A Feature-Based Analysis &
Comparison of IT Automation Tools:
Comparing Kaseya to
SilverBack Technologies
Developed by:
Matthew Wander
Nestor Zamora
Advisor:
Dr. S. Masoud Sadjadi
School of Computing and Information Sciences
Florida International University
Contact Information:
[email protected],
http://www.cs.fiu.edu/~sadjadi
(305)348-1835
Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
1. Introduction
Overview: Dell ProManage Remote Infrastructure Monitoring (DPRIM) is a
revolutionary IT Automation tool owned by Dell Inc. It can monitor a wide variety
of devices such as servers, desktops, switches and routers. DPRIM’s alert system
has warnings about scheduled events that did not occur arranged by date and time.
Reports can also be created; including performance reports which describe security
issues, provide patch summaries, and outline network and server usage. Service
reports can be scheduled and sent to clients automatically, detailing events and
issues on a monthly basis. DPRIM is unlike conventional automation tools such as
Kaseya; it functions without the use of agents. It can monitor devices using
patented remote technology as opposed to agents. This remote technology is a
proxy server installed at the customer’s location called SilverStreak. A single
image containing everything needed only needs to be installed once per customer
location and is maintained centrally. DPRIM can then create an SSH or Telnet
session which is used for remote access.
Background: DPRIM Technologies is one of the longest running Managed
Service Provider Company as of today, starting just 11 years ago in 1999. In the
summer of 2007, in a deal to expand Dell’s presence in the managed service
industry, Dell purchased SilverBack Technologies where it became integrated with
Dell ProManage Remote Infrastructure Monitoring. DPRIM Technologies now
offers a range of services from monitoring of computers, networks, and
applications to reporting and patch management, all without a monitoring agent.
Since its conception in 1999, Dell has won many awards and recognition for being
the standard by which other remote management products are judged. In 2001, the
company’s InfoCare service was awarded the Crossroads 2001 A-List Award.
They were also awarded Five-Star Rating for the third time by Varbusiness
Magazine in 2005.
OS Coverage: To install SilverStreak, which is the backbone of DPRIM, on a
device one of the following Windows operating systems are required:
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
 Windows 2000 Professional or Server with any Service Pack (Service
Pack 4 recommended)
 Windows Server 2003, 32-bit or 64-bit
 Windows XP Professional, 32-bit or 64-bit with Service Pack 1 or higher
(Service Pack 2 or higher recommended, with Microsoft’s firewall
Startup Type set to ‘Manual’)
 Windows Vista Business, Enterprise, or Ultimate, 32-bit or 64-bit
(Service Pack 1 or higher recommended)
Vulnerability scanning is not supported on Windows Vista and Server 2003
(64-bit). This is because of a current limitation on the Retina vulnerability scanner
by eEye Digital Security, and will be fixed when they provide support for those
operating systems.
Grouping Managed Devices: Groups are a collection of Managed Devices that
can be used to create Monitoring Policy Targets. This is possible with Silverback
Technologies under the “Add a Group” tab. Placing managed assets into groups
enables the user to specify Monitoring Policies only to a set of Managed Assets
chosen by the user. The grouping of assets also allows the user to use groups as
Monitoring Policy targets in order to directly specify Monitoring Policy targets, as
opposed to including those Managed Assets in a Monitoring Policy.
Functional Coverage:
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Multi-tenant monitoring
Access control, delegation and privileges
Notifications
Policy-based provisioning
Easy-to-use user interface
Integrated, customizable knowledge base
Interactive HTML documentation
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]

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Performance
Vulnerability scanning
Patch management
Intrusion monitoring
Firewall monitoring
Asset management
Scheduled rediscoveries
Local credentials
Cisco Unified Communications Manager (CUCM)
1.1 Architecture
The Dell ProManage Remote Infrastructure Monitoring (DPRIM) platform
uses a distributed management approach that gets around connectivity issues
posed by firewalls and NAT. Instead of using an agent, in the case of Kaseya,
DPRIM deploys a program called SilverStreak – a proxy at the customer’s
location, which then creates an SSL tunnel back to the main application. Using
this method, Dell has removed the need for VPNs. After making the
SilverStreak tunnel, you are now setup to run any kind of remote access
including Telnet, SSH, and Windows Terminal Services. By using an agentless system, Dell has substantially reduced WAN usage caused by agent-based
monitoring.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
1.2 Auditing & Asset management
DPRIM’s assets reporting feature tracks assets by IP address, node
name and software image for capacity planning, maintenance and
accounting purposes. Each report provides information about four key
target types:
 Networks – routers, switches and firewalls
 Systems – Windows servers, Windows desktops, HP-UX, Solaris,
AIX, Linux servers, and printers
 Applications – Cisco Unified Call Manager (CUCM) servers,
Exchange 2000, 2003, and 2007 servers, SQL Servers, and Active
Directory servers.
1.3 Remote Control
DPRIM can remotely access operating systems such as Windows and
Linux and devices such as switches and routers. It also has support for many
networking protocols such as RDP, VNC, SSH and telnet. The system is
integrated, requiring no additional software and also possesses the ability to
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
transfer files. DPRIM can also support multiple remote access sessions
simultaneously.
1.4 Automation
DPRIM has many different automation features, ranging from remote
desktop, remote scripting, automatic distribution to remote systems, running
scripts per a schedule or on-demand, running scripts simultaneously on
multiple systems, policy templates to allow you to apply best practices
across multiple services, etc. Using these different automation techniques is
quite easy in DPRIM. You click the remote scripting tab and create or select
a script created for you by SilverBack Tech.
1.5 Monitoring
DPRIM has a fully integrated best-of-class monitoring system which
supports the most comprehensive fault, performance and security monitoring.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
The monitoring section covers almost all makes and models of devices,
operating systems and applications. DPRIM provides out of the box
monitoring for most infrastructure devices:
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Firewalls
Routers
Switches
Printers
Servers
Desktops
Applications
This is management is done without the use of an agent and VPN-less. The
software is fully integrated so it does not require additional software.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
1.6 Patch Management
Patch management is also an integrated feature in DPRIM, requiring
no additional software. Patches can be scheduled or installed manually.
DPRIM supports about 400 different products/versions and does so without
the use of a VPN or agent. One-click settings are available, which can set
automatic updates to always download the latest available patches and if
installation fails, an alert will be generated.
Users can generate executive level reports on a regular basis. Reports
include recently installed patches, installation failure information, and what
patches are missing for each machine on the network. DPRIM has direct
links to Microsoft’s knowledge base, which makes patch installation faster
and more efficient.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
New software can be distributed manually or scheduled and
distributed automatically to systems. DPRIM can also support silent
installations, which can run simultaneously on multiple systems.
Installations can be done unattended and alerts are generated if installation
failures occur. Reports can be generated with installation results and details.
1.7 Backup & Disaster Recovery
DPRIM does not have a fully functional backup system. As of now, DPRIM
only backs up credentials on SilverStreak.
1.8 Endpoint Security
DPRIM has a fully integrated (no additional software required) endpoint
security monitoring service. This portion of DPRIM creates reports using
industry standard format, which is Common Vulnerability and Exposures
(CVEs) format. DPRIM does interior and exterior scans with or without
credentials. It can also update automatically to the latest available CVEs.
This section also identifies and watches over open ports, shares, and more.
DPRIM also has integrated patch scanning in this portion of its program, which
scans for more than 400 different products and versions. DPRIM’s endpoint
security supports different types of devices such as switches, servers, firewalls
and routers. DPRIM’s endpoint security has many key features:
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Integrated vulnerability scanning
Executive level reports by customer, device or bulletin
Direct links to Microsoft’s knowledge base
Automatic updates to latest available patches
Login/logout activity monitoring
Account modification monitoring
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
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Automatic alerts for suspicious activity
Security alerts from routers, switches, firewalls, desktops, and servers
Centralized definitions of analysis rules
Distributed collection and analysis of events
Event storage for later forensic analysis
1.9 User State Management
DPRIM has User State Management as a fully integrated service. This
service includes many key features:
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Remote control connectivity to desktops
Ability to distribute patches to desktops
Prepare and execute scripts on desktops
Share console access with desktop user
Ability to distribute software to desktops
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
DPRIM's User State Management feature can monitor security alerts
such as login failures, viruses and application usage. It has fault and
performance monitoring and supports roaming laptops, a functionality that
few other Automation software has.
1.10 Help Desk
DPRIM has a fully integrated ticketing/alert management system. It
has the ability to track and report on a large history of issues. There is also
proactive paging system which can be done via email, cell or pager. Tickets
and alerts can be created and sent on a time-based notification. The help
desk feature allows you to view hundreds of customer alerts on a single
screen. There is support for call escalation and for managing issue severity.
Integration with third party software such as Connectwise and ServiceNow
is also possible.
1.11 Reporting
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
DPRIM uses different types of reports that include, but are not limited
to, executive level summary reports, monthly reports, performance reports,
and security scorecards. This section of DPRIM has the option to
automatically email scheduled reports to your staff and/or customers.
Multiple reports can be bundled together in an on-demand or scheduled
generation, in PDF or HTML format. DPRIM also offers two-page
performance and security that offer high-level snapshots that can be run on a
weekly or monthly basis. More comprehensive reports are available to
DPRIM users such as in-depth monthly service reports which cover aspects
such as performance and security, over a monthly basis.
1.12 System/User/Admin Management
DPRIM provides Alert/Event Management which can be configured
to receive only alerts that users find important. It has profiles for both users
and administrators which allow you to restrict the usage of different system
features. Access can also be assigned for individual machines as opposed to
having one administrator control everything. Adding users and assigning
their rights is simple using DPRIM’s graphical interface.
1.13 Usability
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
DPRIM has an easy to use, web-based interface. The learning curve is
not steep, and the features are better explained and organized than many
other Automation programs. Moving amongst the different modules is fast
and efficient, and allows you to achieve tasks in a short amount of time.
1.14 Reliability
DPRIM incorporates many of the best processes and procedures from the
Information Technology Infrastructure Library (ITIL). The ITIL is a series
of publications by IT professionals providing guidance on the best practice
for IT service management. It can incorporate many of the features, right out
of the box:
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Incident Management
Configuration Management
Problem Management
Service Level Management
Change Management
Availability Management
Features such as the integrated knowledge center, serve as an embedded
help desk to assist operations staff in knowing what to do when a particular
alarm is triggered. This allows providers to use the more inexperienced staff
members to troubleshoot alerts and focus on using the senior personnel on
more strategic efforts.
1.15 Performance
DPRIM uses a Web based system, which in our opinion was relatively
quick. The system responded to our every move without having to make us
wait long periods of time.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
1.16 Supportability
DPRIM can monitor almost any device connected to a network, not
just computers but also routers, switches, telephones, and printers. It also can
monitor different software or operating systems such as Windows, Linux,
Solaris, AIX and MAC. DPRIM is also very scalable, making it useful for
both small businesses and large ones. The support structure is multi-tiered,
designed to minimize bandwidth. Help desk response is very fast, usually
responding to any request within 24 hours.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
2. Comparison and Discussion
2.1 Evaluating and Discussing SilverBack Technologies
3
Architecture
Rating: 4
Audit & Asset Mgt
Rating: 4
Remote Control
Rating: 4
4
Automation
Rating: 4
1
2
6
Monitoring
Rating: 5
Patch Mgt
Rating: 4
7
Backup & Disaster Recovery
Rating: 1
5
8
9
Endpoint Security
Rating: 4
User State Mgt
Rating: 3
HelpDesk
10 Rating: 4
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Reporting
Rating: 5
This agent-less program is easy to get up
and running.
Tracks assets by IP address, node name
and software image
Remote control is supported by Windows
and Linux devices. Also can support
multiple remote access sessions.
Automation made simple by using the
scripts feature. And being able to schedule
when they are run.
This is the leader in monitoring where all
other products should be compared to.
It has one-click settings that can set
automatic updates to always download the
latest patches.
It has a very poor backup and disaster
recovery feature.
DPRIM is fully integrated and requires no
extra software.
DPRIM's User State Management feature
can monitor security alerts such as login
failures, viruses and application usage.
It has the ability to track and report on
many issues, and allows for viewing
hundreds of customer alerts at a time.
Has many different types of reports and
report settings and is very easy to use.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
System
12 Rating: 4
Usability
Rating: 4
Reliability
14
Rating: 4
Performance
15
Rating: 5
Supportability
16 Rating: 5
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Access can also be assigned for individual
machines as opposed to having one
administrator control everything.
Easy to use web-interface. And a low
learning curve.
It has been reliable and the system has not
failed yet.
Very fast web-based system.
It can monitor almost any device and
almost any operating system. While help
desk response is very quick.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
2.2 Rating Results Explanation/Discussion:
Individual Solution Comparison Rating System Table
Kaseya
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
Architecture
Audit & Asset Mgt
Remote Control
Automation
Monitoring
Patch Mgt
Backup & Disaster
Recovery
Endpoint Security
User State Mgt
HelpDesk
Reporting
System
Usability
Reliability
Performance
Supportability
Total
4
4
5
4
4
3
4
SilverBack
Technologies
4
4
4
4
5
4
1
5
3
5
4
4
3
4
3
4
63
4
3
4
5
4
4
4
5
5
64
All in all, SilverBack Technologies was a good and easy to use program.
Compared to Kaseya, it has a few superior features including a friendlier user
interface. Even though they are both web-based programs SilverBack technologies
was faster in response time. By our rating system, Kaseya was rated a 63/80 while
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
SilverBack Technologies was given a 64/80. Kaseya is superior in Endpoint
Security because it has many more options. It also is better in backup because
SilverBack Tech can only backup credentials.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
3. Glossary
1. DPRIM - Dell ProManage Remote Infrastructure Monitoring
2. VPN – Virtual Private Network.
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
4. Acknowledgements
1. Don Grimes
Modular Services
O. 512.946.1677 or toll free 877.671.3355 ext. 946.1677
C. 512.423.6835
Email: [email protected]
2. Lincoln H. DeMoura
Sr. Solutions Consultant | Modular Services
Dell Global Services
Mobile: +1 508-813-6026
Email: [email protected]
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Comparing Kaseya to SilverBack Technologies [email protected]
5. References
1. Clarke, Gavin. "Dell buys SilverBack on road to recovery." Register 18th 07
2007: n. pag. Web. 22 Apr 2010.
<http://www.theregister.co.uk/2007/07/18/dell_silverback_acquisition/>.
2. "Dell ProManage Remote Infrastructure Monitoring." SilverBack Tech. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 23 Apr 2010. <http://www.silverbacktech.com>.
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