Running an MSP is a full-time job and one that isn’t very forgiving of mistakes. Investing in a quality RMM is therefore a must for any MSP business that wants to see its competition in the rear-view mirror. If you fall in the lucky lot that has one, it’s about time you answered some important questions. Such as:
- Are you making the most out of your investment?
- Is your RMM giving you an edge over your competition?
- What do you wish you would’ve known before?
- What are you doing differently?
These are few of the many questions with too few answers if you do not know where to look.
RMM is a very powerful tool, but it is only as good as the hands that wield it. It’s like a quiver of arrows and every functionality is a different specialty arrow, if shot with precision, can address specific needs and achieve a particular goal. Now, how good is your aim? And are you pointing your arrows in the right direction?
Do more with RMM
If your only tool is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail. However, you’ve got to stop blindly swinging that hammer and go for some specialty weapons. Amid the plethora of tasks an RMM tool can handle, there are some it is exceptionally good at. And these are the basic minimal that you should be using your RMM for.
Performance Metrics
Not dedicating enough time to gauge the performance of the systems running in your IT environment can be as fatal as leaving an unguarded endpoint. Leverage your RMM to pro-actively capture, measure and analyze the performance metrics of the systems. A glance at important metrics like memory, disk space, uptime, downtime, etc., can point out potential emerging concerns. Do not forget the mantra – if you can measure it, you can manage it.
Windows Event Logs
How do you know if someone has tried hacking into your internal systems? Or tried placing a malware into it. Is your system behaving abnormally slow? While some of the behavior maybe routine, others might be indicators of security breaches that need immediate attention. With RMM expect to find a bunch of data on system health, hardware software details and a lot more, that can be used to diagnose current system problems and predict future issues.
Network Devices
Network device monitoring should extend to every device on the network and not just servers and workstations. If you do not want to be half-prepared for threats, you have to monitor all the devices on the network, from firewall and switches to routers and even printers. Remember the recent PewDiePie printer hack? None of us saw that coming. RMM blesses you with complete network coverage and the ability to remotely monitor and troubleshoot any anomalies without getting off your desk.
Websites
Many organizations depend heavily on their website to drive business, and in such a case, every minute of downtime translates directly into lost revenue and opportunities. Website monitoring is a particular topic of interest among the monitoring segment and huge opportunity to capitalize on. Pro-active monitoring lets you track the performance and availability of the website and thwart away any potential downtime before they occur.
Online/Offline (Up/down)
As the name suggests, monitoring the online/ offline status of the device shows if the device is connected or disconnected from the network. If it is disconnected, then for how long? There is only one acceptable reason for the device to appear offline and that is if it’s powered off or if there is a hardware failure. If it’s anything else, it needs immediate addressing, and that’s exactly what your RMM does.
Application/ Hardware Changes
Unauthorized configuration changes are every MSPs nightmare, which makes detecting and tracking any sort of hardware and application change extremely important. Though some would argue that it can be done manually, it’s hard to disagree that taking the manual approach leaves a huge room for errors and are extremely time-consuming. Instead, just assign your RMM to real-time change detection. The moment anything is plugged in or plugged out, your technician is notified along with an array of options to deal with it. If something seems out of place, just revert the system back at the click of a single button.
Backups
With a flock of users coming in – going out and generating a lot of data in between, the IT environment is constantly changing – to say the least. While backing this data is one aspect of it, monitoring that backup is equally critical. What if you are counting on the backup that was never successful, and by the time you realize it, it’s already too late. Monitoring makes sure that the recent backups succeeded and all your software and systems are up to date. If any malicious behavior is noticed within your backup parameter, you get immediate alerts.
Monitor more to manage more
As more and more MSPs continue to line up on the horizon, it gets harder for the service providers to differentiate and stand out. Everyone has access to the latest technology and they can figure the budget if results are guaranteed. One way to gain the lead over the competition is to do more and gain specialization in your existing tools. Download our RMM Checklist here to see all the things you should be monitoring with your RMM to get that extra mileage.
