MSPmentor

Back in January, I noted a growing number of managed service providers are embracing PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard). Now a quick update: Envysion, which specializes in managed video as a service, says it has passed its PCI-DSS certification audit.

Envysion claims it is the first web-based video surveillance firm to comply with the standard. But I have seen other MSP-centric companies — outside of the managed video space — evangelize their PCI compliance efforts.

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Cisco Systems has publicly vowed that it won’t become managed service provider. However, Cisco aggressively promotes its equipment to MSPs. And now, Cisco is pointing to a new report from Synergy Research Group, which claims Cisco’s equipment dominates the managed WAN industry. Here’s a quick look at Cisco’s victory dance.

Apparently, Symantec’s SaaS (software as a service) platform, known as Symantec Protection Network (SPN), hasn’t exactly set the world on fire since its launch earlier this year. In fact, Symantec has been unusually quiet about SPN’s progress in recent months.

But that changed last week, when the company described some of the bumps SPN has hit during Symantec Vision — a customer conference held in Las Vegas. Read More >

Instead of betting the house on managed services, Presidio Network Solutions is setting up a business unit to specialize on network management services.

The strategy, first reported by NetworkWorld, goes far beyond the traditional remote administration services that some small VARs now offer. Instead, the Presidio Managed Networks unit will focus on unified communications, VOIP, web conferencing, firewall and VPN management.

Presidio isn’t alone. Some of Cisco Systems’ top channel partners are melding unified communications with managed services. Read More >

I’ve been especially critical of Hewlett-Packard in recent months, openly wondering how the company has so badly missed the managed services market in the US. But a new partnership in India may provide some clues abou where HP is heading in the MSP space.

A case in point: Netmagic Solutions, a managed IT service provider in India, has inked a partnership with HP to service midmarket customers in such markets as retail, healthcare, utilities, education and manufacturing, according to a release from Netmagic. In order to win over potentially skeptical customers in the US, Netmagic promotes the fact that its data centers are ISO 27001 and SAS 70 Audit (Type II) compliant.

Other MSPs should follow that lead. Here’s why.

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As I was scanning a few of my favorite blogs, I noticed CNet writing a bit about Untangle — the open source security gateway provider.

Untangle, as MSPmentor readers know, has gained some momentum with managed service providers. But CNet’s blog, The Open Road, takes a closer look and tracks Untangle’s successful transformation from a proprietary software provider into an open source specialist. Here’s what CNet had to say.

This is the latest indication that open source truly has penetrated the managed services and SaaS (software as a service) markets. Here’s an earlier piece I wrote about open source converging with managed services. I think the trend continues to accelerate because savvy MSPs can “get under the hood” and truly customize open source to fit their needs.

Calyptix Security and Level Platforms are introducing a manage security solution for established and aspiring MSPs. Here are the details, along with a bit of background on Calyptix — one of the more recent entrants in the MSP space. Read More >

How can a managed service provider differentiate itself from Microsoft’s own hosted Exchange Server offering? Azaleos, an MSP in Seattle, has found one potential answer. The company has launched security services to safeguard its Exchange email customers. Here’s some background. Read More >