Make the Most of Your MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop
Learn how to master MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop: set up the solution, configure security features, and get acquainted with advanced use cases.
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Guide to MSP Branding
When an MSP grows and becomes more mature, its owners eventually recognize the need for sales and marketing operations. And yet, many still overlook branding. Although not essential and, for sure, not the first thing to build your MSP around, recognizable branding, such as the vision and the mission statement, the elements of design embedded into various details of your website, office interior, and clothes might become a small, yet visibly shining gem that will allow you to stand out from the crowd even more. Continue reading
Remote Deploy: Use Cases
Although an MSP’s job is challenging overall, many tasks are routine. And changing backup plans is a part of this routine. Doing this on a single computer is easy but, when you have a customer with 100+ PCs, changing all the plans might take way too long. However, you can significantly reduce the number of working hours you’re going to spend on it. Try our PowerShell module!
Bulk Backup Plan Deployment in Managed Backup Service via the Remote Deploy Feature
Performing backups regularly is essential for keeping your customers’ data safe. Setting up a backup plan on a single machine doesn’t require much effort, but what if your client has dozens of PCs? Here, the need for bulk deployment arises. MSP360 Managed Backup Service provides you with such a feature, allowing you to deploy a backup plan for the whole company with all its computers. Additionally, you might want to modify available plans if something has changed, for example, you changed the storage destination.
Managed Remote Desktop Advanced Use Cases
In MSPs’ daily work, some cases might seem fast to resolve but others require additional attention, although they are quite ordinary. Almost everyone faces them with at least one of their clients. In this guide, we’re going to describe several situations that are very common in our business and cover solving the associated issues with the help of Managed Remote Desktop. We’ll also show you some advanced features of the solution.
MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop
Feel free to test-drive our new MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop oriented towards Managed Service Providers
- Extensive management capabilities
- New Statistics page
- Deploy Helper feature
Teamwork on a Single Issue
Use Case
Your customer has an issue with their software and calls for help. One of your administrators connects remotely and tries to resolve the issue but realizes that he can’t manage it.
Solution
Managed Remote Desktop supports teamwork, meaning that you can have several administrators and give them different levels of permissions so that any of them can connect to the client’s computer at any time. If a junior administrator can’t handle a problem, it is possible to call a more experienced one who will be able to check what’s happening and either advise their colleague or do the job themselves, depending on its complexity.
In this case, the senior administrator receives a message or a call from the workmate, enters the Managed Remote Desktop console, finds the computer on which the junior encountered the complicated issue, and connects to it by clicking Join the existing session.
Please note: a second person can pass authentication only after the first one connects to the machine.
The control panel where you change administrators will appear on the primary screen. By clicking the menu next to the microphone, you will be able to see all active administrators. Hit an eye icon to pass control to another person. The eye will be replaced by a pencil icon, which means that the other administrator gets full control.
By passing controls to one another, specialists locate and resolve the problem.
After this, the senior administrator leaves the session, and the junior continues to sort out the remaining issues, if necessary.
Managed Remote Desktop provides your team with an opportunity to work together on the same issue without the need to interrupt a session or use any third-party tools to communicate. This makes their job easier, and clients have their issues solved faster.
Bulk Installation
Use Case
You have signed a contract with a new client. This client has a machine park of 300+ computers, and you need access to all of them. Manual installation might take too long.
Solution
Managed Remote Desktop has an option for bulk installation within a single company. You’ll just need to get a configured build to customize configuration settings and then utilize Group Policy or RMM solution.
Create a build with a token for the new company as usual – Downloads / Remote Desktop / Download Build / Remote Computer Installation. After setting up all the options, you’ll get a link to download this build or command-line keys to use in the deployment process copy.
Here’s a link with a token. Please note: if you rename it, it won’t work.
These are keys for the command line. The rename rule applies here as well.
The next step differs, depending on which you prefer to use: manual installation, the Group Policy feature, or an RMM solution.
- Manual installation is when users install the Managed Remote Desktop agent themselves. You’ll need to send them their company’s build or the link to this build, then users launch the file and follow the installation wizard instructions. This isn’t the best method, because you can’t control the installation process. It may happen that you won’t be able to access users’ computers when it’s needed because the users have forgotten to install the agent.
- Another option is Group Policy, which allows the deployment of the Managed Remote Desktop agent quickly and easily. Download the build, put it on the file share, or simply open access to it to all users that need the agent installed. Then, create the Group Policy Object with the installation file and run the bulk installation.
- With regard to RMM, you can use any solution. Download the Managed Remote Desktop user build with a company token, then deploy it within your RMM. Another way is to use the command line keys. The choice depends on RMM preferences.
After installing Managed Remote Desktop, all computers that have the agent will become available at Managed Backup web console.
Getting Access to an Absent Employee’s PC
Use Case
Your client’s employee is away due to vacation, sick leave, or any temporary leave and their computer can’t be accessed. This employee’s manager needs a file from the computer but doesn’t have access. The file is needed urgently.
Solution
You can easily help your customer in such a situation by connecting remotely to the required computer – there won’t be any access problems if you use the administrator account with all the necessary permissions. You can do this even if you’re not in your office – from your smartphone or laptop; MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop supports iOS and macOS. Establish the connection, find the file that your customer needs from their employee’s machine, and send it to the manager via email or put it on the local file share and grant access to those who need it.
The above cases are some that you might meet every other day, but Managed Remote Desktop is also suitable for much more specific situations. Here’s an example of utilizing several of the solution’s advanced functions.
Remote Monitoring of Several Sources
Use Case
An engineer is assigned to maintain and monitor four remote radio stations that relay very important communication data between builders of electrical lines. These stations need to maintain a connection even at a lower connection speed. The location of stations varies from the southern point of the US to the most northerly point of Canada.
Solution
All the stations are controlled with computers running Windows OS. So, the MSP360 Managed Remote Desktop agent can be installed on each computer. Our servers are located across most of the Amazon AWS regions, so we maintain good latency. After installing the agent, several functions are available.
- Picture optimization. Of course, in such a case you need to monitor all the computer controllers and you’ll need to transfer data from all four of them. By lowering the size and resolution of the picture you see on your screen, you consume less bandwidth and can see what’s happening, even if the connection is poor. Click Adjust image quality.
Customize the preferences.
- Parallel connection. You can connect to all stations and observe all of them at once, for example, on your second screen as a separate window. Then, you’ll see if something goes wrong and there will be no need to switch from one station to another.
- Sound monitoring. Managed Remote Desktop can transfer both picture and sound from remote computers, so it is not necessary to stare at screens. If the station has a specific sound signal for an emergency situation, you will be able to hear it. This feature enables automatically.
As you can see, with Managed Remote Desktop, you can master specific tasks without effort.
Conclusion
Managed Remote Desktop is a highly customizable solution that is suitable for many situations. With it, you can manage both ordinary and out-of-the-usual cases with the same ease. The solution provides the ability to work as a team, flexibility of installation, and a large variety of features that allow you to change the configuration according to your particular needs.
If you have any remaining questions, please contact our pre-sales team.
Security Considerations and Best Practices
It is sometimes thought that only big companies are affected by cyberattacks because their data might be worth a fortune. In fact, intruders may prefer smaller ones, since it is easier to compromise their security. When you’re working remotely with a company of any size, it is necessary to keep everything protected. Safety is our first priority, and we do our best for your data to be secure. Continue reading
Managed Remote Desktop Essential Features
Managed Remote Desktop is a handy solution with various features that makes your remote working processes easier while providing a high degree of safety. With this, you can get access to any services on your customer’s computer, chat or talk with a user to fully understand an issue, and send or receive files. Continue reading
Setting Up Backup and Recovery Plan Notifications in MSP360 Managed Backup
When you create a backup or a restore plan, you need to know whether everything goes well. If not, you might want to learn about this immediately, so as to make the necessary corrections. That’s where notifications matter.
MSP360 Managed Backup allows you not only to create various notifications and reports, but also to customize them, adding data that you might need in case of emergency. So, if something goes wrong, you’ll be able to react to it without delay, having the maximum information about what has happened.
Notifications and Reporting in MSP360 Managed Backup Service
When you’re managing a backup of a single computer, you can always check what’s happening there and whether the backup finished successfully. But what if you need to monitor several PCs, servers, and, moreover, several companies with all their computers? In this case, notifications will help. With these, it will be much easier to track all the backup and recovery processes.
Continue reading
Setting Up Your Branding in Managed Backup Service
When you work with people, one of the important things is how they remember you. Of course, it is the quality of service that matters the most but, if you have created your own brand, it makes it easier for customers to recognize you and, even more, to recommend you to their acquaintances. A brand is the face of your company.
That’s why MSP360 Managed Backup allows you to fully white-label your endpoint backup solution. This feature is called “Branding”. This guide tells you all you need to know to set it up and manage it.
MSP360 Backup Branding
In Managed Backup Service, you can change all the graphics and some text elements so that the endpoint users perceive this solution not as MSP360’s, but as your own, with your logo, corporate colors, and messaging. The solution will keep reminding your customers who they are working with, and this will positively influence the level of brand awareness among your users.
You can add your own logo, pictures, and icons, and even rename the solution. Also, if you work with big companies who want to preserve their brand identity, you can create multiple sets of branded solutions to fit every need.
Please note: once you create branding for a company and save it, it will be applied automatically on the next start of the MSP360 Backup solution.
How to Set Up Your Branding
To create new branding, proceed to the Settings tab, then click Branding.
If you haven’t created your branding yet, Base Branding is the only option you will see in the list. It is free of charge and allows you to change options like vendor name, product name, and the companies it should be applied to (which could be all companies or just a specific one).
To create your own branding, click Add Branding above the brandings list. In the slide-in that appears, in the General tab, you can specify names, email, and language.
In the Companies tab, you can define the companies that will receive the branded solution.
The Branding Images tab is for changing the appearance of graphics. You can set new pictures that represent your brand:
- Images that appear during the installation;
- Images that are shown in the backup or restore wizards;
- An image on the splash screen;
- An image in the dialog window;
- Icons throughout the solution.
After you’ve set everything up, click Create. Note that the branding won’t work without a license, and you’ll need an additional license for each new branding. The licenses can be managed in the main Branding menu or in the Organization tab, Licenses section, Advanced Rebranding and Custom SSL subsection.
The product branding allows you to customize the backup client. If you want to add your logo to the web console, there is another option.
MSP360 Managed Backup Service
- Cross-platform backup and recovery
- Flexible licensing
- Bring-your-own storage approach
Web Console Branding
By default, in the footer of your web console, you and your team see information about MSP360, together with a link to our website. You can change it on the login page and all other pages. To do this, go to the Settings tab, Web Console Rebranding section.
Toggle the Use Custom Image switch to ON to upload your logo to your customers’ login page. You can also change the text here.
For the other pages, you can change the picture in the footer and the tab icon.
Change the Use Rebranding switch to ON for your modifications to be seen. Click Save. If all goes well, you’ll get a confirmation message. After that, refresh the page. You can go back to the default settings by just switching off the Use Rebranding option.
Conclusion
Branding is a great way to personalize your services so that clients can easily recognize you. Additionally, customers prefer working with branded solutions, because these solutions seem more reliable. If you want to know why an MSP would need branding, consider reading our article covering this topic.
Setting Up Retention Policy in MSP360 Managed Backup Service
When you’re configuring a backup plan, setting up an appropriate retention policy is one of the points that you should pay the most attention to. The retention policy determines how many data snapshots are going to be kept and for how long, so if you don’t set it up properly, you may lose some vital data or fail to meet your obligations under compliance.
MSP360 Managed Backup Service is a highly customizable solution that allows you to create a retention policy according to your needs for any type of backup plan. You can fully control the backup datasets. In the guide below, we describe how to set up a retention policy by default and for each kind of backup plan we support.
How the Retention Policy Works in MSP360 Managed Backup Service
In MSP360 Managed Backup Service, you can set the retention policy on a per-machine basis, but there is also an option for bulk deployment. The default retention policy can be applied to any number of plans and, if you need specific settings, you can customize the retention policy within a plan. Some options may vary according to the plan type.
How to Customize and Apply Default Retention Settings
To change the default settings for an endpoint, proceed to the Remote Management section, find the endpoint needed, then click the gear icon. In the drop-down menu, choose Edit and then Edit Options.
In the window that appears, click the arrow near Retention Policy. You’ll see a list of options that work for all the plans if you don’t switch to custom ones.
If you want to pay less for the storage space and don’t need to keep data for a long time, click Delete versions older than and specify File version age, which can be counted from the backup or modification date. MSP360 Managed Backup Service will automatically delete older files. This can’t be undone, so it is highly recommended to enable the Always keep the last version option, so as not to lose vital data.
Next, specify how many versions (copies) of files or images you need to store. You can also switch on the Delay purge option – then you will have time to check how many files are going to be deleted and restore them if you want.
The History retention policy option helps you to track the backup process in detail. After the backup is completed, you can go to the History tab of the appropriate backup agent and check what happened to every single file (if the number of records is high enough) or image components. Specify when to delete records if needed.
The default options apply to all the plans, with just one exception – if an option exists in defaults and is missing in the plan preferences, it doesn’t work for this plan.
If you want to set up a retention policy on a company level, consider utilizing the Remote Deploy option. There, you can create a configuration and apply it to all the computers needed.
Per-Plan Retention Policy Settings
If you want to create a plan with options other than the default ones, select the Specify custom retention policy for backup plan option when creating a plan.
We’ve already described most of the options above, so for each plan type below, we’ll cover only plan-specific properties.
File-Level Backup
For a file-level backup, you can specify what to do with the files that have been deleted on the user’s machine. You can remove them from storage as well, after a number of days which you can set here.
Image-Based Backup
Here, a version is more of a restore point. The data version in the image-based backup can be a full backup and a respective block-level one. For example, if you select to keep three versions, that will be one full backup and two block-level ones. Bear in mind that a block-level backup cannot be deleted without performing a subsequent full backup.
Also, the Delay purge option doesn’t work for an image-based backup.
SQL Server Backup
For SQL Server Backup, a version is a full backup with all its dependencies, such as differential and transaction log backup. So, if a version is deleted, all its dependencies are deleted, too. When you choose how many versions to keep, bear in mind that these versions are stored along with all their follow-ups.
Microsoft Exchange Backup
When backing up Microsoft Exchange, a version is considered to be a chain of full backup plus block-level backups. So, in the event of deletion, this whole chain gets removed.
Virtual Machine Backup: VMware and Hyper-V
Here, everything works similarly to the image-based backup: a version is also a restore point, and it can be a full backup or a block-level one. The only difference is the opportunity to delay purge.
EC2 Instance Backup
In this case, a version is a snapshot of your virtual machine that emerges when you successfully run the EC2 backup plan. You can choose EBS for this – that’s an analog of a drive. To learn more about EC2 instance backup, check this article:
How to Back Up Amazon EC2 Instances
AMI (Amazon Machine Image)
In the EC2 backup, you can also select the AMI option, which allows you to take a snapshot of an image that can be used to start a new EC2. Here, each snapshot is also called a version.
Managed Backup Service is a solution that has the appropriate options for any type of backup. You can set up the retention policy for all the plans or define a specific policy for each of the plans. It all depends on the needs of your clients and, knowing this, we do our best to offer you the most flexibility and usability. Please contact our pre-sales team if you have any questions.
SQL Server Backup in MSP360 Managed Backup Service
Backing up Microsoft SQL Server with all its databases is a must for every organization that uses it and, therefore, is a part of an MSP’s daily work. This process is specific, because of the large amount of data and changes that are very frequent.