run their businesses. RMM, short for remote monitoring and management, is software that MSPs use to maintain end-customer networks and systems. Together, PSA and RMM typically complement one another like peanut butter and jelly or Microsoft Word and Excel.
Details about the discontinued ConnectWise PSA-Kaseya RMM integration effort surfaced in the ConnectWise Marketplace. ChannelE2E reached out to ConnectWise seeking details about the decision (see response below). Updated August 15, 2019: Kaseya's response is here.
ChannelE2E: It sounds like ConnectWise will no longer develop a ConnectWise Manage integration with Kaseya VSA, effective with ConnectWise Manage 2019.6’s release. Is that correct?
ConnectWise: The ConnectWise-created plugin for Kaseya’s RMM and ConnectWise Manage is being discontinued. This will be effective with the release of ConnectWise Manage 2019.6, which is currently planned for early November of 2019. A small percentage of partners will be affected by this sunsetting and there are solutions for partners to choose from to replace this legacy integration.
Our open ecosystem policy calls for anyone writing integrations to ConnectWise to use our APIs. We have been maintaining this legacy integration for a decade and now that superior options are available, as of early November 2019 we are no longer supporting it.
ChannelE2E: What drove the decision?
ConnectWise: There are now superior options available for this legacy integration and as of early November 2019, ConnectWise will no longer support it.
ChannelE2E: It sounds like MSPs seeking such an integration should reach out to MSP Assist instead. Is that correct?
ConnectWise: For ConnectWise Manage partners that wish to remain on Kaseya’s RMM, MSP Assist is a viable option. Impacted partners are also free to select other RMM solutions, such as ConnectWise Automate which is designed to work seamlessly with ConnectWise Manage.
Side Note from ChannelE2E: Kaseya's response is here.
ConnectWise and Kaseya: Competing... and Cooperating?
While ConnectWise and Kaseya have mostly partnered for more than a decade, the two software companies have had their dustups from time to time.
The occasional issues stretch back to ConnectWise's roots in the PSA software market, and Kaseya's early start in the RMM sector.
When Kaseya threatened to develop its own PSA software around the 2009 timeframe, ConnectWise responded in 2010 by investing in LabTech Software, an upstart RMM provider. At the time, the move included aggressive pricing against Kaseya VSA. As part of a overall company reorganization, ConnectWise ultimately acquired all of LabTech and rebranded it as ConnectWise Automate in 2016.
For its part, Kaseya stumbled a few times under ownership and management changes (2013-2014), but regained its footing soon after CEO Fred Voccola arrived in 2015. Fast forward to 2016, and Kaseya acquired its own PSA and promptly launched a price war against ConnectWise Manage. More recently, Kaseya has offered aggressive rip-and-replace price deals against ConnectWise Automate in the RMM market.
ConnectWise and Kaseya: The Path Forward
Overall, both ConnectWise and Kaseya have large, healthy installed bases of MSPs. But it's unclear how much the two companies will work together going forward, in ChannelE2E's opinion.
Among the reasons: Kaseya is working overtime to grab market share ahead of a potential IPO or perhaps another potential business transaction (i.e., company sale) within 12 months or so.
Meanwhile, ConnectWise (now led by CEO Jason Magee) is striving for continued growth under new private equity owner Thoma Bravo, which acquired the business in February 2019.
During the Kaseya Connect IT Global 2019 conference in May, CEO Fred Voccola clearly stated that integrations within and between Kaseya's own products are the company's primary focus. ChannelE2E has reached out to Kaseya to see if the company plans to update its own integration statement involving VSA to ConnectWise Manage, which dates back to 2017. We'll update this article if we gain details to share.
For its part, ConnectWise has vowed to maintained an open ecosystem, but the company is calling on partners to write to the ConnectWise APIs. Moreover, the company is calling on software companies to be good citizens within and throughout the so-called IT Nation ecosystem. ChannelE2E expects more details to potentially emerge within or before the IT Nation Connect 2019 conference in October.
