Everdream announced on Monday that it is bolstering its Managed Desktop Services solution to include future delivery of Web services capability for IT asset management and is branching out to support major PC platforms and more complicated software packages including Tivoli, Intel LANDesk, and Microsoft Systems Management Server (SMS).
As part of the services upgrade, customers can expect faster deployment and real-time Web-based management and automation of IT services such as data backup, electronic software distribution, service requests, and virus protection tied together through an XML/Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) interface, said Marc Solomon, senior director of products for Fremont, Calif.-based Everdream.
According to Solomon, Everdream plans to provision services via XML and enable its standards-based Web services platform to become a repository of information for customers to keep track of different partners delivering services to their desktop infrastructure through the Everdream Control Center (ECC).
"[Using ECC] customers can go and track all their assets, see a single asset, or look at them in aggregate form to make sure they're [software] license compliant," said Solomon. As well as, "look at service requests to make sure things are being addressed; advanced reporting - what's open, what's closed, and holding [service providers] accountable to service level agreements."
Everdream is currently working with Fremont, Calif.-based Sygate Technologies Inc. to bundle and integrate the security vendor's personal firewall and policy management software solutions into its backend to be leveraged via XML and SOAP capabilities, Solomon added.
Despite targeting a hosted desktop management market dominated by industry giants including Compaq Computer Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co., Electronic Data Systems Corp., IBM Global Services, Computer Sciences Corp. (CSC) and Unisys Corp., Everdream can find success reaching for low-hanging fruit in the form of smaller and mid-tier customers wrestling with lack of IT expertise and remote management headaches, said Cynthia Doyle, program manager, Network Infrastructure Management Services for Framingham, Mass.-based IDC.
"No one wants to wait around for four or eight hours to have their incident resolved. [Problems] could be lack of bodies, proliferation of [new] kinds of devices, desktops, laptop, PDAs, blackberries, mobile devices are huge pain points," said Dolyle. "Remote service availability and remote healing allow for that."
Although Doyle said outsourced desktop management can pay immediate dividends to save costs, free up overburdened staffs, and knit together IT assets within a distributed environment, she noted that customers should consider the lack of customization a hosted model brings as opposed to off-the-shelf software solutions.