It's been more than a year since ChannelE2E first published a
20 RMM Software Tools list for MSPs and VARs. Fast forward to present day, and it's time to take an updated look at the remote monitoring and management (RMM) software market, which increasingly involves cloud-based options.
This time around, we've broken the list into two groups:
(1) Perceived RMM market leaders for MSPs in the SMB sector, and
(2) additional RMM options for various use cases. And we've expanded the total list to 25 companies.
Perceived Market Leaders
First up, five perceived market leaders that offer RMM as part of their broader MSP and IT services provider software suites.
They're sorted alphabetically. The options include:
1. Autotask Endpoint Management, now part of Datto: When a private equity firm
acquired Datto in 2017, the deal essentially tucked Autotask's business into Datto. Autotask Endpoint Management is part of a larger 'unified' suite that includes PSA.
Conference: Watch for deeper RMM and PSA integrations with Datto's data protection and networking lineups, with details expected at
DattoCon18 in June 2018. Content from the former Autotask Community Live conference essentially tucks into DattoCon18 as well.
2. ConnectWise Automate (formerly LabTech Software): Connectwise rebranded LabTech in 2016 after investing in the RMM technology in 2010. Automate is part of a larger suite designed to help technology solutions providers sell, automate, manage and remotely control IT services. Keep an eye on a sister product called
ConnectWise Unite, which plugs third-party services (from Cisco and more) into the ecosystem.
Conference: More details will surface at
ConnectWise Automation Nation 2018, a technical conference in June for ConnectWise's ecosystem.
3. Continuum RMM: Part of a broader platform that includes NOC (network operations center), help desk, security and BDR (backup and disaster recovery) services. Instead of running Continuum's tools on their own, MSPs essentially outsource many management requirements and tasks to Continuum's team and platforms. The approach allows MSPs to focus on marketing, sales, and other revenue-growing functions, the company asserts.
Conference: Partners will gather for
Continuum Navigate 2018 in September.
4. Kaseya VSA: Short for Virtual System Administrator, Kaseya VSA was the early market leader, struggled a bit amid ownership transitions and heightened competition, and then returned to growth mode around late 2016. The company has rounded out its portfolio with PSA, infrastructure monitoring and security tools. The latest move involves a deep BDR integration with
Unitrends MSP.
Conference:
Kaseya Connect 2018 is set for May.
5. SolarWinds MSP: The business unit of SolarWinds has
two flagship RMM offerings. One from the
LogicNow acquisition of June 2016. And one from the N-able acquisition of 2013. The overall SolarWinds MSP suite also features backup, security, ticket management and remote control capabilities.
Conference: SolarWinds MSP hosts regional "MSP Empower" conferences throughout the year.
Check in directly with the company for future dates.
Note: Each of the options above typically target MSPs and IT service providers that support SMB customers. However, in many cases the tools can scale to support midmarket MSPs serving larger customers.
Additional RMM Software Options for MSPs
In addition to the above-named companies, the market RMM has a lengthy list of alternatives -- many of which have carved out unique, growing niches for themselves. Here's a look at the companies -- again sorted alphabetically.
6. Addigy: This is a cloud-based RMM platform for Apple Macs. Addigy, backed by former Kaseya team members, hosted its
first partner and customer summit in February/March 2018. And the company launched a formalized partner program at that time.
7. Atera: The upstart, launched in 2011, has been
blending RMM, PSA and business intelligence software in the cloud. More recently, the company has added Mac, Webroot security integrations, and
other enhancements.
8. Auvik Networks: This RMM platform
focuses on the network layer. SolarWinds MSP veteran
Alistair Forbes joined the company's board in May 2017. Also,
Auvik raised US$11.79 million in Series B funding in August 2017. Integrations with a range of traditional RMM platforms also have surfaced.
9. Avast Managed Workplace: This is the former Level Platforms Managed Workplace, an early RMM market pioneer. AVG Technologies acquired Managed Workplace in 2013. Then,
Avast acquired AVG in 2016. Avast is mainly a security company, but CEO Vince Steckler at the time of the deal told us
he’s committed to AVG’s SMB software market & RMM.
10. CA Technologies UIM: While many RMM platforms focus on MSPs in the SMB sector, CA UIM is quietly a leader with midmarket MSPs. Indeed, roughly 600 MSPs that run UIM and other CA tools attended CA World 2017. Much of the focus involved blue ocean opportunities like cloud and application monitoring, areas that most SMB-centric MSPs have largely overlooked to date. UIM initially leveraged technology from CA's Nimsoft acquisition of 2010. But R&D has progressed dramatically since that time.
Conference:
CA World 2018 is set for November.
Continued to page two of two for RMM offerings 11 to 25, sorted alphabetically.
Welcome to page two of two, listing RMM offerings 11 to 25, sorted alphabetically.
11. Cisco FindIT Network Management: ChannelE2E discovered
early FindIT details in 2016. We haven't heard much about the fledgling platform since that time. More recently, Cisco has opened its arms to SMB-centric MSPs via a
ConnectWise relationship. We think that's Cisco's SMB priority going forward, but we'll poke around to see if FindIT remains in R&D mode.
12. ClearCenter: Certainly not your traditional RMM platform, ClearCenter is a hybrid IT management platform. Among the company's more impressive moves of late: An
emerging relationship with HP Enterprise...
13. Comodo One RMM: This platform is positioned as a complete IT and Security Manager offering with built in RMM, service desk ticketing, and patch management — for free. The system claims to manage and protect more than 200,000 endpoints as of March 2018.
14. Ipswitch WhatsUp Gold: Positioned for network, application and cloud monitoring. As of March 2018 it gained monitoring capabilities for Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, Meraki, Dell Compellent and Outlook 365.
15. LogicMonitor: The company positions itself as a performance management platform rather than RMM. Recent moves include
AWS and Azure cloud monitoring, along with an
enterprise service provider push. In mid-2016, the
company attracted a $130 million investment.
16. ManageEngine: Part of the
Zoho family of companies, ManageEngine remains one of the largest privately held providers of IT management software. A portion of that portfolio includes RMM-oriented software for MSPs.
17. Microsoft Intune: Now part of Microsoft's Enterprise Mobility+Security push, we don't believe Intune ever really gained a big following with MSPs.
18. Nagios: An extremely well-known player for server, network and application monitoring. Widely used by MSPs even without much of a formal MSP push by Nagios.
19. Naverisk Software: This RMM & PSA provider has had multiple owners in recent years. The potential good news: Original founder
Jon Kalaugher reacquired the business from
ECi Software Solutions in December 2017. At the time, more than 1,000 MSPs were running Naverisk
20. NinjaRMM: Launched by several PacketTrap veterans, NinjaRMM is
branching out into multiple areas. As of mid-2017, the company supported 1,200 MSPs and expected to march toward 2,000 MSPs by 2017's end. Private equity investment rumors involving the company occasionally pup up, but we haven't heard anything new as of this writing...
21. Panorama9: They're in the RMM market with remote monitoring, patch management and security capabilities for MSPs. But we don't hear much from the company.
22. Pulseway MSP: Pulseway claims to be a
mobile- and cloud-first RMM platform for MSPs. Plus, the company
re-introduced a free RMM version in October 2017, while continue to round out its portfolio with PSA enhancements.
23. RemoteToPC: The company offers remote access, monitoring and alerts in one package.
24. SpiceWorks: The company offers a range of
free IT management tools.
25. Uplevel Systems: The startup launched Unbox — an on-premises SMB management appliance for MSPs, in late 2016. Unbox, which links to the cloud, features WiFi, disk storage, backup, security and remote management capabilities.
Other Companies
Also On Our Radar: We considered mentioning cloud, infrastructure and application performance monitoring tools like
Cisco's AppDynamics,
Datadog,
Dynatrace and
New Relic to the list. But we still see them serving slightly different market needs outside of traditional RMM for MSPs. Also, we dropped
Acorn Energy since they also don't fit the traditional RMM definition.
Whom Did We Miss?: Surely we’ve overlooked RMM-oriented monitoring and management tools for MSPs. We purposely skipped remote control offerings as well as many of the latest cloud monitoring and management tools, most of which weren’t initially designed for MSPs. But we’re open to feedback, criticism — and “you forgot to mention…” comments.
