Managed services developer Spiceworks has entered into a partnership with cloud-based mobility management provider Fiberlink to bring its MaaS360 mobile device management (MDM) solution to the Spiceworks 7 platform.
The announcement was made earlier this month at the SpiceWorld London conference. “Through the partnership, 2.5 million Spiceworks users will be able to inventory and monitor mobile devices and applications from Spiceworks for free and upgrade to a premium MaaS360 account for additional mobile management services,” states a Spiceworks press release from the event. “The addition of mobile device management rounds out Spiceworks’ vision to give IT professionals the tools they need manage on-premise, cloud and mobile technologies.”
“This partnership and the introduction of Spiceworks 7 will completely reshape the technologies 2.5 million IT professionals use to manage the mobile devices on their network,” adds Spiceworks co-founder and CEO Scott Abel.
Mobile Device Inventory & Monitoring
As part of the partnership, Spiceworks users will be able inventory and monitor mobile devices and applications on their network free of charge. These capabilities include:
- Mobile Device and Application Discovery—Google Android, Apple iOS, and Microsoft Windows phones and tablets are made visible to managers as are the applications running on those devices. Information on mobile device manufacturers and carriers will also be viewable from Spiceworks.
- Device Enrollmen—Users can enroll, inventory, and monitor individual or groups of devices based on existing corporate directory information.
- Custom Alerting & Monitoring—IT professionals can create and customize alerts for jail-broken devices, disabled passcodes, out-of-date operating systems, and other mobile issues.
Premium MDM Functionality
Spiceworks and Fiberlink have agreed to provide preferred, discounted pricing for SMB users requiring additional mobile device and application management functionality. This includes:
- Remote Management—Users can remotely locate, lock, and wipe employee devices that have been lost or stolen. IT departments will also be able to remotely reset device passwords.
- Application Distribution—IT departments can distribute applications to select or entire groups of devices based on policies, security issues or specific applications.
- Group Policy Management—IT departments can create and customize mobile device policies, such as the type of applications permitted on devices, for specific departments or device types.
The beta program for Spiceworks 7 opens this month (May 2013). General availability is expected in early Q3 2013.
