Types of Managed Services
Managed Service Providers (MSP) or Managed IT Services have been around for many years, but as technology changes, so do the offerings. Technology has evolved a lot in the past decade. We used to use desktop computers hard wired into networks and connected to servers down the hall for our work. We only had our phones at our desks too. Today it is vastly different. We use laptops connected to monitors and wander around the building using cloud services. We have everything we need to work, right at our fingertips. No longer are we constrained to our desks, and are able work anywhere, on anything, at any time.
What is a managed services model?
Managed services is a different business model from the “Break/Fix” model that has been the tradition for many years. With MSP services, you are charged a consistent monthly fee for IT Services. Support is included so you don’t have any billing surprises. There is typically a 12- or 36-month contract involved so you know what your costs are going to be for the next few years, and it helps you budget appropriately. It’s also nice because you know that things will get fixed quickly because the IT Provider cannot charge you more for things that take longer to remediate.
What are managed services examples?
Some examples of managed service offerings are:
- Computer support – This is typically pushing updates and making sure computers are monitored with an RMM (Remote Monitoring and Management) utility.
- Computer Security – This typically involves (at least) 1 security utility installed on the computer to ensure it’s not being compromised.
- Cloud Services – Google or Microsoft 365 licensing being resold to you by the IT Provider.
- Cloud Security – Security monitoring for your cloud platforms to ensure that breaches don’t take place, and if they do to notify the IT Provider.
- Cloud Backups – 3rd party backups separate from Microsoft and Google to make sure that your data is “somewhere else”.
- Network Management – Monitoring your network for outages and capacity issues is very important, a badly configured network can ruin your day.
- Server support – On-premises servers are still used today when cloud solutions don’t make sense. Making sure your server is updated regularly and taken care of is very important.
- Server Backups – Onsite and Offsite backups for your server is *VERY* important. If your server goes down, how quickly can you get back up and running?
- Smartphone/Tablet MDM – If you issue tablets or smartphones to your staff, you need to manage them for updates and recovery if they are lost or stolen.
To find out more about how My IT Indy can help you with Managed Services, contact us today!
